Rock your world at Dashboard University

Welcome to Dashboard University.

I am a huge fan of the late Zig Ziglar, the world’s foremost authority and speaker on motivation and success. I never got to meet him, but I did meet his son, Tom Ziglar, shortly after Zig’s passing in 2012. Both are amazing men in their own right.

Zig Ziglar, to the best of my knowledge, is the one who came up with the concept of Dashboard University. Essentially it means listening to audiobooks in your car rather than the radio. He referenced a study in which the average commute time was measured and scientists determined that if the occupants of the car listened to books that it would give them the equivalent of a master’s degree in just a few years.

I can tell you right now that no one is going to mistake me for someone of master’s level intelligence, but I did begin listening to audiobooks in 2008 and estimate that I have listened to more than 225 books since then. I still read printed books, but there is no way I could make the time to read 225 books in six years, especially with the commutes that I’ve had.

Most of those years I had a one-hour commute each direction to work. It’s now about a half an hour, which is still a significant chunk of time each week. It’s amazing how much you can “read” and learn in time that is normally wasted. I’ve listened to a lot of books by Zig Ziglar, Dave Ramsey, Stephen Covey, Napoleon Hill, Rick Warren, Nick Vujicic, and a host of others.

The time spent in Dashboard University has also allowed me to “read” the entire Harry Potter series, the Left Behind series, and most of the books by my two favorite authors, Clive Cussler and Brad Meltzer. There has also been a liberal sprinkling of Louis L’Amour westerns and most of the Ender’s Game series by Orson Scott Card.

I like to mix educational and motivational books with a variety of fiction novels. It’s usually the latter that encourages me to slow down, take the long way, or wait a few extra minutes in my car when I reach my destination because the book it too good to “put down.” (I guess you could call them real “wheel-turners.”)

Ziglar is by far my favorite audio author because his books are really just recordings of his motivational presentations. I never grow tired of listening to him. I know most of his stories, jokes and anecdotes by heart. I know for a fact that he has never said the word “denial” without mentioning a river in Egypt!

Presentation is vitally important in a good audiobook. There have been some that I’ve had to quit listening to because, despite my interest in the subject matter, the narrator’s monotone was putting me to sleep. That’s a bad thing when you’re behind the wheel in Dashboard University.

Aside from Ziglar, the best audiobook narrator on the planet is Scott Brick. He is undeniably the best voice actor in the business. He does accents and inflections that make a story come to life. I’ve gotten to know Brick via email and Facebook. I’d be honored to meet him in person some day. The same goes for Meltzer, whom I’ve communicated with via phone, email and Facebook.

Listening to books has been more than entertaining and inspiring, it has roused my curiosity and imagination. They have taken me to places my daily commute never could. It has enriched my life beyond measure.

I realize that most people in Sealy do not have long commutes, but some do. And you would be surprised at how much time you do spend behind the wheel just tooling around town each day. That’s a lot of time to listen and learn.

It’s saddening whenever someone drives by with their rap/hip-hop/whatever music pulsating so loud that it rattles windows and overpowers your personal space. Not only are those people permanently damaging their hearing, but their thinking as well. Garbage in, garbage out. Sure, there are times I like to listen to music and enjoy the radio. Compared to the times spent with a good book, however, those moments are rare and not nearly as fulfilling.

At least with a book you don’t get songs like “Dancing Queen” and “Let It Go” stuck in your head! And this, my friends, ends your lesson for the day from Dashboard University. No go and get those songs out of your head!