Are You Learning, Or Are You One Of THEM?by Gary Vurnum
I met an old friend recently who didn't know what I was doing on the 'net. As we talked...I heard it. (And not for the first time.) "I've read over 200 personal development books" It's like a talisman. A sign of achievement. Look at how many books I've read. "But are you living the life of your dreams, then?" I asked. "Well, er, no. In fact I'm still unhappy, in debt, and hate my job." Suddenly the alarm bells start going off. Ah, he's one of THEM! A Reader! A gatherer of knowledge. I used to be one of them. Anthony Robbins. Brian Tracy. Napoleon Hill. I'd read them all. Then left them on my bookshelf for a few years to gather dust. Then I had given them to charity. Never to be seen again. Then...something changed. I realised that each of these authors had put hours of work (in Napoleon Hill's case - years of work) into writing down what they knew. And I was throwing their knowledge away. I was treating their knowledge and wisdom as I would a novel. Read once. Put on the shelf. What if I had been in a room with them and they taught me what they knew one-on-one? What if I had spent a couple of thousand dollars to go to a seminar to see them? Wouldn't I at least take some notes to justify my time and expense? Yet here I was - spending up to two weeks at a time reading each book - and then not bothering to work out a way of getting a 'return' on that precious time I had just used up. Not bothering to USE the knowledge that had been passed onto me. Sure, little snippets of information stayed with me - but I realised that I had wasted the best part of ten years of my life reading - but not actually LEARNING. So I decided to do something about it. I decided that from that moment on - I wouldn't read a non-fiction book without finding a way of using the information that was presented inside it. Here's what I do: 1) I read the book as normal. 2) I then go through the book and highlight the sentences or paragraphs that I believe are valuable. 3) I then write my own summary of the book based upon the highlighted words. 4) I review my notes regularly. 5) If it's a book related to my business - I look at ways to apply what I have learned immediately. This method ensures that I read the book at least twice - and makes sure that I fully understand (in my own words) what the author is saying. Being an 'information junkie' it can be difficult to hold myself back from starting a new book (or ebook) before I fully 'complete' the previous one - but I always remind myself that it's the quality of learning that's important, and not the amount of books you read. It's a very good way of getting past all of the 'padding' that seems to be the vogue in personal development books. By having the essential information at your fingertips - it will be much easier for you to actually use, and benefit from, the books you read. My life has changed dramatically since I began to really work 'with' the books that I had just read before. Find a method that works for you - and you will be amazed at how much you can really benefit from the books you read. Gary Vurnum has quit his full-time job to devote himself to his family and his self-development. His life turned around after the birth of his severely disabled son, and he now wants to share with others the tools he used to remain positive during the worst time of his life. Click here to visit Gary's website. Copyright © Gary Vurnum All rights reserved worldwide.
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