I currently work as a publicist at a business publisher. Publishing is a good industry for me, because not only am I passionate about media – main stream as well as new – but I also happen to be a reader. I like books and reading. Always have. But one of the challenges in my current role is finding time for pleasure reading. Don’t get me wrong, I actually really like working on business topics and think understanding management, leadership, career issues, innovation, etc. is important for a fulfilling and successful career. But when you’re charged with developing and executing campaigns for 30-45 business books a year, staying on top of the business of media as well as publishing news, developing new professional competencies, and being familiar with a whole bunch of newspapers, magazines, industry trades, TV shows, freelancers, blogs, radio programs, social networks, and probably a couple of categories I forgot, sometimes you can get in to a funk where all you want to do is come home and watch Bravo. (That could just be me).
So this summer, I decided to push myself out of that funk. I formed a book club. I rededicated myself to reading, and it was exactly what I needed. Somehow, even though I was busy taking digital marketing classes through the NYU School of Continual and Professional Studies, as well as learning HTML, CSS, and XHTML, I not only found time to read three books for the book club, but three other books for my own enjoyment, as well as Don’t Make Me Think!, a book about web design and usability, as well as Google’s free ebook, Winning the Zero Moment of Truth.
What do you do to make sure you have time to read for pleasure?
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