Unfortunately, many leaders waste that time on social media and 24-hour cable news. A much better use of that time is to develop a book reading list, find a couch, and start reading.

While staying informed, especially during these unusual times, is vital, we don’t really need to follow all the breaking news and every single Facebook, Instagram and TikTok update. “A wealth of information creates a poverty of attention,” noted the economist and cognitive psychologist Herbert Simon. With all the information coming at us from different sources, we have to limit our inputs in order to see what is important and what is not.

Here is an example from my personal life: I still have a Facebook account, which I visit once or twice per week. However, for the last two years, I have deleted the Facebook App from my phone to make sure that am not tempted by it several times a day. This way, I don’t waste hours every day on updates that I don’t need. Instead, I have books all over the house, and one in the car, just in case.

Tolstoy noted long time ago that when we read, we give ourselves the opportunity to communicate with the wisest people who ever lived on earth. The high-performing leaders that I coach share that they block 30 minutes, typically every morning or evening, to read business and leadership books, as well as other types of books and articles that push them to think deeper.

“What books should I read?” Many leaders ask me. They are motivated to read more, they have blocked the time to do it, but they don’t know where to start. To answer that question, I am creating a list of the 10 Best Leadership Books ever to get you started. To receive this list for free, please sign up to my “Leaders are Readers” Newsletter at www.amerkaissi.com.

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Dr. Amer Kaissi is Keynote Speaker on High-Performance Teams, Executive Coach and an expert on Leadership, Humility & Ambition, Assuming Positive Intent, Psychological Safety & Accountability, Growth Mindsets & Resilience. He is the author of five books.