Maybe kinda weird, but I think that my growth as a reader has a lot in common with my growth as a yoga practitioner. After a while (in my case, 10 years) you hit a point where you don’t really care about the “metrics” or “performance.” When there’s no ego involved, the results stop mattering. Instead, it’s about chasing the magical flow - finding it, holding it, enjoying it, and then letting it go when it’s gone. It has nothing — literally nothing — to do with other people. Ironically, when the results stop mattering, they start skyrocketing.
I read a great bundle of books in 2019. Probably about 20. But I no longer care about how many, or how big they are. I also don’t mourn the “dry spells” - weeks, or even months, without finishing a book. There’s a zen to it. Discipline plays a role, especially early on, but eventually you can learn to let go and ride the wave, wherever it leads. At that point, everything is gravy.
Also, yeah, duh, this:
Eliminate one hour of television a day if you have to. The long-term benefits cannot be compared with the short-term pleasure of daily distractions.
Update (1/2/2020):
Also, I just remembered why I wanted to comment on this in the first place: I disagree with the premise of this article - I don’t see much value in learning to read insanely fast. If competition drives you, go ahead and teach yourself to read a book a day. Maybe that will be fun for a little while. But regardless, you’ll still have to level up to a point where you’re just doing it because you love it.
Your comment alone made it worth the read. I agree, speed is such a strange metric. It reeks of the optimization obsessed cult of biohacking & performance optimization.
Reading for speed is beside the point, read to learn! Still chuckling over it all.
Lol. Exactly!! I'm so glad we're on the same page.
When I walk into a yoga studio and people are talking about how long they can hold headstands, I think, Aww. Adorbs! I was a beginner once too. That's basically how I feel when people talk to me about speed reading. One day you'll learn. Slow is the way.
But more importantly, I try to remind myself that everyone does this stuff (reading, yoga) for their own reasons, and my way isn't the only way. I guess the only golden rule is: To each their own.
Seth Godin (personal hero) says that with nonfiction books (and he gets sent a gang of them) he reads until he "gets the joke". Once you get what the author is trying to teach you, you can stop.
I see some of that reflected here but still...why? If you're trying to learn new skills to grow, ok I get that, but speed itself is a weird metric.
TBH i laughed at the title, I whip through books and have to force myself to put them down so i don't spend my entire weekends on the couch. I picked up Leigh Bardugo's The Ninth House this last Friday and had to force myself to go to sleep at 3am and finish it the next day.
Perhaps when you don't own a TV & avoid social media the author's suggestions hit a hollow note, but I guess the article is for a totally different audience.
I love "get the joke" reading. I love doing that at airports. With a long enough layover, I sometimes feel like I can "get the joke" of an entire shelf or season of Godin-esque pop non-fiction.
Also, I think I know why Readup is working for you: You're a legit reader! :)
Maybe kinda weird, but I think that my growth as a reader has a lot in common with my growth as a yoga practitioner. After a while (in my case, 10 years) you hit a point where you don’t really care about the “metrics” or “performance.” When there’s no ego involved, the results stop mattering. Instead, it’s about chasing the magical flow - finding it, holding it, enjoying it, and then letting it go when it’s gone. It has nothing — literally nothing — to do with other people. Ironically, when the results stop mattering, they start skyrocketing.
I read a great bundle of books in 2019. Probably about 20. But I no longer care about how many, or how big they are. I also don’t mourn the “dry spells” - weeks, or even months, without finishing a book. There’s a zen to it. Discipline plays a role, especially early on, but eventually you can learn to let go and ride the wave, wherever it leads. At that point, everything is gravy.
Also, yeah, duh, this:
Also, I just remembered why I wanted to comment on this in the first place: I disagree with the premise of this article - I don’t see much value in learning to read insanely fast. If competition drives you, go ahead and teach yourself to read a book a day. Maybe that will be fun for a little while. But regardless, you’ll still have to level up to a point where you’re just doing it because you love it.
Your comment alone made it worth the read. I agree, speed is such a strange metric. It reeks of the optimization obsessed cult of biohacking & performance optimization.
Reading for speed is beside the point, read to learn! Still chuckling over it all.
Lol. Exactly!! I'm so glad we're on the same page.
When I walk into a yoga studio and people are talking about how long they can hold headstands, I think, Aww. Adorbs! I was a beginner once too. That's basically how I feel when people talk to me about speed reading. One day you'll learn. Slow is the way.
But more importantly, I try to remind myself that everyone does this stuff (reading, yoga) for their own reasons, and my way isn't the only way. I guess the only golden rule is: To each their own.
Seth Godin (personal hero) says that with nonfiction books (and he gets sent a gang of them) he reads until he "gets the joke". Once you get what the author is trying to teach you, you can stop.
I see some of that reflected here but still...why? If you're trying to learn new skills to grow, ok I get that, but speed itself is a weird metric.
TBH i laughed at the title, I whip through books and have to force myself to put them down so i don't spend my entire weekends on the couch. I picked up Leigh Bardugo's The Ninth House this last Friday and had to force myself to go to sleep at 3am and finish it the next day.
Perhaps when you don't own a TV & avoid social media the author's suggestions hit a hollow note, but I guess the article is for a totally different audience.
Yup!
I love "get the joke" reading. I love doing that at airports. With a long enough layover, I sometimes feel like I can "get the joke" of an entire shelf or season of Godin-esque pop non-fiction.
Also, I think I know why Readup is working for you: You're a legit reader! :)