You Don't Have To Finish It
Why you should not feel guilty giving up on a book
I used to be hardcore about finishing books. If I started it, I had to finish it no matter what. But that became a problem. It created a backlog of books I wanted to read while I procrastinated on slogging through the current book I hated. “I can’t start that until I finish with this…eventually.”
I tried to be thoughtful and patient with books thinking maybe the payoff comes towards the end. I know better now that a book that sucks in the beginning is extremely likely to suck at the end too. It is enormously rare for a book to have a magic payoff.
I started following what I call the 20% rule. If I get to 20% of the book and I do not feel compelled to pick it up or I have to negotiate with myself to read it, then it’s not worth it to keep going.
Why 20%? It’s more than enough for the author to introduce their ideas and start the ball rolling. If I feel bored to tears by that point, it’s really unlikely the book is going to significantly change enough for me to feel differently.
Is it judgemental? Yes, but it’s also fair. I gave the author plenty of time. It’s like going on a few dates and you’re just not into that person. You kept showing up to be nice but you don’t feel a connection. Are you going to keep going for the hell of it? I hope not. It’s a waste of time.
I now have little concern of adding books to the did-not-finish pile. Here are just a few I gave up on recently.
The Celestine Prophecy. I cannot stand novels, especially when the narrative is corny. This book felt like it was trying way too hard to be mysterious and profound. I bailed after a few chapters. I later learned that another author I like, Alan Weiss, said he tried reading this book and he hated it. It made me feel validated.
The Secret Masterclass on Wealth, Health, and Love. Holy moly, this book was repetitive. It just kept hammering the same exact concept sprinkled with generic anecdotes. It started to become torture to keep going and I bailed. I found a better alternative called The Game of Life and How to Play It. It was much shorter and it’s in the public domain.
The Path of Least Resistance. I heard this book was recommended by a few people and I could not see what the hype was about once I started it. I don’t see the big deal here, I thought. It felt like an overly wordy, vague, and abstract description of prioritizing plans/vision over problems/firefighting. Alan Weiss covered this same idea in about five pages in his book Million Dollar Consulting.
Some of these books I tried only because other authors or bloggers I like recommended them. Another thing I have learned is crucial—just because influential people recommend a book doesn’t mean it’s actually the right book for you to read too. For whatever reason, the book may not click and that’s perfectly okay.
I hope books become less of a thing in the 21st century. The horror, how could I suggest a thing! I’m not against sharing knowledge but I am advocating that it could be done more efficiently. There are too many terrible books that could have been excellent articles or essays instead. I’d rather pay a few dollars for an excellent 50-page pamphlet than $20 for a repetitive, boring book.
I wish pamphlets would make a comeback. Did you know a 47-page pamphlet by Thomas Paine was a major reason for the American Revolutionary War? The short work titled Common Sense advocated and clearly explained to readers why America needed to declare independence from Britain. The colonies were already broiling with controversy and this pamphlet helped convince the general population to support independence. Founding father John Adams later said “Without the pen of Paine, the sword of Washington would have been wielded in vain.” All of that from a 47-page pamphlet!
Taking a concept that could be beautifully said in 20 pages and bloating it to a 200-page book doesn’t do any justice to the author, the ideas, or the reader. I know the typical response is that there is more money in books than sharing an essay. In reality, the chances of writing a best-seller book is brutally dismal. The real money comes from the side ventures and business the book can help generate for the author—consulting, public speaking, and deal networking.
I no longer feel guilty for moving on from a book I’m not enjoying. 20% is more than enough of a try and I have a long queue of other works that could be a better use of my time.
