things to remember when reading a non fiction

• no need to finish. you’ll know when to stop
• no need to go linearly. you can skip around
• no need to read everything on the page before continuing
• when you’re stuck, try reading backwards from the last sentence up. don’t worry, it’s probably not you, some books are not written in an easily digestible way
• if things aren’t making sense because your mental bandwidth is low, get up, stretch, take couple of deep breaths, or take a nap
• you don’t need to remember or understand everything on the page before moving onto the next page
• but do try to get some high level understanding of one or two key ideas or main points from the page
• if you reread the book and can’t you’ve even read those exact same words, don’t think that you’ve failed or wasted your time
• reading is more like shaping your mind, claymaking
• for example, being aware that these x y and z factors affect the GDP is more useful than remembering the exact percentage that factor is moving
• and chill, you don’t need to immediately remember which three
• well, unless you’re studying for an exam! then engage your curiosity more. find ways to make it interesting.
• details don’t matter as much in concept books
• while for technical books, you better have your tools open when reading to apply and verify the material hands on
• books are for rereading. the best books are where you find new things each time
• things takes time to stick
• and things take practice to master
• you don’t need to read them fast. reading is not a competitive sport. you’ll know some stuff for now and you’ll be blissfully ignorant on others for now. the important thing is to know which ones they are, and until when
• go into a book with at least some questions you’d like to get clues and pointers on. then hunt for them by skimming, flipping, finding keywords, or making a guess at the table of content. why did you pick the book up? what did you want to know?

Originally published at Proses.ID.