Prominent venture capitalist Marc Andreessen spends several hours of the day glued to audiobooks and podcasts — delving into a wide range of topics and genres. The billionaire businessman had previously spoken about the revolutionary impact AirPods had on his lifestyle, calling it the “single biggest technological leap” of his life. By his own estimates, Andreessen now spends nearly 24 hours per week learning about history, reading biographies, and understanding new subject areas such as artificial intelligence.
Andreessen had shared a detailed version of his weekly schedule amid the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020 — revealing about two hours of reading time on most weekdays. Matters appear to have remained unchanged over the past few years, with Andreessen ramping up his knowledge intake via audiobooks and podcasts.
“I’ve always been like this. I just, I’m reading basically every spare minute that I have on your phone, iPad, sort of everything. And so AirPods are probably the single biggest technological leap in my life since I was probably a little kid, that actually really mattered,” Andreessen told the How I Write podcast in 2023.
Reading for success – What do Mark Cuban and Bill Gates say?
Prominent leaders have repeatedly extolled the virtues of reading over the years — with billionaire businessman Mark Cuban once revealing that he “read more than 3 hours almost every day”. He had insisted that the practice gave him a “level of comfort and confidence” in his businesses.
“I read books about successful people. In fact, I read every book or magazine I could get my hands on. I would tell myself one good idea would pay for the book and could make the difference between me making it or not…Everything I read was public. Anyone could buy the same books and magazines. The same information was available to anyone who wanted it. Turns out most people didn’t want it,” the former Shark Tank star wrote in a 2011 blog compilation.
Microsoft cofounder Bill Gates has also been a strong proponent of reading — finishing dozens of books every year and releasing annual recommendation lists. He had highlighted five must-read books as part of a Christmas list last month.
“Warren Buffett loaned me his copy of Business Adventures by John Brooks many years ago. It’s still the best business book I’ve ever read. You don’t really start getting old until you stop learning. Every book teaches me something new or helps me see things differently. Reading fuels a sense of curiosity about the world, which I think helped drive me forward in my career and in the work that I do now with my foundation,” Gates said during a 2017 interview with Time magazine.
Reading to save lives
Multiple studies have shown that reading can offer a wide range of cognitive, emotional, and physical benefits. Regular consumption of information can strengthen brain function and reduce stress. It enhances focus and concentration over time, builds analytical skills and improves memory retention.
A Yale study published in 2016 had also linked book reading to nearly two extra years of life — attributing this to sustained mental activity that wards off cognitive decline in the form of dementia and other ailments.
Separate research from 2009 showed that even six minutes of reading could lower heart rate and stress by up to 68% — far outpacing typically ‘soothing’ activities such as listening to music, drinking tea or walking. Reading also promotes better sleep, lower blood pressure, and overall longevity when sustained over 30 minutes daily. Studies suggest that book readers have a 20% mortality reduction compared to non-readers or periodical consumers.