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How to gain more from your reading
- medstrom 5y agoA shortcut can be to write fiction. Even if it doesn't go anywhere publishable, even if you only write a sentence a week, regularly tackling the challenge of writing well will naturally make you pay attention to how others write.
- jmd509 5y agoWholeheartedly agree. As you read, you'll notice yourself noticing - you're consciously processing the narrative but also semi-consciously reflecting on how the narrative is delivered. You wonder what made that line stick out, what made that dialogue feel authentic, what made that description compelling. It's like a casual fan watching MMA vs someone who practices martial arts. You attend not only to WHAT is done but HOW it is done, and what it means to be able to do it. You move beyond merely witnessing and start analyzing, learning, and appreciating.
- runevault 5y agoThis is very true. Though there are also books to read that can help see things more deeply. A couple I really found helpful here are Elements of Eloquence (gets into rhetorical tools, parallel structure as mentioned in the article being one of many such examples), and Writing Better Lyrics which gives a lot of tools that helps for all forms of writing not only song lyrics.
- zerop 5y agoIt depends on what you are reading they could be different ways to read based on the type of content. When I have to understand something complex while reading I usually use the student teacher pattern where when I try to explain it to myself while I'm reading and grasping and try to question myself.
- benrbray 5y agoI do the same -- I take good notes explaining things in a way that make sense to me, so I have personalized study material for when I inevitably forget three months from now what I read.
- leokennis 5y agoThis article is, perhaps unsurprisingly, very well written and structured. A joy to read compared to most internet writing! It vibes pretty well with my own "rules" for reading: * I read one book at a time * In general I only read when I feel like it, but I will read every day: if I don't feel like it, I'll just read one page * At any point am I allowed to stop reading a book and pick up a new one * I do not track "pages per day" or "books per year", I do not participate in "reading challenges" This way, reading has most personal value to me without becoming a "second job" with the pressure to "perform" that comes with it.
- sna1l 5y agoI generally agree with all of these, the one thing I guess that can be an issue for me is if I go too long in between picking up a book, then I'll kind of forget the context.
- wombatmobile 5y agoWhy do you read one book at a time? Have you tried more than that and found it unsatisfactory? I usually have two books on the go. I leave them in different places. That’s key. I am a different person in each place, and I can keep my associations separate and distinct for each book. Given enough places, I’m confident I could read more than two books in parallel.
- typhonic 5y agoI have added your response to my collection of wisdom; particularly for the statement "I am a different person in each place."
- leokennis 5y agoI read almost exclusively on my ereader, so “two books in different places” does not apply to me. But years ago before the ereader existed I also self-disciplined to one book at a time. If I don’t, my reading will become like my internet browsing: chasing my interest of the moment, half reading something about it, going on another chase and never properly engaging with one subject. Of course some people will be better at context switching and the discipline to actually finish the multiple books they’re reading…but not me.
- mrjivraj 5y agoI sometimes fall into the trap of bookmarking interesting content but failing to go back to read it, especially long form content, although I find such content to be the best for learning about interesting things. There were a few articles I kept coming back to but couldn't get through because of distractions, so yesterday I decided to print out the articles I wanted to read. 30 mins later, I had gone through 3 three great reads (plus made notes). It was great. I learned a lot, and they spurred some ideas as well. I think I might start doing more of this.
- jld89 5y agoThis is a great idea, I have exactly the same problem. I'll try it out, though I'll probably have to print a hundred pages ha...
- mrjivraj 5y ago100 lol.. I think i have printed probably about 30 so far, 2 pages per sheet + double sided so 4 on a page
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- BeetleB 5y agoPrinting is something I started to do some months ago. Instead of keeping the tab open for weeks, I decided I'd print anything I want to read and place it a physical "inbox". Some tips: I print 2 pages to a side, so 4 pages per printer paper. Even long articles don't use too much paper, and for my eyes it's still readable (there are a few articles where I need to enlarge first). I print using either Firefox's "Simplify Page" feature or its "Readability" feature. This removes almost all the noise: No ads, no menus, etc. It's just the article and relevant images. Similar to reading a physical newspaper. It's been a game changer. I can now read wherever I want. Going to the mechanic? I just take some of these printed articles with me. I find myself taking notes on the paper - something I would not do well on the computer screen. My eyes get a lot less strain. Once you get used to this, there's no going back. Now when I see an article through a web browser, it's just ugly. Too many distractions. Even the menus are annoying. I didn't realize I'd been putting up with filth for so long. I initially worried that my inbox would get full and I'd have the same mental angst, and my plan was that if it happens, I'll take a random bunch and throw it in the recycle bin. But it never came to that - I still manage to read everything I print. Somehow, the physical inbox weighs less on my mind than the virtual one. I don't feel I need to deal with this inbox. It's OK if it just sits there collecting dust. Bad for the environment. Good for the brain.
- asimovfan 5y agoReading is my life, I spend the majority of my awake time reading. However to be honest, I can only read endlessly when I know I won't have any extra gain from it. I can read everything except what I have to read for work or study. Otherwise I am immediately bored.
- jld89 5y agoA kind of procrastination I guess.
- lugged 5y agotl;dr?
- Bhilai 5y agoIf you scroll to the bottom, there is a section with key points.
- deleted 5y ago[deleted]
- 1970-01-01 5y agoOld eyes tire quickly. Reducing eye strain and increasing font size will also go a long way towards content retention. Zoom in!
- randcraw 5y agoAnd brighten your light. A well aimed lamp does wonders to ease eyestrain, especially for high-mileage eyes.
- rogov 5y ago"When I began disciplined reading, I was reading at the rate of four thousand words a minute," the girl said. "They had quite a time correcting me of it. I had to take remedial reading, and my parents were ashamed of me. Now I've learned to read almost slow enough." "I don't understand," said Miss Hanks. That's from R.A. Lafferty's "The Primary Education of the Camiroi" from 1966. I think I was turned on to Lafferty by this site and immediately loved his work. Still, I have "read" six books this week, and barely even remember which ones they were, let alone what they were about.
- Bhilai 5y agoI mostly read fiction and I try my best to read everyday. My problem seems to be that I sometimes try to rush through the details to the main story line to figure out the plot. Because I get limited time to read, I try to read very fast and cover a lot of ground so I can know more of the story. From reading this article, it sounds like I should slow down and re-read but I am not sure if some books are worth it.
- TameAntelope 5y agoFor non-fiction, I've found that underlining engages me more and causes me to retain the information to a higher degree than when I'm "passively" reading. For some books I'll also use the margins or even bring along a pad of sticky notes. I tried actually taking notes while reading, but it ended up requiring too much setup for me to engage with as often as I'd like.
- sanderjd 5y agoI have really struggled with this, especially since having kids. The problem for me is that I have very little time to read, so I either have to read fast or read very little, reading fast doesn't really work as the article describes, so the choice is to read very little, but then that makes choosing what to read a big commitment, and that leads to analysis paralysis, and then I end up reading nothing because it's too stressful to commit to something. For an example, I spent the first 18 months or so after my first child was born reading Les Miserables. Granted, that's a long book, but lots of good books are long. If my pace for reading is something under a hundred pages a month, that means I have capacity for two or three normal length books a year, and less than one long one, and that makes each choice feel extremely precious.
- zerop 5y agoFor me reading fast (and loud) also works, I have realised sometimes it's even better.. when I read slowly there js chance of concentration disruption, speedy and loud reading is good sometimes.. but I avoid doing it when reading something very important to me.
- sanderjd 5y agoWhat do you mean by "loud"? Do you mean reading out loud?
- okprod 5y agoGreat, succinct article. I like to underline as I read, then summarize into an index card that I keep, one for each book I've read.
- forgotmypw17 5y agoOne of the most effective techniques is to pause reading to subscribe to the article's newsletter.
- posharma 5y agoHow do you folks deal with the following? I borrow books from the local library but can't mark or underline anything in the book to go back and refer. How do you then keep notes to retain the salient points of the book? Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading. Suggestions appreciated.
- EricE 5y agoI used to keep a pad and paper - now I can snap a picture with my iPad and then annotate on it with the Pencil in my own writing. Writing is far more effective at retention than typing so I stick with it. It's not as convenient as writing directly in your own book, but it's pretty darn close. And if it's a subject of importance I'll just get my own copy of the book. I recently re-discovered independent used book sites like abebooks.com - it's a challenge to not go nuts :)
- okareaman 5y agoI second this. I take pictures with my phone to save for further study. Edit: I use https://www.onlineocr.net/ https://www.onlineocr.net/ a lot when I later want the text
- yepguy 5y agoIf you'd prefer the low-tech route, try this: Buy notecards for your thoughts and leave them in the book as you go. Then before you return it, review them to make sure you've captured enough context that they make sense without the physical book.
- humen99 5y ago>Maintaining notes separately breaks the flow of reading. I would push back on this point. You do not have to keep a flow of reading. If there is something that stands out to you, then it is noteworthy enough to pause and think about it for a bit. When I read books I am waiting for moments like this, as something the author wrote resonates with me. In my opinion, that's what makes reading fun and valuable. After you reflect on the line you can re-read to get back into the flow until you are pleasantly provoked by the next piece :).
- EricE 5y agoExcellent article - especially the advice to occasionally read sections of text out loud. Which, BTW, is not the same as listening to an audio book. I like Audiobooks for fiction and entertainment, but listening to an Audiobook is NOT the same as reading, which this author touches on even they don't make the explicit connection.
- blueyes 5y agoThose looking for a deeper dive might consider Harold Bloom's "How to Read and Why", for literature; and Mortimer J. Adler's "How to Read a Book", for non-fiction.
- okareaman 5y agoMy main takeaway from Bloom's book that has served me well, is to clear your mind of groupthink and preconceived notions that he calls "cant" to approach the text with an open mind. From the blurb on Amazon: "Shedding all polemic, Bloom addresses the solitary reader, who, he urges, should read for the purest of all reasons: to discover and augment the self. His ultimate faith in the restorative power of literature resonates on every page of this infinitely rewarding and important book.
- blueyes 5y agoIt's clear from Bloom's introduction, written in 2000 I think, that he believed US society and particularly universities like Yale, his employer, had entered a dark time in which ideologies were blinding readers to the humanity of the authors, their characters, and to themselves.
- okareaman 5y agoFrom my casual attention to the subject, I hear it's even worse now
- njharman 5y agoMy problem is bad memory. I don't remember much of the books I read. Even recently. So, I become very discouraged and see reading as waste of time as very little will stick and this I'll "grow" very little from time invested. Poor ROI. I still read but mostly for eprmeral enntertainmen
- jldugger 5y agoFor professional development books, my process is is two steps: first, read a chapter. Second, extract key insights I want to remember into an Anki card. I may have to re-read the chapter in part to do so, which definitely helps with recall. I generally try to do about one chapter a night, or ten pages an hour. And I admit it can be hard to get both steps done in the time allotted. Also, the resulting new card review load can be a pain in the ass -- a good cloze card will have three or four forms to review. If you're adding three or four cards per chapter you end up with a lot of new material to review that Anki frontloads by design. tl;dr: Remembering stuff is hard. But possibly worth it.
- alessivs 5y agoEvery mentioned problem (workload, new vs. old reading task distribution, scheduling, plus retention) is exactly what incremental reading–at least, as implemented in the other prominent SRS–aims to solve (which it does, rather well). Does the Anki IR plugin not tackle them?
- jldugger 5y ago> (workload, new vs. old reading task distribution, scheduling, plus retention) I've never really understood the appeal of IR as defined elsewhere. My reading queue isn't just wikipedia dumps or some other 100 percent valuable source, often it's somewhat speculative. I really don't want to read 3 sections from random journal papers and then create cards; I need to once over a paper to even be sure the cards created are worth remembering. Also, I bought a Kindle to read papers from more comfortable locations than a desk, with less direct light, and AFAIK, that is not directly compatible with the IR approaches that want to track reading progress. So I have no idea if these problems are solved, because I've never felt compelled to try.
- solidist 5y agoSharing on own reading habits: https://link.medium.com/4a2hr1VE6hb https://link.medium.com/4a2hr1VE6hb I liked the part of reading everyday - even just a page or two. I found through my own experience to be rewarding in time. Another one I've learned is being open and immediately committed to reading suggestions for others, it's personally opened my perspective(s)
- Jeff_Brown 5y agoI feel like most of the work of reading is choosing what to read. When I get that right everything else falls into place.
- robertwt7 5y agoThe article is very well written, Actually, on point, in the middle of reading something I often loss interest and just closed it, unless it is something very interesting to me. Thus, of course I missed out on more information I could have extract from it. Lets see if I can apply these methods toward my next reading list...
- roudaki 5y agoGreat article. I agree with rereading. When I got into hardware part of networking which I am allergic to it took months of rereading until something clicked BTW. I was surprised how sensitive this topic is at reddit. They are calling anything and everything gatekeeping. So even telling people how to retain more knowledge will get them to start screaming how you are putting pressure on people and killing the joy of reading. You get 10 downvotes instantly. My problem with reading non-fiction books, esp while I worked in bookstore where I read book a day, is retaining knowledge. So I reinvented college syllabus like a dumbass I am. Basically I went on to creating my own reading list of related books so I have this data cloud in my head that makes retaining what I read faster and better. I wasted months on this until I realised I am doing what universities are for in the first place and yep, after checking I found my reading list is bad version of collage syllabus that includes better books and way more current white-papers. And it is easier to shop around for better syllabus then spend months creating and reading books just to find something better later like how you skip patterns in programming while reading more and more workbook type programming books.
- dorchadas 5y ago> BTW. I was surprised how sensitive this topic is at reddit. They are calling anything and everything gatekeeping. So even telling people how to retain more knowledge will get them to start screaming how you are putting pressure on people and killing the joy of reading. You get 10 downvotes instantly. This is why I now spend more time on /r/bookscirclejerk than r/books. The latter wants to discuss anything except reading books.
- dgs_sgd 5y agoTo add to the great advice in this article, a rule of thumb I have is to plan to write a review for the book I'm reading right from the get go. When I know I need to write a review once I'm finished, I play closer attention to the book's ideas, write thoughts and criticisms down, etc.
- bsd44 5y agoI read about 6-8 books at any time and I'm having a problem forcing myself to focus on one book. I'm also enrolled in about 5 different online courses trying to learn everything. I hardly get anything done. I used to be able to "multitask" when I was in my early 20s and I got a lot of stuff done which resulted in my fast career progression and overall I noticed my knowledge about everything grew. The more I learned the easier it became to learn new things since pretty much everything is derived from something else, the concepts are quite similar. It doesn't take much to connect the dots. But the "multitasking" had its peak and gradually became worse when I entered my 30s and now I'm 36 and I have to struggle to finish a book (or a course) and I hate myself for it. Whatever progress I make in one sitting that's more or less it. Every time I start reading a book, I immediately think about another book I could read. I have more kindle books, paper books and audiobooks than I will ever have time to finish and yet I can't stop myself from buying more. It's a real struggle focusing on one thing and finishing it. I know some people prefer the freedom of doing multiple things at once but I think it's a trap and that freedom will eventually come at a price of attention disorder. The more things you do, the more things you want to do and with everything being immediately available these days, it's not that hard to get trapped in a vicious circle. Perhaps my fault is that I used to read to complete an achievement and I did it for a very long time and somewhere along the way I forgot to read for pleasure; much like I listen to music or look at paintings.