{"id":4777,"date":"2014-07-16T01:30:26","date_gmt":"2014-07-15T22:30:26","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/seragpsych.com\/wordpress\/?p=4777"},"modified":"2014-07-17T00:11:24","modified_gmt":"2014-07-16T21:11:24","slug":"read-3-books-together-and-remember-them","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/seragpsych.com\/wordpress\/read-3-books-together-and-remember-them\/","title":{"rendered":"Read 3 books together and remember them"},"content":{"rendered":"

A few months back, while trying to recall some information, I came to realise that I often only remember a hazy outline of the books I read. This really bothered me \u2013 as trivial as it may seem, I couldn\u2019t accept that after investing countless hours reading, I could only remember an outline of a book and little detail.<\/p>\n

I wanted to do something about it. There had to be a way to remember more \u2013 \u00a0there just had to be.<\/p>\n

Naturally, I dived in and started reading all I could about memory \u2013 soaking up information from books and articles, but I didn\u2019t stop there, no \u2013 \u00a0I started experiementing.<\/p>\n

Below is the simple three step system I use for reading for maximum retention. I don\u2019t claim to have crafted anything revolutionary, but what I have done is pull exsisting ideas together to solve a specific problem: How to read mulltiple books simulateneously and rememeber (almost) everything. Definitly something worth sharing.<\/p>\n

Why read multiple books simultaneously?<\/p>\n

As strage as it may sound, I don\u2019t read one book at a time, and I can\u2019t imagine doing so. As a curious lover of knowledge I find myself jumping around from book to book, wanting to learn everything about everything, so I sought out to optimise my approach to reading. You may not want to read ten books simulateneousl \u2013 \u00a0that\u2019s ok. This simple method can still help you remember more of what you read.<\/p>\n

The three steps are:<\/p>\n

1. Read one chapter at a time<\/p>\n

2. Makes notes as you read<\/p>\n

3. Review notes before and after reading<\/p>\n

As you can see, this it\u2019s really simple. You\u2019re probably thinking too simple, but that\u2019s what we need: simplicity. When I read, I want to focus on reading \u2013 I don\u2019t want a system or method getting in the way.<\/p>\n

Let\u2019s take a look at why this system actually works.<\/p>\n

Chunking<\/a><\/strong><\/h3>\n

Information is best retained when broken into small \u2018chunks\u2019 \u00a0a classic everyday example is in the way we read and recite telephone numbers.<\/p>\n

0207 123 1231\u00a0vs\u00a0<\/strong>02071231231<\/p>\n

Was it easier to remember the first string of numbers? I\u2019m certain you\u2019ll say yes. However, a better question is: why are a string of numbers broken into chunks easier to rememeber? Becaues the brain is able to focus more intensly when it has less to deal with. This isn\u2019t rocket science \u2013 you probably could have told me this. However, is this piece of knowledge you apply? Information is useless without application.<\/p>\n

The first step in my method is to read one chapter at a time. The idea is to constrain information so the brain is given a better oppourtunity to focus.<\/p>\n

For a while, chunking seemed only useful for improving short term memory, that is until I read\u00a0Moonwaling with Einstein<\/a>. This book showed me how poweful chunking can be for long-term memory when combined with\u00a0Mnemonics<\/a>.<\/p>\n

While I don\u2019t feel Mnemonics is a practical solution for rememebering details from a book \u2013 It did have me wondering what else I could combine chunking with to maximise how much I remember from reading.<\/p>\n

That\u2019s when I re-discovered the forgetting curve. Aha!<\/p>\n

The forgetting curve<\/a><\/h3>\n

The forgetting curve was first discovered by German psychologist \u00a0Hermann Ebbinghaus<\/a>.\u00a0Through a series of experiments, he discovered when newly aquired information begins to deteriorate, and that by reviewing information at these points improves retention drastically. This was a great discovery.<\/p>\n

The forgetting curve is what powers great programs like\u00a0Anki<\/a>\u00a0and SuperMemo.<\/p>\n

\"Forgetting<\/p>\n

How is this helpful to us when reading? The second and third steps in this reading system involve the taking and reviewing of notes.<\/p>\n

Reviewing all notes before reading each chapter will do two things: \u00a0keep the information fresh in your brain and cement it \u00a0further into your mind.<\/p>\n

I often feel as though I\u2019ve read a book many times by the time I read the last page.<\/p>\n

In my case, reviewing notes takes a maximum of fifteen minutes, a small price to pay for an incredible increased rate of recall.<\/p>\n

The quality of notes used for reviewing chapters will hugely impact the effectivness of this technique, be sure to subscribe to the\u00a0RSS feed<\/a>\u00a0to make sure you don\u2019t miss that article.<\/p>\n

The system is really simple:<\/p>\n

1. Read one chapter at a time<\/p>\n

2. Makes notes as you read<\/p>\n

3. Review notes before and after reading<\/p>\n

\n

\n

\n

Keeping Track of What You Want to Read<\/h3>\n

Nothing is worse than wanting to get a new book and facing the empty Amazon search bar, their shallow recommendations staring back at you, KNOWING that there\u2019s something better out there for you, but not being able to remember the 10+ books that you really wanted to read but never wrote down.<\/p>\n

I have a two pronged solution for this:<\/p>\n

1. Evernote
\n2. Pinboard.in<\/p>\n

I have one\u00a0Evernote<\/a>\u00a0note (started in 2010) with almost every book that has caught my eye in the last three years. It\u2019s pretty huge. Evernote is great for this purpose because it also has a mobile version, so wherever you are you can pull out your phone and type the book in for later.<\/p>\n

I also use\u00a0Pinboard.in<\/a>\u00a0which is a really simple bookmarking service to collect books. Typically these are ones that I find on Amazon that I want to save for later. Both of these options are good for maintaining your list\u2013though if you have to choose one, Evernote is probably the best because it works on mobile.<\/p>\n

The biggest problem with this is that it gets really unwieldy after a while. It\u2019s hard to keep track of which books you\u2019ve already read, and it\u2019s hard to find the books that you have top of mind in a list that\u2019s 100s of lines long.<\/p>\n

Refining the List<\/h3>\n

To refine my list I use\u00a0Trello<\/a>. For example, when this summer began I took a bunch of the books from my Evernote list that I felt like I wanted to read and put them into a Trello Board called Books. On this board I categorize them into two lists: \u201cTo Read\u201d and \u201cBacklog.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"My<\/span><\/p>\n

Above: My “Books” Trello board<\/em><\/p>\n

\u201cTo Read\u201d is composed of things that I want to read immediately. \u201cBacklog\u201d is composed of things that I want to read some time this summer. Whenever I\u2019m in a bookstore or I get a book recommendation that I\u2019m really excited about I put the book into my \u201cTo Read\u201d list.<\/p>\n

What I find often is that when I first hear about a book it will get me excited and I\u2019ll want to read it immediately. But after a few days or weeks it will excite me less. If that happens I\u2019ll move the book from \u201cTo Read\u201d to \u201cBacklog<\/a>.\u201d And after a while if it stays in \u201cBacklog\u201d I\u2019ll move it back to my Evernote list.<\/p>\n