This is a quick post about how I read books.
Around age 21, I went from never reading books to reading 30-75 a year.
Today, I want to share with you my strategy for reading books because I hope it will inspire you to want to read too.
Step 1 - Buy a Kindle
Now I know what you may be thinking.
“But I don’t want to read on a device. I want the feeling and elegance of a paper book.” That’s fine. If I find a book that changes my life the first time I read it I’m happy to pick up the physical copy as well.
But the reason why I’ve read hundreds of books in the last couple years is because I bought a kindle.
It makes reading effortless. You can download a book in 30 seconds.
Plus the paper back design doesn’t feel like reading on a phone. It feels like something between screen and paper.
Step 2 - Change your perception of books
Books are not a cost.
They are an investment in your future. If you’re really tight on money and you live in America, you can always hook up your library card to the Libby app and get free access to your library’s books.
I got free books for years that way.
Now, the first time I heard ‘books are an investment’ it made sense. But then I heard the philosopher Nassim Taleb claim something that sounded a little insane.
He allegedly buys books he knows he will never read because it reminds him of how little he knows and how much there is left to learn. That felt a lot cooler than being scared to drop 12 dollars on a book.
Also, regarding the time investment of reading. To me, it feels like a steal. You spend 20 hours reading one good book, like Epictetus’ Discourses, and can literally save yourself decades of suffering.
Step 3 - Find a reading guide
There are many books to read.
But many of them are junk. If you get hit with the wrong book at the wrong time you can go off the rails. Like the college kid who reads Karl Marx and believes he knows how to solve the problems of the global economic system.
Instead, find someone you aspire to be like, and google:
“[Admirable Person] Goodreads”
You’ll find nearly every public person has a catalogue of their recommended books.
The person I chose was Naval Ravikant:
https://www.goodreads.com/shelf/show/naval-ravikant
You don’t have to read every book they recommend but it’s a good starting point.
Books I recommend for anyone who wants to start reading:
7 Habits of Highly Effective People
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Both are easy to read and relevant to 99% of the population.
Step 4 - Stop trying to read at home
It’s possible to read at home.
That’s not really what I mean. But good luck trying to read in any environment where you habitually use your phone or stream Netflix.
It just wont work.
I once heard an analogy from a neuroscientist on Sam Harris’ podcast.
Humans treat information as if it were food. (because we have the power to effectively transmute information into food and energy)
When we are judging two sources of information, we are like a squirrel judging which bushel of nuts to ruffle through.
And so there are two key factors for how we decide which bushel to assault:
Ease of access
Perceived value (pleasure)
If you have a book next to your phone, the phone will be high on the scale of ease of access. And compared to the “boring” words on the pages, dopamine rich short form text and video will always trick your brain into seeming more valuable.
So if you want to read, read with your phone and computer out of sight.
Additionally, it can help to have a set place in your home where you read and do nothing else.
But more likely, I find it most helpful to leave home, go to a coffee shop, library or any other phone free place where your baseline information-pleasure is not so high and it’s possible to enjoy books.
Step 5 - Quit bad books
In real life reading, there is not completion trophy.
If a book sucks, put it away before it prevents you from reading at all.
“Read what you love until you love to read” - Naval Ravikant
Step 6 - Review great books (a lot)
Again, there is no completion trophy for reading books.
I recently heard a great reframe on learning from Alex Hormozi:
Learning = Behavior change
And as Jackie Chan said, "I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times."
It’s not about reading books. It’s about learning.
So here’s my system for reviewing:
Since I read on Kindle, all of my notes are highlighted forever.
When I review, all I do is transcribe the most interesting highlights from my Kindle to bullet points on my laptop like this:
So when I sit down for self study, I will:
Read the new book for 30 minutes
Walk around outside for 5 minutes
Review the old book for 30 minutes
The point is to use spaced repetition. It’s a powerful tool for memory I learned from language learning.
You don’t need to get scientific with the spacing.
But to make a lesson stick it helps to review it over multiple days. And I find the light activity of transcribing highlights on my own (not just mindlessly copy and pasting) to be the perfect vehicle.
Conclusion
Books are great.
They can help us avoid mistakes, enhance our lives and learn from someone else’s experience.
With such knowledge available at the average persons finger tips, it’s a shame we spend so much time consuming low value, short form information. (myself included)
I hope this post helps you to start or continue your reading habit.
Thanks for reading.
P.S. The best fiction book I’ve ever read
I recently started reading “Atlas Shrugged” by Ayn Rand because three people who I admire mentioned it within a week.
I’m only 20% finished but it’s so good that I felt inspired to write about reading this week. There is something about reading fiction, which is meant to share truth, that feels really inspiring compared to all the nonfiction I’ve read over the past couple of years.
I hope you check it out:
One of my favorite posts!! ❤️📚You really inspired me to think about all the books I have read and got me excited to read more. You did an exceptional job showing all the highlights of reading and how it can be easy to learn so much on your own. I also loved your rabbit hole caution. I agree it can be easy to get swept up in a negative or self destructive narrative in life and what you choose to read is no exception. I also see a correlation in your wide range of reading materials to your growth. You have an informative stream of consciousness in your writing instead of a know it all diatribe.
Thank you for sharing your insights. ❤️❤️❤️