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The Simple System I'm Using to Read 30+ Books Per Year

Warren Buffett, the man commonly referred to as the greatest investor of the 20th century, was standing in front of 165 wide-eyed students from Columbia University.

One of the students raised his hand and asked Buffett for his thoughts on the best way to prepare for an investing career. After thinking for a moment, Buffett pulled out a stack of papers and trade reports he had brought with him and said, “Read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.” 1

Buffett estimates that 80 percent of his working hours are spent reading or thinking. It’s enough to make you ask, “Am I reading enough books?”

When I asked myself that question recently, I realized that there were some simple reasons I wasn’t reading as much as I would like to, and I developed a reasonable system that is helping me read more than 30 books per year.

Let me explain…

How to Read More Books

If you know how to read, then reading books is relatively easy. You simply have to make time to read. Easier said than done, of course.

When I looked at my own reading habits, I realized that my reading habits were mostly reactive, not proactive. If an interesting link flashed across my screen on Facebook or Twitter, then I would read it as a reaction. I wasn’t proactively making time to read books each day. I was simply reading interesting ideas that were pushed in front of me.

As a result, most of my reading was done online. Now, there are plenty of excellent articles on the web, but generally speaking, the quality of good books is better. Books typically have better writing (more tightly edited) and higher quality information (better fact-checking and more extensive research). From a learning perspective, it’s probably a better use of my time to read books than to read online content.

So, I had to figure out a strategy that would allow me to read more books without letting typical distractions get in the way.

How do you do that?

20 Pages Per Day

Here’s the only pattern I’ve been able to stick with consistently:

Read 20 pages to start the day.

I usually wake up, drink a glass of water, write down 3 things I’m grateful for, and read 20 pages of a book. For the last 10 weeks, I have followed this new habit. As of today, I’m 100 pages into my 7th book. At that pace (7 books per 10 weeks) I’ll read about 36 books in the next year. Not bad.

Here’s why I think this pattern works: 20 pages is small enough that it’s not intimidating. Most people can finish reading 20 pages within 30 minutes. And if you do it first thing in the morning, then the urgencies of the day don’t get in the way.

Finally, 20 pages seems small but adds up fast. It’s a great average speed.

If time allows, I’ll read more at other times as well. After the research I did for my article on how to get better sleep, I have added reading to my “prepare for bed” routine as well. But regardless of what happens during the rest of the day, I still get my 20 pages in each morning.

The First Hour

How do you spend the first hour of your day?

Most people spend it getting dressed, getting ready, and rushing out the door. What if that time was spent making yourself a better person? What if you woke up an hour before you needed to each day and worked on yourself? How much better would you be at work, in your relationships, and as a person?

That’s essentially what this reading strategy is asking you to do. Before you move on to the normal bustle of the day, invest in yourself. Before your life turns into a whirlwind of activity, read a book that will make you better. As with most habits that can greatly impact your life, this will never feel urgent, but it is important.
20 pages per day. That’s all you need.

How to Retain More of Every Book You Read

There are many benefits to reading more books, but perhaps my favorite is this: A good book can give you a new way to interpret your past experiences.

Whenever you learn a new mental model or idea, it's like the “software” in your brain gets updated. Suddenly, you can run all of your old data points through a new program. You can learn new lessons from old moments. As Patrick O'Shaughnessy says, “Reading changes the past.”1

Of course, this is only true if you internalize and remember insights from the books you read. Knowledge will only compound if it is retained. In other words, what matters is not simply reading more books, but getting more out of each book you read.

Gaining knowledge is not the only reason to read, of course. Reading for pleasure or entertainment can be a wonderful use of time, but this article is about reading to learn. With that in mind, I'd like to share some of the best reading comprehension strategies I’ve found.

1. Quit More Books

It doesn't take long to figure out if something is worth reading. Skilled writing and high-quality ideas stick out.

As a result, most people should probably start more books than they do. This doesn't mean you need to read each book page-by-page. You can skim the table of contents, chapter titles, and subheadings. Pick an interesting section and dive in for a few pages. Maybe flip through the book and glance at any bolded points or tables. In ten minutes, you'll have a reasonable idea of how good it is.

Then comes the crucial step: Quit books quickly and without guilt or shame.

Life is too short to waste it on average books. The opportunity cost is too high. There are so many amazing things to read. I think Patrick Collison, the founder of Stripe, put it nicely when he said, “Life is too short to not read the very best book you know of right now.”

Here's my recommendation:

Start more books. Quit most of them. Read the great ones twice.

2. Choose Books You Can Use Instantly

One way to improve reading comprehension is to choose books you can immediately apply. Putting the ideas you read into action is one of the best ways to secure them in your mind. Practice is a very effective form of learning.

Choosing a book that you can use also provides a strong incentive to pay attention and remember the material. That’s particularly true when something important hangs in the balance. If you’re starting a business, for example, then you have a lot of motivation to get everything you can out of the sales book you’re reading. Similarly, someone who works in biology might read The Origin of Species more carefully than a random reader because it connects directly to their daily work. 2

Of course, not every book is a practical, how-to guide that you can apply immediately, and that's fine. You can find wisdom in many different books. But I do find that I'm more likely to remember books that are relevant to my daily life.

3. Create Searchable Notes

Keep notes on what you read. You can do this however you like. It doesn't need to be a big production or a complicated system. Just do something to emphasize the important points and passages.

I do this in different ways depending on the format I'm consuming. I highlight passages when reading on Kindle. I type out interesting quotes as I listen to audiobooks. I dog-ear pages and transcribe notes when reading a print book.

But here's the real key: store your notes in a searchable format.

There is no need to leave the task of reading comprehension solely up to your memory. I keep my notes in Evernote. I prefer Evernote over other options because 1) it is instantly searchable, 2) it is easy to use across multiple devices, and 3) you can create and save notes even when you're not connected to the internet.

I get my notes into Evernote in three ways:

I. Audiobook: I create a new Evernote file for each book and then type my notes directly into that file as I listen.

II. Ebook: I highlight passages on my Kindle Paperwhite and use a program called Clippings to export all of my Kindle highlights directly into Evernote. Then, I add a summary of the book and any additional thoughts before posting it to my book summaries page.

III. Print: Similar to my audiobook strategy, I type my notes as I read. If I come across a longer passage I want to transcribe, I place the book on a book stand as I type. (Typing notes while reading a print book can be annoying because you are always putting the book down and picking it back up, but this is the best solution I've found.)

Of course, your notes don't have to be digital to be “searchable.” For example, you can use Post-It Notes to tag certain pages for future reference. As another option, Ryan Holiday suggests storing each note on an index card and categorizing them by the topic or book.

The core idea is the same: Keeping searchable notes is essential for returning to ideas easily. An idea is only useful if you can find it when you need it.

4. Combine Knowledge Trees

One way to imagine a book is like a knowledge tree with a few fundamental concepts forming the trunk and the details forming the branches. You can learn more and improve reading comprehension by “linking branches” and integrating your current book with other knowledge trees.

For example:

While reading The Tell-Tale Brain by neuroscientist V.S. Ramachandran, I discovered that one of his key points connected to a previous idea I learned from social work researcher Brené Brown.
In my notes for The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck, I noted how Mark Manson's idea of “killing yourself” overlaps with Paul Graham's essay on keeping your identity small.
As I read Mastery by George Leonard, I realized that while this book was about the process of improvement, it also shed some light on the connection between genetics and performance.

I added each insight to my notes for that particular book.

Connections like these help you remember what you read by “hooking” new information onto concepts and ideas you already understand. As Charlie Munger says, “If you get into the mental habit of relating what you’re reading to the basic structure of the underlying ideas being demonstrated, you gradually accumulate some wisdom. ”

When you read something that reminds you of another topic or immediately sparks a connection or idea, don’t allow that thought to come and go without notice. Write about what you’ve learned and how it connects to other ideas.

5. Write a Short Summary

As soon as I finish a book, I challenge myself to summarize the entire text in just three sentences. This constraint is just a game, of course, but it forces me to consider what was really important about the book.

Some questions I consider when summarizing a book include:

What are the main ideas?
If I implemented one idea from this book right now, which one would it be?
How would I describe the book to a friend?

In many cases, I find that I can usually get just as much useful information from reading my one-paragraph summary and reviewing my notes as I would if I read the entire book again. 3

If you feel like you can’t squeeze the whole book into three sentences, consider using the Feynman Technique.

The Feynman Technique is a note-taking strategy named after the Nobel Prize-winning physicist Richard Feynman. It’s pretty simple: Write the name of the book at the top of a blank sheet of paper, then write down how you’d explain the book to someone who had never heard of it.

If you find yourself stuck or if you see that there are holes in your understanding, review your notes or go back to the text and try again. Keep writing it out until you have a good handle on the main ideas and feel confident in your explanation.

I’ve found that almost nothing reveals gaps in my thinking better than writing about an idea as if I am explaining it to a beginner. Ben Carlson, a financial analyst, says something similar, “I find the best way to figure out what I’ve learned from a book is to write something about it.” 4

6. Surround the Topic

I often think of the quote by Thomas Aquinas, “Beware the man of a single book.”

If you only read one book on a topic and use that as the basis for your beliefs for an entire category of life, well, how sound are those beliefs? How accurate and complete is your knowledge?

Reading a book takes effort, but too often, people use one book or one article as the basis for an entire belief system. This is even more true (and more difficult to overcome) when it comes to using our one, individual experience as the basis for our beliefs. As Morgan Housel noted, “Your personal experiences make up maybe 0.00000001% of what's happened in the world but maybe 80% of how you think the world works. We're all biased to our own personal history.” 5

One way to attack this problem is to read a variety of books on the same topic. Dig in from different angles, look at the same problem through the eyes of various authors, and try to transcend the boundary of your own experience.

7. Read It Twice

I'd like to finish by returning to an idea I mentioned near the beginning of this article: read the great books twice. The philosopher Karl Popper explained the benefits nicely, “Anything worth reading is not only worth reading twice, but worth reading again and again. If a book is worthwhile, then you will always be able to make new discoveries in it and find things in it that you didn’t notice before, even though you have read it many times. ”

Additionally, revisiting great books is helpful because the problems you deal with change over time. Sure, when you read a book twice maybe you'll catch some stuff you missed the first time around, but it's more likely that new passages and ideas will be relevant to you. It's only natural for different sentences to leap out at you depending on the point you are at in life.

You read the same book, but you never read it the same way. As Charles Chu noted, “I always return home to the same few authors. And, no matter how many times I return, I always find they have something new to say.” 6

Of course, even if you didn't get something new out of each reading, it would still be worthwhile to revisit great books because ideas need to be repeated to be remembered. The writer David Cain says, “When we only learn something once, we don’t really learn it—at least not well enough for it to change us much. It may inspire momentarily, but then becomes quickly overrun by the decades of habits and conditioning that preceded it. ”7 Returning to great ideas cements them in your mind.

Nassim Taleb sums things up with a rule for all readers: “A good book gets better at the second reading. A great book at the third. Any book not worth rereading isn’t worth reading.”

Where to Go From Here

Knowledge compounds over time.

In Chapter 1 of Atomic Habits, I wrote: “Learning one new idea won’t make you a genius, but a commitment to lifelong learning can be transformative.”

One book will rarely change your life, even if it does deliver a lightbulb moment of insight. The key is to get a little wiser each day.

Now that you know how to get more out of each book you read, you might be looking for some reading recommendations. Feel free to check out my book summaries or my public reading list.

Footnotes

See tweet on December 2, 2016.
I'd like to acknowledge Simon Eskildsen, who also wrote about the idea of choosing books that are relevant to your interests and current life circumstances. You can read his thoughts on reading here.
Writing about a book also forces you to practice spaced repetition. Maybe you started reading a book a few days ago and writing a summary a few days later is a natural way to employ “spaced repetition” and reinforce the concepts.
“How To Read” by Morgan Housel
“Ideas That Changed My Life” by Morgan Housel
It’s Okay to “Forget” What You Read by Charles Chu
“If It's Important, Learn It Repeatedly” by David Cain

Want to know more this year? Here are 10 ways to do it.

Reading can be of great benefit - it can help you avoid stress, learn new things, meet people, make you think in new ways and gain insight into the world. But spending more time reading isn't always easy.

Here are 10 strategies to make it this year.

Make it important

This is very important - if it's not important to you, you're not going to do it. We are all busy, and finding time to read is not just magical. You must take the time to read because you love to read. If "read more" is one of your goals for the year, write it down and make sure others know about it.

Goodreads has a great Reading Problems feature that lets you choose how many books you'd like to read this year and track your progress. Think about how many books you read last year, add a few and set yourself a goal. Common goals on this social site for books can be motivating.

You can always find an online community to help support your goal - whether it's impersonal like Reddit or as intimate as your spouse, making sure you read from time to time.

Set a time to read

A few things are true for most people I know who read a lot, and one of those things they read before bed. You can spend 30 or 60 minutes before you go to bed checking Facebook on your phone, or you can spend it reading a book!

It's not necessary before bed - some people read in the morning, some read after work, some spend a few hours on Saturday and Sunday looking through their current book. The point is to be consistent whenever possible. Getting familiar with the pattern will help you keep your reading habit. Find a time that works for you and try to stick to it.

Read Anywhere

This is another thing that devoted readers often do—they don't just read when they're sitting in their chair. They read on the bus while waiting in line at the DMV, on their lunch break at work, and at the gym between sets. A few minutes here and there really add up to a week!

Always carry a book with you when you read smaller books, but for e-books In books to make it easier to carry hundreds of books in your pocket. Fill your Kindle or Nook with a bunch of books you want to read and you'll be ready to read wherever you are. Keeping the Kindle app on your phone, tablet, and computer will allow you to read when you don't expect it.

Make Reading Social

We usually think of reading as a solitary activity, but there are a number of things you can do to make it social. You can join a book club or an online discussion group. You can encourage your friends to read the same books so you can talk about them. There are many communities for book lovers on Reddit, and Goodreads is a great place to find people who read the same books as you.

My colleague at , Mihir only reads books recommended by friends and book reviewers to find - he knows they have similar taste in books and he is confident in their recommendations. He says it stops him from wasting it on bestsellers that he probably won't like. Look for people with similar taste and see what they read!

Take part in fun reading

One way to make reading social is to take part in a reading contest with another person or group (although you can easily do it yourself). One of the great things about reading tasks is that they encourage you to read books that you might not have picked up otherwise.

For example, this Pinterest reading task includes “a book with a number in the title”, “a book in the future”, “a book with magic”, “a book your mom loves”, and “a play”. There are a lot of reading issues out there - just search "2015 reading challenge" on Google or Pinterest and see what happens. You might end up enjoying something that you didn't pick up on your own.

Read books that are useful to you

This applies mainly to scientific literature. non-fiction non-fiction, a genre that is often neglected when discussing strategies for reading more. Everyone has questions and topics that interest them, whether it's self-improvement, current events, history, business management, math, physics, cultural theory, agile development, or learning new skills. There are books for all this.

Saikat says he often reads books that encourage him to go outside of his comfort zone, as that's what he tries to do on a regular basis. These books encourage him to go outside the box in a variety of ways that he may not have thought of otherwise. Think of issues you would like to know more about and look for them in books.

Don't finish books you don't like

This is a strategy some people disagree with, but many find useful. If you don't enjoy something or don't get something from the book, you can just put it down and move on to something else. Many people find it difficult, but others say it helps a lot in reading.

If you don't enjoy a book, it will be much more difficult to pick up and continue reading. You will most likely find something else instead of reading. Leaving before you delve into the book, you can launch the one that interests you and flip through the pages you like. Some people say that you should give the book 50 pages, but you can use whatever suits you. You can always come back and try reading it later - some of the books I couldn't finish the first time have become favorites.

Reread old favorites

Another one that some people disagree with, but one that helps me a lot. Some of my favorite books - Dune , Passage , Dracula - I have read two or three times. I know there's a whole world of books out there and I want to read as many books as possible, but there's something really comforting about revisiting an old favorite.

I don't have a system for when I go back to a book I've already read, but sometimes I feel like rereading a classic that I absolutely love. There is no reason not to do it - if you feel it, accept it. You can always learn something new about your favorite books, especially if you weren't completely into it the first time you read it.

Save some books for the holidays

Another tip from Mihir. Some books are best read when you're on vacation, at the beach, on top of a mountain, or in an urban resort. Mihir says crime and thriller novels can keep him busy on regular days, but biographies and autobiographies are best kept when he's on vacation.

Keep your favorite genre of book in a safe place so that you can find the right time or conquer it when you can fully devote yourself. Collecting your books ahead of time is a great way to make sure you have a great book ready.

Read different formats

If your goal is to read more, you probably mean books, but don't forget that there are other types of reading that can be fun, educational, and very rewarding. Magazines, newspapers, blogs and articles in the format you need, where to go for the best readings on the internet, where to go for some, all have something to offer. Choosing the right one can be difficult, but with a little searching, you should be able to find what you enjoy reading.

The next time you think about logging into Facebook for a few minutes or checking your work email in the evening, try reading something. Here are 8 Great Places to Read Things to Read 8 Great Places to Find 8 Great Places to Find to Get Started. You can even read long articles on your Kindle. read excellent delivery. read excellent !

Start reading!

These 10 tips should give you plenty of ideas on where to start as you read more. this year. Whether you're going to read a certain number of books (my goal for this year is 30 and now in-universe) or just spend a little more time learning online, you have the tools you need. Now find the motivation Go and do it!

Do you plan to read more this year? What strategies will you use? What do you recommend to others who want to read more? Share your thoughts below!

Image Credits: books (edited), vintage books and clock on wooden table, happy young couple relaxing on Shutterstock; Michael Cote , Cory Doctorow via Flickr; Woman lying on a bench via Shutterstock.

11 scientific facts about reading books

The world is divided into people who love to read and those who do not understand why they spend time reading books, because there are so many interesting things going on around.

Today, many young people, unfortunately, consider reading books a hobby of introverts, weak and asocial people. However, they are greatly mistaken, because by not reading, they deprive themselves not only of the pleasure that each book can deliver, but also of various positive effects of reading.

Science has proven that reading books brings many benefits, especially when it comes to the emotional and intellectual abilities of the brain.

There are books - informational building blocks that help to fill gaps in various areas of life. And there are books - vitamins, a first-aid kit for the soul, they help to understand oneself. Thanks to reading, the world around becomes more understandable and more interesting.

So, in order, 11 scientific facts about reading books

1. Who reads books regularly learns something new every day

Just like any muscle tissue in the body, the brain is constantly in need of additional training, such as solving puzzles or mind games such as chess.

You may lose your job, property, money, and even physical health, but no one can take away your knowledge. Reading books not only helps to maintain the existing level of knowledge, but also expands it. By reading, we are constantly supplying our brain with new information, and we never know when we will need it in life. The more knowledge we have, the more prepared we are for the various challenges we face in life.

2. Reading expands vocabulary

The more books you read, the more new words will be in your everyday vocabulary. A wider vocabulary and the ability to speak beautifully increase your self-confidence. In addition, clear speech and the correct pronunciation of words can be of great help in any profession. Well-read people, good speakers who can speak on various topics, are highly valued in the business world and quickly move up the career ladder.

3. Reading makes you a better person

A 2013 Emory University study compared the brains of two groups of people. Some read the book before the experiment, but people from the other group did not. Using brain scans, the experts found that reading books evokes feelings of anxiety and empathy for others, which did not happen to respondents who did not read. In addition, a group of New York psychologists came to the conclusion that reading literary works helps people to better understand each other.

4. Reading is contagious

Parents who want to encourage their children to love reading can do so by reading aloud at home every day. It has been scientifically proven that school-age children with parents who read books aloud are more likely to develop reading habits. So, dear parents, read bedtime stories to your kids.

5. Develops the mind

Not only do we get smarter by reading, but our brains get clearer as well. An American neurological study has proven that reading books is an important part of everyone's life, from childhood to adolescence. People who read regularly throughout their lives have better intelligence and better memory at all stages of life.

According to a 2009 scientific study, just 6 minutes of reading reduces stress levels by 68%.

6. Reading improves memory

While reading the book, we meet many new characters, their characters, ambitions, in fact, their whole world. All this information is collected and stored in the brain. Any new knowledge that the brain stores in its memory stimulates the development of new and strengthens existing brain synapses, which directly affects the strengthening of our memory, especially short-term memory.

7. Reading improves concentration

When we read an interesting book, we focus exclusively on the story, while everything around us seems non-existent. It is enough to read 15-20 minutes before you start your work tasks, and on the first day you will be surprised how much better your concentration is.

8. Reading to prevent Alzheimer's disease

A recent comprehensive study by American scientists showed that older people who engage their brain in activities such as chess, puzzle solving or reading books are two and a half times less likely to get Alzheimer's disease than people who spend their time on less stimulating activities. While this does not mean that reading will definitely prevent the onset of the disease, it has been found that there is a strong link between reading books and preventing Alzheimer's disease.

9. Books relieve symptoms of depression

76% of study participants in the UK said that reading improves their quality of life and makes them feel good. Those who read regularly are more satisfied with their lives, they are happier and have more self-esteem. Reading can help us accept reality. It encourages us to explore the unknown and develop ideas that can lead to positive life changes.

10. Reading relaxes and reduces stress

A good novel or an interesting expert book is a great way to unwind and de-stress. No matter how many problems you have at work, in personal relationships, or in any other area of \u200b\u200bdaily life, you forget about everything when you immerse yourself in reading a good literary story.

11. Reading develops analytical thinking

Have you ever read a thriller and managed to solve a riddle on your own before finishing the book? This is only possible if you have taken into account all the facts and circumstances from the book and carried out a detailed analysis. If yes, then you have been able to increase your analytical skills through reading, which will undoubtedly come in handy in your future career growth. Whether you are a lawyer, a trader, or a doctor, every job is done better with good analysis.