Stop Being Boring As F*ck With This Reading Challenge
The rain. Your journey there. Your job. Your kids. Small talk is boring as f*ck. And whether you’re at the office Christmas party or a family gathering, your conversations are probably Dry. As. Hell.
One way I made my life less boring? The Blinkist app.
Blinkist gathers key insights from nonfiction books and shares them in bite-sized explainers. These explainers take as little as 15 minutes to read or listen to, but they’re packed with fresh insights, expert perspectives, and information that’s actually interesting.
–The United Nations
There are 7,500 titles on the app across 27 categories. But to get you started, the Blinkist team have created a 42-day reading challenge to put an end to boring conversations, and boring people.
If that sounds like a lot, know that it’s only about 15 minutes a day, and at the end of the challenge, you’ll be able to talk intelligently about all sorts of topics — ensuring you’re never the most boring person in the room again.
Here’s a taste of what you could learn.
1. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman
Thinking, Fast and Slow
- 28 min reading time
- audio version available
Daniel Kahneman won the Nobel Prize in Economics for his research on psychology and behavioral economics, so you know he’s got interesting things to say.
Thinking, Fast and Slow covers how we make decisions, judgments, and mental mistakes. Essentially, how your brain works and how you can use it better.
“Intelligence is not only the ability to reason; it is also the ability to find relevant material in memory and to deploy attention when needed.”
2. The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
The 48 Laws of Power (New Version)
- 33 min reading time
- audio version available
Learn about power, success, and human behavior in hierarchical societies. Using examples from history, author Robert Greene teaches you how to play the game of life — and win every time.
The book has sold millions of copies worldwide and is banned in prisons across 18 U.S. states, so it’ll definitely fire up your conversations.
3. The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson
The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck
- 22 min reading time
- audio version available
Stop following the herd and have the balls to live life on your own terms. Mark Manson’s book, The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, teaches you how.
It covers why you should care about the important things — and stop giving a f*ck about the rest — and how to let go of shitty values and find ones you believe in.
4. The 5AM Club by Robin Sharma
The 5 AM Club
- 22 min reading time
- audio version available
Sleeping in until noon because you don’t have a life? F*ck that. Robin Sharma’s book will give you a whole new perspective. Wake up at 5AM and dedicate the first hour of your day to becoming a more interesting person.
“Take excellent care of the front end of your day, and the rest of your day will pretty much take care of itself. Own your morning. Elevate your life.”
Sharma prescribes 20 minutes of exercise, 20 minutes of reflection, and 20 minutes of learning. Use Blinkist to maximize your learning time and get insights from entire books every single morning.
5. How to Talk to Anyone by Leil Lowndes
How to Talk to Anyone
- 25 min reading time
- audio version available
Socially awkward wreck? This book will knock that out of you. Leil Lowndes shares 92 tips for better conversations and social interactions.
Learn how to use body language to make a good first impression, ask open questions to keep conversations from stalling, and deploy imitation to build rapport.
6. How to Break Up with Your Phone by Catherine Price
How to Break Up with Your Phone
- 26 min reading time
- audio version available
Ever think social media is crap and making us all clones of each other? Yeah, us too. Swap doomscrolling TikTok and Instagram for an app that actually adds something to your life, and have more time to do interesting things.
How to Break Up with Your Phone teaches you how to do exactly that. But instead of giving up your phone entirely, it covers how to break your phone addiction and stop using it as a distraction, and instead use it more mindfully to enhance your life.
“When we started, most apps were for social media or gaming. We wanted to do something different and build an app that would add genuine value to someone’s life.”
FYI, Ten Arguments for Deleting Your Social Media Accounts Right Now, is also a part of the reading challenge, if you want to really transform your life.
7. 12 Rules for Life by Jordan B. Peterson
12 Rules For Life
- 33 min reading time
- audio version available
Jordan B. Peterson is a highly controversial character, and his books are worth a read just to see what all the fuss is about.
12 Rules for Life is a good place to start. This book covers 12 rules — duh — you can follow to find meaning in life. Lessons come from philosophy, religion, history, and mythology. Some of the advice deserves debate, and some of it is super practical — like how improving your posture can improve your mindset.
“To stand up straight with your shoulders back is to accept the terrible responsibility of life, with eyes wide open. It means deciding to voluntarily transform the chaos of potential into the realities of habitable order.”
Become More Interesting in Just 15 Minutes A Day
Reading expands your worldview, teaches you cool things, and helps you form an original opinion on a range of topics. But it also takes a f*ck ton of time.
It takes people an average of eight hours to read a book. If you want to read all 42 books on this list, you’d be reading for 336 hours — that’s 14 days straight. Add in work and a social life, and you’ll probably be reading for years.
With Blinkist, you just need about 15 minutes a day. All the information you need from a book is boiled down into one explainer you can get through in minutes.
Learn Cool Things On the Go
You’ve got things to be doing with your life, right? Listen to Blinkist’s explainers on the go, whether that’s at the gym, running errands, or commuting. There’s no excuse not to expand your knowledge every day.
And beyond book explainers, Blinkist has Guides. Here, experts and thought leaders walk you through everything you need to know to master a topic.
Learn unconventional management techniques from leadership coach Dr. Jason Womach, or how to save effectively for retirement with finance expert Anne Lester.
A Library That’s Anything But Boring
The Blinkist team adds 70 new books to the app’s library each month. It currently stands at 7,500 books spanning 27 categories like psychology, politics, technology, and culture.
Here’s a challenge: Read Rich Dad, Poor Dad, Tools of Titans, and 13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do and try not to become a more interesting person immediately. We bet you can’t.
Join 31 Million People Expanding Their Knowledge
Look, you’re not the only person who wants to become more interesting. There are 31 million people already using Blinkist to stay up to date on the latest New York Times bestsellers or read classics everyone should know about.
They’ve given the app 94,000 5-star ratings in app stores and the reviews speak for themselves:
— 5-star review
— 5-star review
One of the World’s Best Apps for Becoming a Better You
Blinkist is talked about everywhere. It’s won awards from Google and the United Nations, it’s been praised by Forbes and the New York Times, and Apple named it one of the top 20 apps for lifelong learning.
If you’re going to trust anything with your self-development, make it this app.
Source: https://twitter.com/TonaMarturet/status/1158471960294232064
An App Designed to Help You Remember Everything You Learn
You’ll actually remember what you learn on Blinkist. The team uses neuroscientific principles to make sure all the information you consume on the app is memorable. In Guides, you’ll find interactive exercises and recaps to help you absorb everything.
You’ll never be stuck on what to talk about again, or be left out of a conversation because you don’t know how to contribute.
Ready to stop being boring AF? Download Blinkist and become the most well-read person you know in 42 days.
