Changing The Way I Read Makes Me Learn Deeper
How I prevent myself to not to be a book snob
I always envy a bookworm who reads many books and use their spare time to dive into different genre of books. Until one day I read some annoying statements on Twitter, and it came from book lovers who suddenly became snob with their opinion. And the statements were like this, “Readers who only choose the chic-lit or metro pop novels, not the literary book, are missing out on the great craft. Reading romance novels is a dull activity.” Book snob is the phrase for people who are trashing anything that isn’t “literary” enough
I read different genres, from philosophical books , business, marketing, psychology, various novels and children's books. It gives me different perspective. Why do some bookworms talk like that? People who read have different purposes. Some readers want to get new knowledge and some of them just want to have pleasure moment. In this article, I want to tell you about my experience and how I change the way I read to make me learn deeper.
Before 2022, I used to read books extensively. I could read 52 to 80 books a year, but I didn’t write a review on Goodreads. Then I joined a reading community named One Week One Book that encouraged the members to read one book every week and write a short review on our Instagram feed. One Week One Book set a weekly deadline and everyone who fails to follow the deadline for 7 weeks a row will be kicked out from the community, however, we can join it by registering again and starting the new commitment.
I was so happy to join and got reader’s achievement almost every month in 2021. Unfortunately, at the same time, little by little I felt like my reading hours started to be a boring routine. I also thought that the people who read a small number of books were not better than me. The signal in my head was ringing. Yes, I felt that I became a book snob.
My Personal Project
I saw my 2 bookshelves and unopened books on my bed. It was a sign to start controlling my habit of buying some books every month. I also bought many ebooks on Google Playbook, Lontara app, and Rakata app. I felt guilty. Since December 2021, I made a project called Book Buying Ban. I tried to not buying books from 3 months and reading the books that I haven’t touched for month.
I made a giveaway to give my books for the winner. And then, I gave my book collection to people who bought my novel as a bonus. I also sold some books at half price to my friend who loves to read my book review on Instagram.
The next project was reading for deep learning. In 2022 I only read 30 books. I read with purpose, and rereading became my habit to understand some methods such as copywriting books, business books, and self-development books. Sometimes I read fiction to entertain myself. I spent more time practising, building my team in Wordholic Class and networking.
I applied what I read and got from online courses. The great news, I don’t become a Book Snob. I appreciate every reader’s purpose.
Reading should be fun. I don’t want to make my reading activity a competition. Reading 12 books is also as good as reading 60 books or more. I want to have a good quality result from reading. A book is a gift you can open again and again. What book do you read this week?
