Ever had the experience of reading a book and not feeling like you’re learning anything useful? What about realizing a week later you don’t
even remember what the book was about?
What’s the use in reading if you don’t understand and don’t remember
what you read?
You’re not alone… many people have difficulties fully comprehending and remembering written material. Fortunately, it’s easy to improve your reading comprehension and retention. Here are three simple techniques to get you started…
Set a Purpose by Asking “Why?and “What?
In
10
Days to Faster Reading , Abby Marks-Beale (of the Princeton Language Institute) recommends asking two simple questions before picking up any
piece of reading material:
- Why am I reading this?
- What might I need this information for?
These questions are immensely important for two reasons:
First, asking why you’re choosing to read a particular piece of material
helps determine your purpose: what you ultimately want to accomplish by
spending your time reading. Setting your purpose is the best way to
factor in the
opportunity
cost of your time and attention… if you don’t believe what you’re
about to read will be useful, you can choose to do something different.
Second, asking why you might need this information primes your brain to
make connections between what you’re reading and what you want to
achieve. Our minds work primarily via
pattern
recognition - by reminding yourself of your areas of responsibility
before you read, you’ll make many more connections than you would
otherwise. (Be sure to keep a notebook and pen close at hand to capture
your thoughts and ideas without breaking the flow of your reading.)
Create a Mindmap of Major Concepts
A mindmap is a
non-linear diagram that makes it easy to capture key thoughts and
connections between ideas in a graphical / visual format. Starting with
an idea, concept, or question in the center, you capture information by
connecting key concepts and thoughts to the central idea. More detailed
information related to these thoughts is then captured in branches that
radiate out from the key concepts, away from the central idea.
(Here’s
an example of a hand-drawn mind map.)
Mindmapping is a useful technique to use while reading, since the
non-linear format allows you to view the entirety of your notes at a
glance, then easily place new information in the appropriate branch or
make connections between ideas. It’s also a useful technique when
solving problems or planning projects: start with a question or project
description, then capture all ideas or necessary tasks in the
appropriate branches.
You can create mindmaps manually (with paper and pens or markers) or use
software to create documents to share or archive. (I recommend checking
out Mindmanager for
computer-based mindmapping - it’s the best I’ve found.)
Capture Your Reactions by Using the “McDowell Grid"
One common mistake many people make when taking notes is that they focus
only on the content of the text. The Personal MBA approach to education
has nothing to do with classroom-style testing: there are no points for
accurate textual regurgitation. Instead of simply summarizing key
points, seek instead to capture the ideas and plans that the reading
generates for you.
Your personal reactions to the text will comprise 80% of the value
you’ll take away when you’re finished reading. (An example of
Pareto’s Law at
work.) This insight explains why it’s so valuable to
build and maintain a personal library
and re-read books over time: since your state of mind, priorities, and
projects are different each time you read, the insights you generate
will always be different and directly related to your current situation.
Tyson McDowell , CEO of
Benchmark Revenue
Management and one of my clients, recently taught me a brilliant format for
capturing both key points and personal reactions while reading. This
method, which I’m dubbing the “McDowell Grid," captures key points and
personal reactions side-by-side, making it easy to quickly revisit a
summary of the text and remember your thoughts about the key points at
the same time.
The grid is simple: using any word processing software you like, make a
table with two columns. In the first column, capture a summary of a key
concept or idea from the text. In the second column, record your
personal reactions, ideas, and plans to put the concept into practice.
When you’re finished with the book, you’ll have a archive-ready summary
and action plan ready for use!
For those of you who prefer to take notes by hand, here’s a handy PDF I
created to help you use the McDowell Grid for your own note-taking
adventures:
Download
the McDowell Grid Book Summary Format by the Personal MBA (PDF) →