
In this episode, Rachel shares lessons about why self-care is so important from her struggles of not wanting to be “selfish.”
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, Rachel shares lessons about why self-care is so important from her struggles of not wanting to be “selfish.”
By Mike Schmitz
I read a lot of books. Usually between 40-50 every year.
But reading became a lot more fun once I learned to approach it the right way.
You see, I used to approach reading non-fiction books like going to class. The author was the teacher, they had all the answers, and it was my duty to absorb as much as I could from the guru in the precious time we had together.
And if I didn’t get the radical life transformation that they were promising me at the beginning, well, obviously it was my fault.
Read even a couple of books that way and I guarantee you’ll feel like a colossal failure and learn to hate reading.
Then I read How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler for Bookworm, and my perspective completely changed.
Mortimer Adler was the editor for the Encyclopedia Brittanica back in the day, so he knows a thing or two about reading books. And he equates reading a book to playing catch. The author sends a message, and as the reader, we do our best to receive it.
But then we decide for ourselves what it means and what (if anything) we’re going to do about it.
In other words, while reading a book has the potential to change your life, you shouldn’t feel like it has to.
Just because you know a bunch of people who swear that GTD has changed their lives doesn’t mean you’re broken if it doesn’t have the same impact on you.
You have to decide for yourself what to do with what you read. And Mortimer Adler gives us 4 levels of reading to help us try to make sense of things:
As you’re working your way through the book, you’re trying to figure out:
“Working a book” like this requires a little more effort, which is why I don’t recommend you just pipe things into Obsidian using Readwise.
Now don’t get me wrong, Readwise is an amazing service. But IMHO it makes it a little too easy to just collect things indiscriminately.
Here’s a breakdown of my book note-taking process:
If you want to see the whole process in action or learn more about the philosophy behind my approach to taking book notes, that’s the topic of a popular YouTube video which you can watch here:
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, the author promises to teach us a practical and uniquely positive approach to making decisions and exploring new ideas. Join Cory & me as we embark on a journey for clearer thinking, improved communication, and greater creativity.
By Mike Schmitz
David & I revisit the topic of journaling for personal growth and share how our workflows have evolved.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, Rachel and I share about the power of reading and how what you read actually changes your brain.
By Mike Schmitz
Do you have trouble learning new things? This episode’s author promises to help us improve our ability to learn based on neuroscience and cognitive psychology. Join me & new co-host Cory Hixson as we attempt to make the best use of our brains.
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, David & I consider the role of happiness & joy in meaningful productivity.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, Rachel talks about her favorite writing program and shares writing samples from her children’s stories and papers.
By Mike Schmitz
In this episode, the authors (and Stanford Life Design Lab co-founders) promise to help us use design thinking to create a life that is both meaningful and fulfilling. Join new co-host Cory Hixson and me as we attempt to build our version of a well-lived, joyful life.
By Mike Schmitz
Cognitive neuroscientist and reading warrior Dr. Maryanne Wolf joins us to talk about the science of reading and how what we read changes our brains.
This episode of Focused is sponsored by:
I help people apply values-based productivity principles and create systems to help them live more intentional lives. If you’re into personal growth or PKM, you’re in the right place.