Have you ever heard someone say “You don’t need to read non-fiction books anymore!”? I’m not sure if they think they have it all together or are just pretending they are somehow above personal development. I’ve also heard people say, “I stopped listening to podcasts”. (#pride)
When people say they are done with learning, what are they saying? They are saying, “I don’t need this. I know it better.” And that’s exactly the type of person I find it difficult to relate to well.
I consider myself a lifelong learner. On this side of heaven, I know I’m flawed and need help especially with the “blind spots”. According to Wikipedia: Lifelong learning is the “ongoing, voluntary, and self-motivated” pursuit of knowledge for either personal or professional reasons.
I embrace all forms of education. I am a serial reader 🙂 I try and read one book a week. There are times when I cant, but that is my personal goal.
When I am driving, I rarely listen to music. Nothing wrong with music but I feel more productive when I listen to an audio book or listen to podcasts.
Here are a few Podcasts that I recommend for pastors, church leaders, and church planters:
The Carey Nieuwhof Leadership Podcast – https://careynieuwhof.com/mypodcast/
The 200 Churches Podcast – https://www.200churches.com/podcast.html
In The Trenches – https://getinthetrenches.com/
Audio Books
Many of my friends use Audible, and that’s great for audio books. I use Scribd because I can get unlimited books and unlimited audiobooks for $8.99. Here is a link – SCRIBD
Another Option for Leadership Development
If you are screaming on the inside right now or have anxiety about reading a book a week, I have a solution. I started receiving Leadership Summaries a few years ago and have found it helpful and it saves hours of precious time. With this subscription service, they give you a summary of the book in different formats. The “Nutshell” option is a 2-page super-summary of each book The other option is a concise 12-15 page book summary. Here is a link to this resource: Study Leadership
Take away the excuses, put away the pride and commit to being a life-long learner.