Most Book readers (especially beginners) think that why should I spent my precious time reading when I can't remember a single thing from that book after some time. I can understand your frustration. I used to think the same when I started my reading journey. I used to think reading is a waste of time if I don't remember it.

 

But, After reading 50+ books & 100+ book summaries, I realized that books could bring health, wealth, and happiness to our lives even if we don't remember them. All we need is to change our perspective. In this post, I will tell you precisely what needs to be done. So, keep reading.  

 

Difference between Studying and Learning -

 

We miss one point in our approach towards reading books: there is a difference between studying and learning. We try to study books instead of learning from them. 

 

The study is what we do in schools. We mug up the answer, and we try to recall them and forget them after writing it down on exam papers. 

 

Learning is what we do in real life. Do we study the whole car or mug up the manual before driving a car? No. Right? Still, we end up learning to drive.  

 

The same approach we should keep while reading books. We should learn from them, not study them. And we can't learn each and every lesson from all books. So, try to get the bigger picture out of the book. Just try to learn 2-3 different or new things or one big Idea from a book that stuck in your mind. Even if you learn 1 lesson from a book and apply it in your life, your life can really change. 

 

Now the question remains how to retain those two or three big ideas or lessons from books?       

 

Read and Discuss -

 

What are the chances that you will forget your name in your lifetime? Almost Zero! Why? It's because your name is the only word in the world that you have repeated the maximum number of times in your life. Naturally, what's on the tip of the tongue has to be on top of your mind. Repetition is a friend of memory. 

 

When I discuss one big idea from a book with my friend, isn't it am I revisiting the book's text? We take notes or highlight quotes in the book, but we rarely go back to them in the future. 

 

Instead, if you keep talking about what you read passionately with your friends, you are highlighting the text in your mind. The more you talk, the more you revisit, and eventually, it becomes part of your character and personality. 

 

Here are four ideas I learned from books and how they eventually became part of my personality.

 

1. Don't Run Behind Passion

 

I remember I had read the book So good they can't ignore you when I passed my high school. I was looking for stuff like what is my passion and what I should do it. I came across this book and it changed me completely.

 

We all believe that passion means doing something that you love, something that you enjoy doing it. But the author says the opposite. The origin of the word passion comes from the Latin word 'pati' which means suffering. We think that mastery stems out of passion, but it's another way round- passion stems out of mastery.

 

It's only when Sachin Tendulkar spent relentless hours of net practice day in and day out, we now say that he is a passionate cricketer. One has to sacrifice all the immediate pleasure and put his blood, sweat, and tears into a skill, cause, project, or mission. He then becomes so good at it that it is hard for the world to ignore him. And he is awarded the word "passionate."  

 

This one idea from the book changed the way I look at skill and passion. I shared this many times with my friends that it becomes part of my personality. 

 

2. Your Life has Meaning

 

Like passion, the Meaning is something that most people are confused about. I was one of them before reading the book Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl.

 

We always ask ourselves, what is the meaning of my life? No one can be able to answer it. The author says that you should not ask this question, but you should recognize that you are asked. You are the one who should answer this question. And you can answer by being responsible for life.

 

Responsibleness comes from three things:

 

1.    By doing a work

2.   By experiencing someone or Loving someone

3.   Suffering

 

One can find meaning by doing work, loving someone, or even in suffering. We can find meaning in our suffering if we change our attitude towards it.

 

The idea of having meaning even in suffering has changed my outlook. Now I don't need to find meaning in my life because I realized my life has meaning.

 

3. The Motivation is Myth

 

We often think that the reason for not being consistent in our habits/work or for not achieving our goals is a lack of Motivation.

 

We think that Motivation is the cause for results, but it's the effect. Motivation comes after doing work; it comes after making progress. It is not the pre-requisite. It will come to you automatically when you do your work and see little progress in your work.

 

To give an example when you feel most motivated, before doing exercise or after exercise? Of course, after doing exercise because the little progress we made by exercising for one day motivates us to exercise the next day. So, the cycle is not like Motivation and then work. Instead, it is like Work and the Motivation to do the next work.

 

The same happened with the book The Motivation is Myth by Jeff Haden. I remember one idea from this book, and it changed how I look towards Motivation.

 

4. Happiness is a struggle

 

We always think If I solve all problems in my life, I will be happy. We think that If I will earn more money or If I get a job or If I reach a certain level my life will be sorted. But that doesn’t happen. What happens is when you reach a higher level bigger problems are waiting for you to be solved.

 

The point is life will never be problem-free. Struggles will be there forever no matter how many things you achieve in your life. So, embrace the struggles in your life and happiness comes from solving problems. The bigger problems you solve the happier you become.

 

This an amazing lesson I learned from the book The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck by Mark Manson.

 

These were few ideas from books that changed my life and I have these ideas in my mind without trying to remember them at all.

Conclusion

You don't need to remember everything from the book. Just find the one thing and try to apply it in your life.

Written by Omkar Mirajgave