Four FLAGS for a productive Reader
Those who have a natural attraction to reading, are indeed lucky! But not all of us, lucky bookworms, are being productive in our reading. Quite often, this very attraction turns us into blind puppies that can easily consume book after book and yet struggle to form a good understanding of what those books were about.
When time to leave a comment on the book comes, unproductive reader tends to skip it.
What being a productive reader means?
It means a consistent reading. Of course! But it also means paying attention and being present, while holding a book in your hands. I know from personal experience, how alluring idea to just dive in a book and eat it like a creamy slice of cake with one bite is. I’ve been there, I’ve done that. BUT… It’s like one-night stand—not romantic, not safe, and not practical.
Productive reader is also able to process the read material in a way that helps his/her knowledge in a particular subject to expand.
Now, I have four FLAGS for you to follow that will help you to stay in shape as a reader and control your unsuitable bookworm’s appetite for reading in check.
Four flags of a productive reading
Make Notes
Making notes can be especially useful in reading non-fiction. Gather some key words that will serve as an orientation for you to recall the most important chunks of information later. The only thing here to remember is, don’t just mindlessly copy write the sentences from the book. Try your own language to pinpoint the main ideas. After all, copy writing is not practical and severely boring!
Write essay
Writing short essay is a great way to propel your thinking gears and therefore, broaden your understanding of the read material. This will help you to connect your opinion with that of the author' and maybe even open some new concepts for yourself.
But writing essay is not the only way to think on paper. For fiction, you can write a review or dedicate a page in your journal.
Find accomplice
Thankfully, it’s not a problem these days. Tweet about the book you’re currently reading and you’ll surely find someone who has either already read it, or is reading it now, or plans to read it soon. You can have a lovely discussion that will increase your status as a productive reader a notch or two.
Make conscious choices
I agree, we read for fun, most of the time picking up books with alluring covers and itching to know what kind of story waits for us behind it. But please, be conscious in your choice. There are millions of great books (I would say any book is great in its own way), but even the most experienced and enthusiastic bookworms would not be able to read them all.
As they say, some books are meant for you, and your job is to find which ones are exactly. Don’t rush after quantity. It’s not about how many books you’ve read but what you’ve learned from those you had.
These four simple in following FLAGS will garantee your productivity as a reader and help to take away the very gold from any book you read.
