Sometimes we read a fantastic book full of important lessons and tips, but when we are in a situation where we can use its tips, we don’t remember anything. While reading the book should have a positive and lasting effect on our lives. In the following, we offer solutions for better memorization of the material. Of course, you don’t need to do all these methods for all books. Using a few will also make you remember more and get more out of the time you spend studying.
Strategies for better memorization of content
1. Good book selection
There are no rules for choosing a book. You don’t have to read bestsellers or books that others are raving about. Focus on books that:
- They do not lose their value over time;
- arouse your interest;
- They challenge you.
The more interesting and useful a book is, the more likely we will remember its contents.
Another point to choose a book is to match it with your conditions. Choose genres or authors to help you overcome your challenges or give you a new perspective. Whatever your situation, someone else may have been in the same problem and written about it; Such a writer can provide you with unique and valuable ideas to overcome your condition.
2. Knowing your reason for studying
Why are you reading this book? For fun _ Knowing someone or something you don’t know? Progress in your work? Learning a new skill? Or to learn how to start a new business? You must know what you want from the book. If you don’t intend to study, you won’t remember what you read.
3. Asking deep questions about the content
Asking questions while reading makes the process of reading a book more experiential. In his research in the 1970s, neuroscientist Eric Kandel discovered that synapses change with experience. If you want to change your brain from a brain that only reads to a brain that remembers content, you must experience reading. There are several ways to do this, but asking questions is one of the most direct ways. You must be familiar with questions like who, what, when, where, why, and how, but how much do you use them while studying? Get into the habit of asking more questions on each page you read.
You can go even further and better understand the meaning of the text by asking the following questions:
- What is the author’s intention or plan?
- If this is true, who benefits?
- When can this sentence be wrong?
- What is a counterargument?
- What are its effects? If this claim is valid, what would change?
The more you ask these more profound questions, the more likely you will remember the material because you experience reading.
4. Preparing to study
Have you ever heard the term priming? Foregrounding is one of the few valuable techniques in speed reading. Foregrounding means checking different parts of the book before reading it. Of course, this process is not always the same because not all books are the same. However, this process usually includes the following steps:
- Analysis of the writing on the back of the book;
- attention to the logo or emblem of the publishing house;
- review of cited works or bibliography;
- Reading the table of contents and introduction and conclusion section;
- View photos, charts, and other visuals.
Foregrounding makes you remember more because paying attention to these parts of the book helps your semantic and episodic memory. It’s like looking at a store layout before trying to find aisle 5.
Episodic or episodic memory stores specific personal experiences, and semantic memory stores factual information and meanings.
5. Getting information about the context and conditions of writing the book
Some books make more sense when we know something about the author’s life or the place and time they were written. Try to understand the historical context of older books. If the book is written in an unfamiliar country, understand its cultural context. For example, ask yourself:
- Why did the author write this book?
- What other books has the author written?
- What were the political, economic, and cultural conditions when this book was written?
6. Combining different subjects (Interleaving)
When they pick up a book, many people read it from the beginning to the end. This is a big mistake. Research shows that if you take a break while reading and move between topics, you will remember more material. For example, you can read three books at the same time. After reading one of them, read a branch of the second book and move from one book to another.
By doing this, you compare what you read in books, and your brain makes connections that make it easier to remember things better. In addition to helping to preserve the content better, combining topics helps to clarify concepts and even seemingly similar objects by creating connections.
You can also use this method to study your lessons. Suppose you have to read three books in 3 days and prepare for the exam:
- First session: Book A, B, and C
- Second session: Book B, C, and A
- The third session: Book C, A, and B
It has been found that mixing up the order in which we read material helps us remember more.
7. Maintain focus
Just focus on the book while reading it. That means don’t look at your phone, don’t watch TV, or stare around. Understanding and understanding the book’s content requires increased concentration, especially if the subject is complex and challenging.
If you can’t concentrate on a complex or lengthy book, you can read a few pages of it every day. Reading a few pages of a complex text does not take much time. It may take months to read a long book with this method, but at least you will read it without getting tired and putting too much pressure on yourself.
8. noting
The best way to take notes is the way that works for you and is easy for you to do. Some write their letters in notebooks, and some prefer digital tools. Choose the note-taking method that suits your goals. For example, you can write a summary of each chapter and write down essential sentences or phrases or write a summary of each chapter at the end. In the following study session, start by reading the outline of the previous chapters to prepare for reading the following parts of the book.
9. Making mental connections
Any concept or truth can be linked to countless other ideas and facts. Making connections is a valuable way to remember better what we read. Creating clear mental images is one of the most effective techniques for memorizing material. When you come across a meaningful phrase or concept, visualize it. Make it stand out as much as possible by associating this image with other ideas in your brain.
Another way to create links is to connect things to a network of mental models. Having a framework of concepts helps us better understand and integrate the book’s contents because it allows us to join the new ranges and the things we already know. If knowledge is related to something we understand, it stays in the mind more easily.
10. Stop studying when tired
You don’t have to finish the book you started. Those who love reading never read bad books to the end. Bad books are intellectual poison and destroy the mind. Life is too short to spend reading bad books. Author and librarian Nancy Pearl suggests the “Rule of 50”: read the first 50 pages of a book and then decide whether it’s worth reading to the end.
If at the end of page 50 all you really want to know is who’s marrying whom or who the killer is, turn to the last page to find out. If it is not specified on the last page, go to the penultimate or previous page, or as far back as necessary to discover what you want to know.
– Nancy Pearl
Necessary actions after reading the book
1. Summarizing and discussing
Summarizing what you have read would be best to combine all the material to form long-term knowledge. You can remember more material by explaining the material in your language and not simply repeating essential points and terms. For example, summarize the book you read in 250 to 500 words.
The next step is to talk about what you have read. If you don’t have an audience to listen to your explanation of the book, explain it to yourself.
2. Applying what we have learned
Reading alone is not enough, and we must apply what we have learned. Applying what you have read immediately reinforces learning and gives meaning to what you have learned. Another way to enhance learning is to use the Feynman technique. This technique has four steps:
- choosing a concept;
- teaching it to someone unfamiliar with the subject;
- identifying gaps in self-understanding and returning to sources;
- I was browsing and simplifying the content.
3. Notes searchable
You can categorize and sort your notes by book, author, topic, or reading time. With this, you can find the message you want more quickly. A catalog of everything you’ve learned from your study creates a valuable resource you can use whenever you need an idea or want to confirm a thought.
4. Read the book again
Re-read good books. You might think it’s a waste of time because you haven’t read many books yet. But the goal is not to read more books but to gain wisdom and learn. The best time to re-read a good book is right after reading it for the first time. If we want the book’s contents to stay in our minds forever, re-reading the book is a perfect way because repetition plays a significant role in making memories.
you say
Are you one of those who have read many books but don’t remember much? To what extent can the methods proposed in this article solve this problem? What other ways are there to retain what we read?
