You can learn invaluable lessons from books. The right book (or audiobook) can be not only a crucial companion in your spare time but an aid for your personal and professional development.
Why is a Digital Library Valuable in the Workplace?
A memorable story or practical advice read in a book can help develop a great business idea or it could become that extra push you need to boost your company’s strategy. In fact, deep, broad reading habits have been proven to lead to innovation insights and sharpen intelligence. Evidence suggests that reading habits are often a defining characteristic of great leaders and can catalyze empathy, creativity, critical thinking and effectiveness. This is precisely why you should encourage your employees to read more and facilitate access to titles by having a corporate digital library available at all times.
Organizations that want to grow and succeed recognize that books are invaluable resources for building a strong and educated workforce. Corporations, organizations, startups, scale-ups and all types of companies have sought digital access to titles that not only matter to their own industries but that can also help to shape the type of culture they want to have in their own business. Not to mention, a digital library can also include a little entertainment reading and some content for their employees’ families as well.
For business leaders, the most impactful reading extends beyond explicitly “business” books to include history, novels, biographies and even poetry. The best must-read book lists are always the most diverse. Just take a look at recommendations from Oprah Winfrey, Bill Gates, Barack Obama, or Sheryl Sandberg, to mention a few.
8 Reasons to Promote Reading Within Your Organization with a Digital Library
Not quite convinced that fostering a reading culture and offering a variety of books will take your organization to the next level? Here are some more reasons for you to mull over:
- Reading reduces stress. Studies have shown that reading can ease tension in your muscles and heart because it requires concentration and distracts you. With only 6 minutes of silent reading, the heart slows down and relaxes while you escape from the worries and stresses of everyday life and spend time exploring the domain of the author’s imagination. Reading is a great way for busy professionals to reduce stress levels.
- Reading inspires. Innovation and thinking outside the box are often difficult to achieve while performing day to day tasks. A new book can bring a worker a new set of ideas from the outside world. Reading introduces fresh and new perspectives that inspire employees to think differently.
- Reading increases knowledge. A book can be an awesome way to learn about history and get to know new cultures and expose yourself to different contexts. This is beneficial for professionals because the more you read, the more open you become in your thinking. Books are great allies to increase your awareness of people and societies.
- Reading improves conversational skills. A professional who reads on a daily basis will certainly improve their writing, vocabulary and speaking skills. A good communicator will be a better worker as they will be able to communicate ideas clearly and collaborate better.
- Reading strengthens self-discipline and consistency. How do you discipline your mind? You put it under control by establishing habits. Make reading a habit by doing it consistently and at a manageable pace. Soon, you will see consistency and self-discipline in everything you do in the workplace as well.
- Increases skills. Critical thinking, leadership, creativity and other soft skills can be reinforced by reading and learning in the workplace. It has been proven that reading books helps people succeed. And, who doesn’t want successful people in their company?
- Reading on a regular basis challenges employees to be more imaginative. Creativity is a highly valued asset in corporate business. By having a corporate digital library available 24/7, employees will read more, listen to more audiobooks and watch more videos and other digital content, and therefore have a broader set of ideas ready to be worked on.
- Reading can reinforce core values. Companies of all sizes are actively deploying corporate digital libraries and virtual book clubs to help deliver their corporate culture, core values and to achieve training and learning objectives. A title that expands upon one of your company’s core values can reinforce this principle’s importance to the business. Here at ODILO, we have helped a lot of companies choose the right books to strengthen their corporate culture and promote a healthy work environment by reading them and discussing them in virtual book club spaces. We only have success stories to share thanks to the guidance of our content experts.
To get you started, here are some tips for building a digital library for your organization:
- Introduce a digital library (like ODILO´s Corporate Digital Library) to your company. Have a personalized digital library set up for your employees.
- Pick at least 12 books and make it a reading challenge. Challenge your employees to read one book per month. Inspire them to read during their commutes, before bed and in their free time. You can even offer rewards to encourage active participation!
- Make it a habit. Encourage employees to pick a certain time of the day to do some reading and to stick to it. Make reading slots and spaces available for your team members.
- Create book clubs. Encourage the conversation by creating Virtual Book Clubs where readers can discuss a book together.
- Brag about your continuous reading and learning culture. You will see how great it is for business!