I too like to take a non-fiction and digest, regurgitate, and do it again. I am on the focus of implementing items into my life to improve it. I like to swap back and forth from fiction to non-fiction to keep it fun. If your are reading alot of books on a single topic, then I can understand then that it is a form of research, but I make a cut off and then decide how I will proceed to implement into my life. Example: one year I used „The Compound Effect“ as my book to focus on. That was the only one for that year. Reading, annotating, implementing, listening to it in audio, reading it out loud, discussing it, listening to what others had to say on it. When I felt like I was dragging, I would grab a fiction and enjoy that until it was done-no time line. I love watercolors so I am digesting a lot of watercolor books and trying new things and it has been a project that will all come to a workshop in July. That‘s my end date. Then I will decide if it is a style that I want to continue with or if I want to go back to the style that I learned in 2017 and have been practicing all these years. I read over 50 books one year-that was my goal-I don’t remember any of the books. My friend, she can read a book a day and next year tell you practically word for word what it was about. Do what works for you. ❤
By the end I was thinking that reading 5 books and "reading well" are incompatible, but I don't think that's necessarily true--the tips Cal suggests are true for both. Take notice that he doesn't mention any type of speed-reading etc, he just suggests a "push through" phase, which probably means just schedule more time in order to get done. The difference between reading well and 5 books a months, for me, is in taking notes. If I take notes or highlight or do anything besides reading, it really slows me down and eats into the time I allotted for reading. This is problematic for hitting 5 books because I love taking notes and looking up new vocabulary. I also love denser books--like a classic novel now and then. For me I suppose the best thing to do is to read 3 or 4 smaller fiction books if the goal is achieving a number per month. I read non-fiction slower than most fiction books--which I read at ~400 words per minute. But it's nice to have an alternative to "well-read" claims of others and to focus on the "reading well" part. Thanks for the tips and strategies!
Thanks for the shout out!-Dr. J
Your advice is sound and reasonable. Slow, steady, and you'll reap awards.
I too like to take a non-fiction and digest, regurgitate, and do it again. I am on the focus of implementing items into my life to improve it. I like to swap back and forth from fiction to non-fiction to keep it fun. If your are reading alot of books on a single topic, then I can understand then that it is a form of research, but I make a cut off and then decide how I will proceed to implement into my life.
Example: one year I used „The Compound Effect“ as my book to focus on. That was the only one for that year. Reading, annotating, implementing, listening to it in audio, reading it out loud, discussing it, listening to what others had to say on it. When I felt like I was dragging, I would grab a fiction and enjoy that until it was done-no time line.
I love watercolors so I am digesting a lot of watercolor books and trying new things and it has been a project that will all come to a workshop in July. That‘s my end date. Then I will decide if it is a style that I want to continue with or if I want to go back to the style that I learned in 2017 and have been practicing all these years.
I read over 50 books one year-that was my goal-I don’t remember any of the books. My friend, she can read a book a day and next year tell you practically word for word what it was about.
Do what works for you. ❤
Great comment.
By the end I was thinking that reading 5 books and "reading well" are incompatible, but I don't think that's necessarily true--the tips Cal suggests are true for both. Take notice that he doesn't mention any type of speed-reading etc, he just suggests a "push through" phase, which probably means just schedule more time in order to get done.
The difference between reading well and 5 books a months, for me, is in taking notes. If I take notes or highlight or do anything besides reading, it really slows me down and eats into the time I allotted for reading. This is problematic for hitting 5 books because I love taking notes and looking up new vocabulary. I also love denser books--like a classic novel now and then.
For me I suppose the best thing to do is to read 3 or 4 smaller fiction books if the goal is achieving a number per month. I read non-fiction slower than most fiction books--which I read at ~400 words per minute. But it's nice to have an alternative to "well-read" claims of others and to focus on the "reading well" part. Thanks for the tips and strategies!
I love how you’re finding out what works for you. That’s all we can do as readers. Thanks for the comment!