[maximp]

Different people learn differently, maybe? The great truths in life boil down to a few sentences (ex: "just do it"). If someone writes a book about that truth, are they wasting your time? Maybe. But there are other people who need to hear the story to learn from that grain of truth.

I've definitely read books that were way too long and full of filler content. But I've also scrolled through tweet-sized brilliant insights that I forgot the next minute.

In my opinion, Atomic Habits was not a filler book (I also listened to it on audiobook), but as always, YMMV.

[xmprt]

If you've scrolled through tweet-sized brilliant insights and forgot them the next minute then maybe they weren't that brilliant to begin with? Or maybe you have a habit of mindlessly scrolling which you need to get out of. In any case, I find it hard to believe that people would prefer to read 200 pages which could be condensed down to a single sentence.

[maximp]

I think it comes down to individual learning style. Here [1] is James Clear tweeting a 3-sentence summary of his book. These ideas totally impacted the way I operate and helped me achieve a lot more than I would have on my own. But I needed to read the book to implement these tactics. If I only read the tweet, I don't think it would have had any long-term impact on me.

I agree that being wordy can be a waste of time! And I agree that many business books blow up small ideas into large books. I also think that sometimes expanding on an impactful insight can help you teach it better.

[1] https://twitter.com/JamesClear/status/1477686252333903877