Why I Read Physical Books in a Digital World (and Why It Matters for AI Users)

I love technology. I use AI every day…in my business, in my creative work, and in my life. I believe it’s one of the most powerful tools we’ve ever had.

And still, I read physical books.

Not audiobooks. Not digital readers. Real books with pages you turn, margins you can mark, and weight you can feel in your hands.

This isn’t about being anti-technology. It’s about being intentional with it.

Most of our days are already filled with screens. Notifications. Tabs. Algorithms deciding what comes next. Even when technology is helpful, it trains our brains to skim, react, and move fast. Over time, that changes how we think.

Reading a physical book does the opposite.

It slows you down. There are no alerts pulling your attention away. No hyperlinks tempting you to jump to something else. You stay with one idea long enough to actually think about it. Your brain has to visualize, interpret, and connect ideas on its own instead of being fed bite-sized summaries.

That kind of mental effort matters, especially if you use AI.

AI is incredible at generating content, organizing information, and speeding things up. But it doesn’t replace the thinking that happens before you open the tool. The quality of what AI gives you depends heavily on the quality of what you bring into the conversation.

When you challenge your brain off-screen through reading, reflection, and focused thinking, you show up to AI with better questions, clearer context, and stronger ideas. You’re not asking it to think for you; you’re asking it to work with you.

That’s where AI becomes a true collaborator instead of a crutch.

I’ve noticed that when I read regularly, my prompts get better. My ideas feel more connected. I catch mistakes faster. I can tell when something doesn’t sound quite right. Those skills don’t come from using more tools, they come from exercising your mind without them.

In a world where technology keeps getting easier, challenging your brain has become more important, not less.

For me, holding a book is one simple way to do that.

Technology should expand our thinking, not replace it. And sometimes, the best way to sharpen your on-screen thinking is to step away from the screen entirely.