I would phrase it differently, but I tend to concur with your sentiment, especially the bit about reading. Yes, I understand that the author is saying you should read deeply, not shallowly, but the way he says "don't read" is, in my mind, dumb, especially if people merely scan his headers.

I wrote a longish essay called "How to get your Professors’ Attention — along with Coaching or Mentoring" in response to the ways I've responded to students and previous professors have responded to me: http://jseliger.com/2010/10/02/how-to-get-your-professors%E2... . A chunk of the essay concerns the importance of reading and how people use reading to test your seriousness. I think it's much better advice than not to "read."