I write a lot while reading. Sort of like having a conversation with the author.
I read less books this way, but the knowledge in the books become much more internalized. I tend to implement them much faster too. And aren't we reading, in part, to better our lives (short-term pleasure or long-term changes)?
Of course, I read fiction just for the pleasure as well (like Ready Player One).
This method of reading also sharpened my bullshit detector. If I am not writing a lot, this indicates lack of insights. Either a bad book or a bad time for that book. So either way, a bad book for me.
I'd be very curious to hear more about this. I've flirted on and off with note-taking on books for all the same reasons you mention, but I invariably feel guilty about progressing too slowly. In a weird way, I think this a quintessentially American affliction - like our obsession with throughput and productivity washes into our real lives as well. I'm just wondering what you do to fight that instinct. Specifically, I think the two things that get me are : (1) feeling bad about not reading enough and (2) worrying about being ultimately disappointed with a book and having wasted my time taking notes.
I feel much smarter after reading more slowly. When someone asks me, "What are you reading?" I feel much more confident in answering that question.
And the knowledge is less flimsy as well; I become a master, not a slave, of the material. I do not place the source material on a pedestal. I take what I need, and discard the garbage.
I can also cook the material much better. I am able to merge ideas from the book with my previous interests. The products from mental fusing turn out to be solid business ideas and mental models.
Very interesting. I always had this fear in the back of my mind that reading books about personal development is useless since I can't retain the information long enough to apply at the right time.
Your method might just be what I need to do to get better at this.
To implement what you read, employ the method of Directives[1]. These days my notes look like the following (from "The Inevitable" by Kevin Kelly):
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You hate updates? Get used to them. Because in the future, living — for most surrounded by technology — will be a constant stream of updates.
1. Embrace being an Endless Newbie; don't be embarrassed if you don't know something!
In the era of constant updates, we will be newbies — forever. Something else we have to get used to. You won't have time to master anything, really. Most of the technologies that will play a large role in the next thirty years have not been invented.
...
We are living in the golden age. We just don't realize it. The last thirty years has created a great starting point. It is the best time ever in human history to begin.
You are not late.
2. Study AI and Hardware. Go out and slap AI and sensors to everything.
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The numbered list is my list of Directives. These imperatives seamlessly organize my notes well; all other pieces of information turn into arguments for these assertions. This info-gathering process feels very intuitive. Our brain must be good at gathering evidence for a piece of advice.
Besides the general Directives, I use org-mode for my tasks. The end goal is to develop sensible systems, not drain your willpower performing these directives. So when I have an idea for implementing a sensible system, I write it down in org-mode (which has a numbered list of all my tasks).
I use a similar but somewhat simpler method: whenever I read something, immediately after I have a finished I try to write down everything I remember. That has helped me a lot to internalize the material.
Another method: in subjects I'm deeper interested, before starting to read, I scan the chapters and headlines and write down what I expect to learn and what I already know.
That is awesome. Reminds me of Barbara Oakley's Mind for Numbers; she tells her students to practice recall rather than rereading the material for learning.
When I am reading to converse, I am inclined towards not looking at the original text while writing notes. This helps me capture the material into the right context, as well as remember in the long-term.
I read less books this way, but the knowledge in the books become much more internalized. I tend to implement them much faster too. And aren't we reading, in part, to better our lives (short-term pleasure or long-term changes)?
Of course, I read fiction just for the pleasure as well (like Ready Player One).
This method of reading also sharpened my bullshit detector. If I am not writing a lot, this indicates lack of insights. Either a bad book or a bad time for that book. So either way, a bad book for me.