using your books

Keep track of your progress. I’ve been keeping a list of every book I read since 2001, and I feel great every time I add a title to the current year, whether I loved it or not. In more dedicated times, I made a point to write brief notes about what I did or didn’t like in a separate document as a kind of reading log, to help jog the memory when, as

Review books, or write about books you read. In the same mind as keeping an archive of your path, and as a counter to the ‘letting it all wash over you as you go’ mode, taking the time to think effectively about a particular text or series of texts, whether you loved it or not, can be extremely instructive for your own approaches.

When you read, to maximize what you learn: immediately after reading a book write down “ten things I learned”. Else, you won’t remember more than 1 or 2 things at best from the book.

-Don’t just build a library, build an anti-library—a stack of unread books that humbles you and reminds you just how much there is still to learn. It’s a sign of what you don’t yet know. It’s also a resource there whenever you might need to do a deep dive into that topic.