“The currency of life is time,” wrote one anonymous billionaire family leader in the report. “It is not money. You think carefully about how you spend one dollar. You should think just as carefully as how you spend one hour.”
In a technology-driven era where tools like ChatGPT can summarize hundreds of pages in seconds, sitting down with a book may feel inefficient. But many of the world’s most successful business leaders have long argued the opposite: deep reading remains one of the fastest ways to build durable knowledge.
Buffett, for his part, is also an avid reader.
“That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.”
According to JPMorgan’s latest Principal Discussions report.
Even though reading is cited as a major driver of long-term success, it isn’t how most ultra-wealthy families prefer to spend all their downtime.
In the JPMorgan report, reading ranked No. 7 among hobbits and interests principals said they were most passionate about—trailing outdoor activities, time with family and friends, and even work itself.
That gap highlights a key distinction: while reading may not be the top pastime, its value means it’s treated as a strategic discipline—a pattern that’s likely to become even more notable as AI reshapes how information is consumed.
AI use is already widespread among the ultra-wealthy. Nearly 8 in 10 principals said they use AI in their personal lives, and 69% reported using it in business. In a world where information is easier than ever to access, being intentional about how you learn—and how you spend your time—may matter more than ever.
