What is the meaning of reading?

 My name is Neo, and I’m an independent entrepreneur. After graduating from university, I began developing and selling the Huiye Rotating Chandelier Lift System and went on to create my own brand, lolprank.

When I was in elementary and middle school, teachers and parents encouraged us to read—not textbooks, but extracurricular books. The real purpose, though, was for us to collect writing material to improve academic performance. In high school, I kept reading a little, but most of my time was consumed by endless problem sets, especially in physics and math. Once I entered university, I tried to rebuild my reading habit. Yet, around me, hardly anyone still read books. Instead, they were busy drilling test questions for IELTS, TOEFL, or other exams. Reading had become “unnecessary.” But was it really useless? What did years of reading actually give me?

There’s a Chinese saying: “Drawing water with a bamboo basket leaves you empty-handed.” It means that if you use a basket full of holes to fetch water, the water will leak out. To me, this metaphor describes reading perfectly. I’ve read dozens of books in the past four years of university. But if you asked me to recall the details of just one, I’d probably fail. I’ve forgotten almost everything. So, does that mean reading is pointless? Just like water leaking from the basket—nothing left in the end?

Not exactly. Because even though the basket doesn’t hold much water, it still catches countless droplets! And those droplets are the true value of reading.

Every book carries the distilled thoughts of its author. It’s impossible to fully absorb or completely agree with someone else’s mind. Which means—you don’t need to spend endless hours trying to master a single book. Even if you only grasp 1% of it, that’s enough. Sounds absurd? Not really. Because what you take from a book depends heavily on your own life experience. Reading the Bible at age ten is not the same as reading it at forty. Even if you only capture a fragment, when you read widely enough, all those fragments—those 1% pieces—combine into your own 100% perspective on life. That is the meaning of reading.

Reading matters because it lets you touch the author’s soul, explore new ways of thinking, and broaden your own understanding—something scrolling through algorithm-driven social media can never replace. The truth is, when you finish a book in a single day, you won’t feel immediate growth. The benefits take years, maybe a lifetime, to reveal themselves. But one day you’ll look back and realize that reading has become an irreplaceable part of your life.

So here I am again: I’m Neo, an independent entrepreneur. After graduation, I developed the Huiye Rotating Chandelier Lift System and built the lolprank brand from scratch. I believe reading can reshape a person’s life experience. I also believe that great products can change the world and improve human lives. My dream is to create something as transformative as what Steve Jobs once did.

Follow my blog—I’ll be sharing my journey, my lessons, and my thoughts along the way. And feel free to leave a comment. Let’s grow together.