Thread: A bit more reading for 2010 - How do you do it?

In the morning and at night are the two times when the mind is at it's most creative points of the day.

30 mins. to an hour before I go to bed, I shut off everything, crack open a book with a notepad in hand, and read.

I normally stop and go to bed once I finish a chapter or a big idea, or when I'm simply not able to focus anymore.

There are some ideas that will resonate with you at these times of the day (morning and night) even if you are an afternoon person.

I can speed read pretty well (60-80 pages/hour), but I find that a lot of valuable nuggest of information is lost, as speed reading allows you to only see the big picture.
(I now only do it for schoolwork )

These are perfect for cutting through the crappy redundancy present in most books SUCCESS Subscription

If you need some tips with speed reading feel free to PM me.

Hope that helps,

Ryan

For me how fast I read depends on what I want out of the book. Perfectionists tend to want to read and dwell on every word. If you have a general knowledge of your language you have an idea of which word comes next in a sentence. When you come to a realization that you don't have to read every word to get the meaning of a paragraph you can begin to read faster.

I have seen this with my kids and note taking. I can tell the ones that have a better handle on the language structure because they can write 3-4 words at a time. Struggling learners may only be able to write 3-4 letters at a time. They also have no anticipation of the next word.

You may try to speed read a paragraph or a page and write down what you got out of the reading. Then go back and read it meticulously and see if what you got was really the content of the page. Then you can train yourself to look out for when you need to slow down.

If I am reading recreationally I way read slower just to enjoy the moment. I hope this helps.

Originally Posted by Runum

For me how fast I read depends on what I want out of the book. Perfectionists tend to want to read and dwell on every word. If you have a general knowledge of your language you have an idea of which word comes next in a sentence. When you come to a realization that you don't have to read every word to get the meaning of a paragraph you can begin to read faster.

I have seen this with my kids and note taking. I can tell the ones that have a better handle on the language structure because they can write 3-4 words at a time. Struggling learners may only be able to write 3-4 letters at a time. They also have no anticipation of the next word.

You may try to speed read a paragraph or a page and write down what you got out of the reading. Then go back and read it meticulously and see if what you got was really the content of the page. Then you can train yourself to look out for when you need to slow down.

If I am reading recreationally I way read slower just to enjoy the moment. I hope this helps.

Very interesting points! I am going to try that exact excersize to see if i can grasp the concepts of the paragraph. I am a wrod reader and understander. t.ferriss mentions it as well, people like me read and reread words as we are going through the sentence because we are not focused on the "big picture" meaning the whole sentence/paragraph. I think i need to bust out of that as well.

I also think that possibly trying to understand every word breaks my focus and opens up the window of distraction.

I have actually found that forcing myself to read quickly increase my retention. If I read too slow something happens to my brain. Almost like not enough stimulation or something. If I read quickly, sit up a bit, and focus more I can really get through a book quicker and retain a lot more.

I think what happens with me is if a book takes too long I start seeing the book in sections and not one thing. Some sections I may have been more alert than others etc. But if I can lump the book into one experience and not several mundane evenings... then I tend to retain the experience more.

My wife can read WAY faster than me. Scary fast (think 3 books/week, and she just reads for fun an hour or two in the evening).

My reading style is a bit weird, compared to others. I'm like a 100 HP car with really good aerodynamics. When I start to read, my word count per minute (WPM) is pretty slow. But the longer I read, the more "Zen" the whole thing gets (I fall into the experience) and I read quite fast (my WPM triples). I only know this b/c if I read for 5 minutes, I only get through a page or two. But if I read for an hour, 30-40 pages fly by.

I've talked to many people that have 2 "styles" of reading: Recreational (slower, but fun), and Speed Reading (much faster, higher attention, almost "skimming"). I've never been that way-- I guess in part b/c when I do get into a good book, I'm done w/it pretty fast.

Fastest book I ever read was Ender's Game. Picked it up in the San Francisco Airport on my way to Florida. And I couldn't put it down. Finished it at 3 or 4 am, that next day (about 18 hours later). Prolly spent 10-12 hours reading it (it's 384 pp, 64,000 words).

-Russ H.

1) The toilet. If you normally sit 2 minutes, make it 10.
2) Turn off the TV ... I've read 4 books in the last week alone because I decided to turn off the TV before bed.
3) At the gym while in between sets, or on the treadmill.
4) In the car (audio books) while stuck in traffic.
5) In other "waiting" situations. (Doctor's office, DMV, plane rides/waits)

Originally Posted by PhxMJ

1) The toilet. If you normally sit 2 minutes, make it 10.
2) Turn off the TV ... I've read 4 books in the last week alone because I decided to turn off the TV before bed.
3) At the gym while in between sets, or on the treadmill.
4) In the car (audio books) while stuck in traffic.
5) In other "waiting" situations. (Doctor's office, DMV, plane rides/waits)

but... then.... when will I knit?

Originally Posted by AroundTheWorld

but... then.... when will I knit?

When you're 90!!

muahahaha

- Hakrjak

I have a brother inlaw who is 15 and crochets... He is awesome at it. I found it silly at first but I have walked in to the room before and he has hot tea next to him and is crocheting watching Boondock Saints. It's like "huh?" haha

Originally Posted by PhxMJ

1) The toilet. If you normally sit 2 minutes, make it 10.
2) Turn off the TV ... I've read 4 books in the last week alone because I decided to turn off the TV before bed.
3) At the gym while in between sets, or on the treadmill.
4) In the car (audio books) while stuck in traffic.
5) In other "waiting" situations. (Doctor's office, DMV, plane rides/waits)

Toilet is interesting i usually am in and out. Don't really watch much TV. Workout is here and pretty fast, constant motion for an hour and a half.

I did buy the books on cd for ahwhile but i dont seem to get the same comprehension when im paying attention to driving and trying to listen and understand. For me i want to increase what i read in the time i do it. Like at lunch, i read all the way through lunch. I got through the Landing page handbook in like 2-3 weeks only reading during lunch time. I am going to try to increase the times per day i can read as well. Maybe at 9:30 everynight reading instead of anything else.

Originally Posted by sm media

I have a brother inlaw who is 15 and crochets... He is awesome at it. I found it silly at first but I have walked in to the room before and he has hot tea next to him and is crocheting watching Boondock Saints. It's like "huh?" haha

I'll admit I know how too, did a whole afghan when i was younger, i can sew as well. never learned how to knit. It's always good to have skills like that.

Originally Posted by PhxMJ

1) The toilet. If you normally sit 2 minutes, make it 10.
2) Turn off the TV ... I've read 4 books in the last week alone because I decided to turn off the TV before bed.
3) At the gym while in between sets, or on the treadmill.
4) In the car (audio books) while stuck in traffic.
5) In other "waiting" situations. (Doctor's office, DMV, plane rides/waits)

Um, hate to be the bearer of bad news, MJ, but as a long time bathroom reader (who now has to change his ways), you need to know what you're getting yourself into.

I'll let Bobo break the news:

http://www.thefastlanetomillions.com...oids#post97581

When I worked in the hospital, I was often the only male nurse on the floors on afternoon shifts, some nights. So I got to do all the shaving preps for surgery for guys in um . . delicate areas. Not my idea of fun, but hey, it's a living.

Inguinal hernias were the least fun (neither one of us was having a good time), but preps for hemorrhoidectomies were the one thing I remember-- only thing the guys kept saying was, "Whatever you do, don't read on the john, or you'll find yourself in this position in a few years".

Most of the guys were in their 40s and 50s.

-Russ H.

You can only do so much. Read what interests you and you will cover more ground.

I used to read a lot of financial books but they pretty much all start repeating themselves and sounding the same after awhile. IMHO your ROI goes way down fast after the first few.

Now I concentrate mostly on war, specificaly the Axis side of WW2. My reading is branching out organicly from their, I just follow my interests. This is lead me to reading theory books on armor and infantry warefare, both modern and old. Right now I have a detailed tactics book on some of Julius Caesars battles sitting on my desk waiting to go.

History doesn't repeat itself in such a way that finance gurus do, so I find it vastly more interesting. I mean pretty much all you need to read is Rich Dad Poor Dad, The Millionaire Mind, and for fun The Alchemy of Finance by George Soros. Than you can branch off into the area you want, real estate isn't that complicated all the decent books say the same stuff, its pretty basic. I can't comment on stocks since I don't buy paper assets.

It sounds like what you are trying to do are case study's. These are a good way to learn about how successful company's are run. I highly recomend looking at Walmart, Boeing, GE, Starbucks, and UPS.

Walmart is a horrible company and I refuse to do business with them, but they are one of the best run company's your going to find. Their supply chain is the envy of everyone. GE and specificaly Jack Welch are well worth reading up on. Jack Welch is one of the best business leaders your going to find.

Originally Posted by hatterasguy

You can only do so much. Read what interests you and you will cover more ground.

I used to read a lot of financial books but they pretty much all start repeating themselves and sounding the same after awhile. IMHO your ROI goes way down fast after the first few.

Now I concentrate mostly on war, specificaly the Axis side of WW2. My reading is branching out organicly from their, I just follow my interests. This is lead me to reading theory books on armor and infantry warefare, both modern and old. Right now I have a detailed tactics book on some of Julius Caesars battles sitting on my desk waiting to go.

History doesn't repeat itself in such a way that finance gurus do, so I find it vastly more interesting. I mean pretty much all you need to read is Rich Dad Poor Dad, The Millionaire Mind, and for fun The Alchemy of Finance by George Soros. Than you can branch off into the area you want, real estate isn't that complicated all the decent books say the same stuff, its pretty basic. I can't comment on stocks since I don't buy paper assets.

It sounds like what you are trying to do are case study's. These are a good way to learn about how successful company's are run. I highly recomend looking at Walmart, Boeing, GE, Starbucks, and UPS.

Walmart is a horrible company and I refuse to do business with them, but they are one of the best run company's your going to find. Their supply chain is the envy of everyone. GE and specificaly Jack Welch are well worth reading up on. Jack Welch is one of the best business leaders your going to find.

I do like case studies but its for strategy. The other books in my list are strategy and logistics oriented as well, things you could only learn by experience. And i want to accelerate that rather than work for a company 20 years to learn it! that is my whole take on reading. Read what would otherwise take you years of experience to learn.

Originally Posted by Russ H

When I worked in the hospital, I was often the only male nurse on the floors on afternoon shifts, some nights. So I got to do all the shaving preps for surgery for guys in um . . delicate areas. Not my idea of fun, but hey, it's a living.

Most of the guys were in their 40s and 50s. Mine were teens and 20's.

-Russ H.

What a coincidence, Russ. I was a Drs. assistant in the army and had the same job. I didn't like it.................. would have liked it if it were on the Wacs, but they wouldn't let me.

I used to bring in a 3" straight razor with a leather strop and explain to the patience what I was going to do. I would sharpen the razor and with a trembling hand explain to them that it was my first time for this procedure..................

I quickly learned what religion they were by the prayers shot forward.

One, Spec. 4, fainted on me and ratted to the doc on me. It was fun while it lasted.

Originally Posted by Russ H

Um, hate to be the bearer of bad news, MJ, but as a long time bathroom reader (who now has to change his ways), you need to know what you're getting yourself into.

I'll let Bobo break the news:

http://www.thefastlanetomillions.com...oids#post97581

Russ I take care of business quickly. However, just because I'm done doesn't mean I can't continue to sit until I am finished with the section/chapter/paragraph. My ass doesn't have a clue its on the toilet vis-a-vie my office desk chair.

Originally Posted by PhxMJ

Russ I take care of business quickly. However, just because I'm done doesn't mean I can't continue to sit until I am finished with the section/chapter/paragraph. My ass doesn't have a clue its on the toilet vis-a-vie my office desk chair.

Does your office chair have a big hole in the middle. Your ass won't know but there are other parts that would. LOL

BTW, to get back on topic. Books on CD for me. If I have a 6 hour drive, I buy an audio CD book. I retain allot of what I hear and my drives go by really fast. If anyone wants to buy my Super Freakonomics CDs PM me.

Originally Posted by Cat Man Du

What a coincidence, Russ. I was a Drs. assistant in the army and had the same job. I didn't like it.................. would have liked it if it were on the Wacs, but they wouldn't let me.

I used to bring in a 3" straight razor with a leather strop and explain to the patience what I was going to do. I would sharpen the razor and with a trembling hand explain to them that it was my first time for this procedure..................

I quickly learned what religion they were by the prayers shot forward.

One, Spec. 4, fainted on me and ratted to the doc on me. It was fun while it lasted.

You bad boy!

I had to use these barely sharp sterilized pre-packaged safety razors with a serrated edge. Wouldn't take fuzz off a peach.

I got to be pretty good at it-- not because I liked it, though. Because the last thing I wanted was to sterilize some guy who flinched (back where I grew up, that was pretty much instant death-- for me).

-Russ H.