Why Re-Read Your Favorite Book?

Why re-read Tolkien? The books are the same, but you are different.

Last week’s article discussed self-imposed limits on our growth, what I called AGL: Artificial Growth Limitations.

Did you know that breaking these self-imposed limits can include repeating important experiences, such as rereading great books or revisiting powerful historical sites?

I periodically reread my favorite books, like Tolkien’s The Lord of the Rings, Plato’s Republic, Tolstoy’s War and Peace, and Homer’s The Iliad and the Odyssey, because I always derive new insights to apply.

Rereading The Lord of the Rings recently showed me a new way to appreciate Gandalf, the wizard who served as a guide and mentor to Frodo and Aragorn.

Gandalf rarely imposed his answers, because he knew that his protégés would be more likely to follow through on challenging decisions if the solutions were theirs. He would let them wrestle with the matters for a while, working through the situations and options, while providing nudges and wisdom along the way.

This insight struck me professionally and improved how I support you. I used to rapid-fire solutions, thinking that providing immediate answers was the best way to serve. I realized that doing so denied you the opportunity to wrestle with the matter.

Gandalf showed me that it’s more important for you to have a good solution you own than for someone to provide you with a better one you don’t.

I’ve read The Lord of the Rings well over a dozen times, and new insights emerge each time. To paraphrase Heraclitus, you never step into the same river twice, because it’s no longer the same river and you are no longer the same person.

Here’s the twist: The Lord of the Rings is the same, but you are different, so you experience the work differently, as if it were a different book.

I’ll call it the Heraclitus Principle of Growth: you never have the same experience twice if you derive new insights and apply them.

Six points are essential as you move along the infinity loop of growth.

1. Observation: What are you actually experiencing?
2. Interpretation: What meaning(s) do you derive from it?
3. Discernment: What meaning matters most?
4. Experimentation: What will you try?
5. Execution: What did you implement?
6. Reflection: What did you learn?

What great book, adventure, historical site, or awe continues paying new dividends for you?

About Author

Chris Kolenda

I work with leaders who want to build unshakeable business endurance.

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