“I’m looking for my next show to binge-watch, what are your suggestions?”
I’ve observed friends making this request on my social media feed more times than I can count. I’m sure you have too. You may have even been the guilty party making such a plea.
Streaming services like Netflix, Amazon Prime, Hulu and now Disney+ have made endless television and movies somehow even more accessible and affordable than ever.
It seems we are all desperate for more streaming content to consume.
But rarely does anyone ask, “Should ‘binge-watching’ be a regular practice?”
It’s a question we probably should consider. What else could we being doing with all that time?
Warren Buffet, the most successful investor in world history, claims to read five to six hours each day. We are not privy to data about his Netflix-binging habits.
Likewise, it’s been reported that billionaire businessman Mark Cuban reads three hours daily.
You may not have several hours daily to devote to reading, but how many hours are you regularly spending to keep up with Game of Thrones or re-watching the Office or Parks and Rec?
It’s very telling that some of the brightest minds on the planet devote what seems to most of us a ridiculous amount of time to this activity.
Could they know something we don’t?
Following are several reasons I am attempting to binge-read more and binge-watch less:
#1- Reading engages the mind. Watching does not.
Reading is a source of inspiration and motivation. Because reading engages the mind, it causes the reader to think and it fosters creativity. Television does the mental hard work for you, allowing the mind to effectively be lulled to sleep.
Reading is the mental equivalent of jogging on a track. Watching TV is the mental equivalent of riding on a roller coaster. It provides a lot of fun, but zero benefits beyond.
#2- Reading develops focus.
Concentration and focus are skills that require practice to develop. These skills can come in extremely handy when tackling a problem or dealing with some of life’s more complex relational and emotional issues.
Reading for extended periods of time helps build the mental muscles used for this concentration and focus. Watching for extended periods of time does the opposite.
#3- It can make you an expert.
Reading is the primary and most efficient source of information-collection for human beings. Sure, you can glean information from conversing with others, listening to the radio or podcasts, or even watching TV. But nothing else provides the retention rate of good old-fashioned reading.
It has been said that reading ten books on a given subject will make you an expert in that field.
In fact, when Elon Musk was once asked in an interview how he learned about rockets, his simple reply was, “By reading books.”
#4- Reading is the antidote to the sound bite culture.
As shocking as it may sound, complex issues like abortion, immigration, and taxation can’t always be adequately addressed through sound bites and memes.
Books provide a longform medium in which complex issues can be thoroughly addressed from multiple angles. The reader is forced to think deeply and thoroughly, to weigh differing opinions, and to reach thoughtful conclusions.
The news outlets like Fox and CNN simply don’t have the ability to treat many of these subjects with the time and attention they require. As a result, they must boil issues down to catchy turns of phrase.
Even documentaries like those found on television and the streaming services don’t give the viewer the ability to internalize and reflect on the information presented like books do.
With a book, you can survey the information at your own pace, pause when necessary, and reread easily as many times as you wish.
Reading allows us to navigate the complex issues of today far better than watching.
#5- Binge-watching displaces more productive uses of time.
Watching a little bit is ok, but too much can rot your brain and take up valuable time that could be spent far more productively.
You may feel that you don’t have any spare time to devote to reading. Your life is simply too busy. Then again, you might have more than you think.
According to the Nielsen rating agency, adults in the U.S. are now watching five hours and four minutes of television per day.
I find it ironic that this is almost exactly the amount of time that Warren Buffet claims to spend reading daily. Could there be connection?
It’s easy to allow the distractions and busyness of our lives to convince us that we just can’t afford to make the time to read. But it could be that many of us have this all backwards.
Instead, I would submit that those of us who wish to be more successful, can’t afford not to read regularly.
The next time you are tempted to delve into yet another Netflix series, consider what else you could be doing with those hours.
And know that at that moment, Warren Buffet probably has his nose in a book.
*To explore some of my favorite books and see what I’ve been reading lately, visit my Recommended Reading page here.