I also find listening more interesting than reading. Sometimes I even do it while working, if the job is routine and not too complicated. But technical books and materials have to be actually read, sometimes several times over...
How I Read Books
11–18 of 18 posts
Re: How I Read Books
#12> Many people think you have to read every page of a book starting at the first page and go to the last page, before moving on to the next. Maybe because that's what they were taught in school?
I do it because if I don't I get details crossed between them, creating one heck of a cross-over episode.
Re: How I Read Books
#13which essays do you read every 3 months? open to hearing from more than just the OP too
Re: How I Read Books
#14which essays do you read every 3 months? open to hearing from more than just the OP too
Thanks for asking (I too am interested to hear others')
The Days Are Long but the Decades Are Short for simplification, balance and inspiration: https://blog.samaltman.com/the-days-are-long-but-the-decades...
Orwell's Politics and the English Language on the importance of precise use of language: https://www.orwellfoundation.com/the-orwell-foundation/orwel...
Orwell's Why I Write on critical thinking and clear communication: https://www.telelib.com/authors/O/OrwellGeorge/essay/whyiwri...
Steve Jobs' Stanford Commencement Address (a speech rather than an essay, but worthy of quarterly viewing): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UF8uR6Z6KLc
Oscar Wilde's A Sentimental Journey Through Literature - a disciplined but scathing repost to a critic who takes shots at Wilde's work without understanding nor appreciating it. Timeless, given how much media is poorly substantiated opinion at best, and outright emotional babble at worst: https://www.gutenberg.org/files/14240/14240-h/14240-h.htm#:~...
Re: How I Read Books
#15Skipping parts in books was a big mental shift for me that has made me a much happier reader. I used to force myself to read through parts of books I already knew. If you read technical books, the overlap between them continues to grow and sometimes I really only want like half a book. Sometimes the additional perspective on a familiar concept is valuable, but I don't force myself to spend time on them anymore.
Re: How I Read Books
#16How do you know what chapters to read or skip? Just by the title?
Re: How I Read Books
#17I take a similar approach with technical write-ups and complex systems models, I skim for structural concepts first, jump to the core formulas/mechanics later
Re: How I Read Books
#18How to Read a Book by Mortimer J. Adler