Cultivate a Board of Recommended Reading

If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads. — Ralph Waldo Emerson

The idea here is to cultivate a small handful of relationships with people whose taste in and knowledge of books you admire and respect.

Of course, this could be people you know personally, but it doesn't have to be. And really, why limit yourself when the entire Internet is your oyster?

As you read online, look for people whose writing you admire. Then, sign up for their newsletter or somehow try to follow their work regularly. Good writers are usually good readers. And good readers who write regularly, usually can't help but talk about and recommend what they're reading.

You can also poke around their websites and look for articles or guides they've written about their favorite books of the past year, recommended reading lists, etc.

Once you've identified this handful of people who give out consistently high-quality recommendations, make sure you have a reliable system for taking advantage of their recommendations.

As I mentioned, be sure that you somehow follow them so that you get updates on their latest posts, articles, etc. But you also want your own system for capturing their recommendations and ensuring that they end up as things you actually read.

On the benefits of the Amazon Wish List

I use an Amazon Wish List for this. Wish Lists are like a shopping cart but without the buy function. You simply leave books (or anything else) that you find on Amazon in them so that when you're ready to buy, you know where they are.

For me, every time one of my favorite writers online mentions or recommends a good book, I immediately click the link to find it in Amazon, then hit the "Add to my List" button so that it's immediately saved for future reference and/or purchase.