Visit the Library
April 29th, 2005 by Steve Pavlina
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When was the last time you made a trip to the local public library? In addition to some rather smelly books, my local library has a small collection of audio programs too, and I can renew most items online for up to 9 weeks before having to return them.
You may not find the latest and greatest new releases, but at least it’s free. I often check out a bunch of items that interest me and then skim through them at home at my leisure. It’s a great way to pick up some new ideas and prevent staleness of thought.
It’s funny how often today’s best “secrets of success” can be found in the writings of Socrates, Franklin, or Emerson. It’s humbling to think I’ve figured out a new secret to life, the universe, and everything, only to later discover that Aristotle had me beat by 2350 years. And despite the archaic language, the classics are often easier to comprehend because they were written long before marketing messed us all up.
April 29th, 2005 at 7:22 am
Getting worried about your Steve - the posts get shorter, with virtually no substance and guessing from the number of comments (ever decreasing) people don’t find them very compelling. I guess you need someone to kick your butt to get you straightened out. HOW ABOUT SOME SUBSTANCE? Enought of this shallow sh*t.
April 29th, 2005 at 8:13 am
Out of ritalin again?
April 29th, 2005 at 12:32 pm
Whoa, Bugiman! That was a little harsh. I think the length of posts is a matter of taste. I personally find that smaller posts are helpful because there might only be one or two thoughts to digest at a time.
When I’m at work (on break ofcourse!) I don’t have 20 - 30 minutes to commit to a whole article. I generally save those to read at night when I can make notes or ponder the great ideas that Steve gives us… for FREE!
As for the Library, I actually go there on Sat. mornings to work on personal projects. It’s a quiet work atmosphere, there is a free wireless connection for my laptop, and I don’t feel like I should be mowing the lawn or something. It’s my publicly funded office!
April 29th, 2005 at 1:26 pm
lol at your comment Steve.
I love my local public library. I’m still only partly done their sci-fi/fantasy section (only been in this city for a few years) which was my primary motivation for going. However I’ve also found a bunch of other books in marketing/business/design fields that was quite helpful to me.
I’m not sure if they have audiobooks, I’ll take a look the next time I’m there.
April 29th, 2005 at 7:05 pm
Funny you mention that, I was just about to go to the library to borrow some audio tapes to listen to on the way to work
As for Bugiman’s comment, he’s got a point. I personally prefer more meat in a blog, with a comment such as going to the library as a usefull addition to the blog. The best blogs are like mini articles.
April 29th, 2005 at 7:21 pm
The library is the best! Twenty-two years ago I took my son there (then age 2) for books with accompanying cassettes, books to read together, storytelling hour and lots of other fun. We shared so much looking through the stacks of children’s books, discussing the titles and book covers. This continued throughout our lives.
He was the one who discovered that the library will often buy a book you want, if it is not in their collection. He discovered this in the tenth grade as a high school chess champion. When he could not find the chess strategy books he needed at the county library, they had him fill out a request and presto-two weeks later the books he wanted were part of the library’s collection.
I read the most recent issues of Writer’s Digest and Forbes there, enabling me to save my money. They sell magazines and paperback books for .10. I buy tons of those for the local nursing home.
I just finished Donald Trump and Bill Rancic’s latest, and am presently in the middle of Wayne Dyer’s, The Power of Intention; all free thanks to the library.
April 30th, 2005 at 5:36 am
The eastern Massachusetts library system has two fantastic things going for it: interlibrary loan, and a web interface. When I see a reference to an interesting book, I pop open a browser, see if the system has it, request it, and pick it up a few days later. If I get impatient I can watch the status change from AVAILABLE to IN TRANSIT to READY FOR PICKUP, like tracking a UPS package.
It’s got all of the benefits of Amazon, but it’s free!
April 30th, 2005 at 8:08 pm
Like Voyager, http://www.surreylibraries.org/ is my local library and altho its free, I keep building up a bill requesting books from all corners of the UK.
May 1st, 2005 at 4:07 pm
Here is a tip opposite to Steve’s article: If you have a few days of vacation, stop reading books and magazines, stop browsing the web and stop watching TV. Take just one magazine with you, for the times when you’re really bored.
By reading all the time, you are bombarding your mind with new information. Your mind may not have enough time to process and organize the information. You may feel that you are learning new things, but in fact you are getting more and more confused.
If you stop reading and bringing in new information for a few days, you may be very surprised by the effects: You will have more time to think. The issues you are facing may become clearer, and you may even find solutions you didn’t think about before.
May 3rd, 2005 at 12:25 pm
I would venture a guess that *most* library systems have web interfaces by now. I know ours does and I don’t live in a densely populated area. In addition to the convenience of seeing what you have out, etc., you might be able to request books from other libraries in the same system.
May 6th, 2005 at 4:07 am
Jast a note: there is no any writings of Socrat at all.) We can read about him in Platon books or some other authors, but there are no any books written by Socrat.)
May 6th, 2005 at 4:34 am
And one more note: thank you very much for your work. I’ve managed with several very difficult problems in my life due to your articles.) Thank you one more time.)