7 Reading Mistakes You Overlook
Summary
TLDRIn this sponsored video by Squarespace, the creator reflects on common yet often overlooked mistakes in reading habits that hinder effective learning. These include undervaluing fiction, rushing through books, blindly following influencers' advice, and not applying practical book knowledge. The speaker emphasizes the importance of immersive reading, critical thinking, and gradual implementation of ideas. Additionally, they discuss the pitfalls of intellectual pride and setting unrealistic expectations, advocating for a patient and self-compassionate approach to reading growth.
Takeaways
- 📚 Embrace fiction: Resisting fiction can lead to missing out on valuable depth and insight that stories provide.
- 🎯 Focus on quality over quantity: Reading more books doesn't guarantee better learning; it's better to read less but engage deeply with the material.
- 🕒 Be present with your reading: Don't rush through books just to move on to the next; savor and appreciate each book for its content.
- 🛠️ Apply practical knowledge: Reading practical books is only beneficial if you take action and implement the advice into your life.
- 🧠 Avoid intellectual pride: Approach books with an open mind, ready to learn and not just to reinforce your existing beliefs.
- 👂 Listen critically to influencers: Be cautious of taking YouTube advice at face value; consider the source and weigh the advice critically.
- 📈 Prioritize action over consumption: Consuming content without applying it doesn't lead to growth; actively work on implementing what you learn.
- 📈 Manage expectations when reading difficult books: It's okay not to understand everything on the first read; reading is a journey of gradual understanding.
- 📈 Read for longer periods: To truly immerse in a story, especially fiction, try to read for extended periods to allow for deep engagement.
- 🔄 Reflect and learn from past reading mistakes: Recognize and learn from past reading habits that didn't serve you well to improve your current approach.
Q & A
What is the main theme of the video sponsored by Squarespace?
-The main theme of the video is about the mistakes the speaker has made in their reading journey and how they learned from them, focusing on uncommon mistakes that might be overlooked.
Why does the speaker initially resist reading fiction?
-The speaker initially resists reading fiction because they thought they were above it and believed it was pointless and that there was nothing to be learned from it.
What is the significance of storytelling according to the speaker?
-The speaker believes storytelling is significant because it is the vehicle that delivers big ideas and is a powerful way to convey messages and emotions.
What is the 'consumerism' mistake in reading that the speaker talks about?
-The 'consumerism' mistake in reading is the speaker's previous habit of rushing through books just to move on to the next one, which led to not fully appreciating or retaining the content of the books they read.
How does the speaker suggest improving the quality of reading over quantity?
-The speaker suggests reading with a focus on quality over quantity by reading more slowly, thoughtfully, and putting in more effort, which may result in reading fewer books but gaining more from them.
What is the speaker's opinion on the advice given by YouTubers regarding literature?
-The speaker advises to take advice from YouTubers with a grain of salt, to consider it critically, and to experiment with it personally rather than blindly following it.
Why is it important to take action after reading practical books, according to the speaker?
-It is important to take action after reading practical books because these books offer guidance on how to do something in the real world, and the only way to honor them is by implementing their advice into one's life.
What does the speaker mean by 'intellectual pride' and why is it a pitfall?
-The speaker refers to 'intellectual pride' as the attitude of thinking one knows everything when they don't, which is a pitfall because it prevents open-mindedness, critical thinking, and the discovery of new ideas.
How does the speaker suggest dealing with difficult books that are hard to understand?
-The speaker suggests managing expectations and approaching difficult books with the mindset that understanding them fully may take multiple readings, and that it's okay to only understand a little more with each attempt.
What is the speaker's advice for those who struggle with getting immersed in fiction?
-The speaker's advice is to read for longer periods to allow oneself to get into the flow of the story and to save fiction reading for when there is a long block of time available to fully immerse in the story.
What is the speaker's final takeaway message about reading?
-The speaker's final takeaway message is to be patient with oneself, to not compare one's reading progress with others, and to appreciate personal growth and the journey of learning at one's own pace.
Outlines
📚 Embracing Fiction for Its Depth and Insight
The speaker begins by acknowledging their past mistakes in reading and learning, emphasizing that they are not an authority but have learned from their experiences. They discuss the common mistake of resisting fiction, comparing it to someone who constantly points out inaccuracies in a movie. The speaker explains that they once thought fiction was pointless and arrogant, but they later realized the depth and insight that can be gained from it. They argue that storytelling is a powerful vehicle for delivering big ideas and that there is more to learn from fiction than from self-help non-fiction. The speaker regrets not allowing themselves to be immersed in stories earlier, as they believe it could have significantly impacted their learning and personal growth.
🔗 The Pitfall of Prioritizing Quantity Over Quality in Reading
The speaker shares their realization that focusing on the quantity of books read rather than the quality of engagement with each book led to wasted time and forgotten content. They liken this to not enjoying a meal while thinking about dessert, suggesting that being fixated on the next book prevents one from fully appreciating the current one. The speaker now advocates for slow, thoughtful reading that leads to lasting change in character and understanding. They also mention their use of Squarespace to build a website, highlighting the platform's ease of use and quality results, even for non-designers, and offers a discount code for viewers interested in trying Squarespace.
🎓 The Danger of Blindly Following Influencers' Reading Advice
The speaker discusses the pitfalls of listening to YouTubers and other influencers for reading advice without critical thinking. They recount their own naivety in taking advice at face value and trying to emulate the strategies of others, which led to a loss of personal learning agency. The speaker emphasizes the importance of considering advice critically, experimenting with it, and finding what works best for oneself. They also touch on the importance of taking action after reading practical books, suggesting that merely reading without applying the knowledge does not lead to true progress or change.
🧠 Overcoming Intellectual Pride and the Struggle with Challenging Texts
The speaker reflects on the issue of intellectual pride, where they approached books with a preconceived intent to agree or disagree based on their existing beliefs, which hindered their ability to learn. They advise readers to drop prejudices and approach books with an open mind. The speaker also shares their past struggle with fiction due to a short attention span, suggesting that reading for longer periods and during dedicated time blocks can improve immersion. Lastly, they address the frustration of not understanding difficult books, advocating for a patient and incremental approach to learning, where progress might be slow but is still valuable.
Mindmap
Keywords
💡Fiction
💡Hustle culture
💡Storytelling
💡Consumerism
💡Self-help
💡Practical books
💡Intellectual pride
💡Critical thinking
💡Immersion
💡Quality over quantity
Highlights
The video discusses common mistakes in reading and aims to share lessons learned from these errors.
The speaker admits to being manipulated by influencers and falling victim to hustle culture, emphasizing the importance of critical thinking in reading.
A significant mistake is resisting fiction, which the speaker argues can offer depth and insight if readers allow themselves to be immersed.
The importance of storytelling as a vehicle for delivering big ideas is highlighted, with a claim that fiction can provide more insight than some non-fiction books.
The speaker shares a personal habit of rushing through books to get to the next one, which led to a lack of retention and enjoyment.
A shift in focus from reading volume to reading quality is recommended, suggesting a slower, more thoughtful approach to reading.
The video promotes Squarespace as a tool for creating high-quality websites with ease, even for non-designers.
The speaker warns against blindly following YouTubers' advice, advocating for critical evaluation and personal experimentation with reading strategies.
The importance of taking action after reading practical books is emphasized, suggesting that implementation of ideas is key to honoring such literature.
Intellectual pride is identified as a barrier to learning, with the speaker encouraging open-mindedness and fair consideration of different viewpoints.
The speaker confesses to previously disliking fiction but has since come to appreciate its value, suggesting that immersion and attention span play a role in enjoying fiction.
A recommendation to read for longer periods to facilitate immersion in fiction is made, along with the suggestion to save fiction for times when uninterrupted reading is possible.
The video addresses the challenge of reading difficult books, advocating for a mindset of gradual understanding and patience.
The speaker encourages readers to be satisfied with their own progress and not to compare themselves to others in terms of reading ability.
An invitation for viewers to share their own reading mistakes in the comments or via email is extended, promoting a community of learning and growth.
Transcripts
this video is sponsored by Squarespace
the internet's best platform for web
design I have made so many stupid
mistakes in reading ones that have cost
me years of good learning and ones that
I'm still trying to correct to this day
I may have started my channel based on
reading but I'm not some scholar or Sage
with this big Authority on the topic I
have been manipulated by influencers I
have fallen victim to hustle culture and
even my own Pride sometimes but after
learning all of these mistakes the hard
way the least I could do is share them
here YouTube is repetitive nowadays so
I'm going to try and stay clear of the
more boring standard mistakes and focus
on The Uncommon ones the ones that you
could be completely overlooking in your
own reading the first is what I call
resisting fiction and you'll see what I
mean in a second but first let's say you
gather some friends one chill evening to
watch a movie or a show and you pick
something that's fictional but still
takes itself seriously maybe like betal
soul for example and within the group
there's always that one friend who feels
like they have to pipe up every 5
minutes to say oh well actually that's
not how it works in real life maybe they
spotted some inaccuracy in a courtroom
scene and it's like yeah no it's
television it's fiction there will be
creative Liberty taken in order to get
the overall message across and to make
it more entertaining of course not every
inaccuracy is okay I'm not saying that
but nobody likes someone who is
constantly poking holes and everything
and refuses just to enjoy the art for
what it is the same is true for fiction
books in the past I used to resist its
pull on me because I thought I was
somehow above that and that it was silly
to get absorbed into a story and it's
like that's dumb man that's just
arrogant to that point in itself it was
the reason I thought fiction was
pointless and that there was nothing to
be learned from it and that is just
crazy now that I'm hearing it again
there is so much depth and insight in
fiction but only if you let it speak to
you only if you allow yourself to be
immersed and to really come close to all
the characters the emotions the the
themes all of that stuff there's a
reason our society is built on stories
and why we love movies songs and books
that fill us with emotion storytelling
is the vehicle that delivers Big Ideas
and it does it really damn well and I'd
say that there's more insight waiting
for you in fiction than any of that
self-help non-fiction flooding the book
stores nowadays and anyway they use
fiction to get their point across so it
really speaks for itself I've been
reading for years for pretty much my
whole life with some dips along the way
of course but now I look back on it 80%
of that is gone it's a black hole I
don't remember what I read nothing stuck
with me and it didn't change who I was
that is many hours of work thrown away
into the trash I'm not going to blame it
on any one thing but ironically a big
part of it was my desire to read more
with every book I chose no matter how
how interesting it was I'd always read
with thoughts of the next book something
new shiny something different I remember
too that as I approach the end of the
book I would start to almost rush it my
focus would get sloppy and I was so
fixated on finishing that so I could
pick up the next book it's such a waste
and I always compare it to food it's
like you can't enjoy your main meal if
you're always thinking about dessert
with every bite and you can't enjoy the
moment if you're stressing about
something that's going to happen
tomorrow if you're always worrying about
what's next then you can't enjoy what's
in front of you even though it's amazing
in itself it's how you throw away any
chance of Joy or meaning in the present
because even when you do switch to the
next book you are just repeating the
cycle and you can never be truly happy
with what you have at that point it's
consumerism like they do over on book
talk and you know we probably want to
stay clear of that in more ways than one
I now read with quality in mind rather
than volume and that means it's going to
be slow it's going to be thoughtful and
with lots of effort and yes you will end
up reading way less than before if you
choose to do this but is that not worth
it for what you're gaining in return the
books stick with you they change your
character and they become part of who
you are rather than something you you
just have to remember like you're
studying for a test I'll link some
videos Below on how you can actually put
that into practice the slow methodical
learning In fairness the quality
quantity compromise isn't Universal at
least when it comes to websites I use
Squarespace to build mine and I'm no
designer right but within a few hours I
made something quite aesthetically
pleasing at least in my eyes and I hope
you agree so even with little time
you're getting quality the drag and drop
editing means you aren't Limited in what
you can create it's how I built my
homepage here I tweaked every little
detail until I thought it was perfect I
used my site to show off my writing in a
nice way so this is a great hub for your
own blog or mailing list and if your
goal is to make a living off your skills
you can do that you can make a pay for
your blog and your videos and that's
super nice because the business side of
creativity can be unforgiving without
the right tools and here it's all there
for you you can take it a step further
with the courses feature where you
design this nice structured series of
video lessons and share it with the
world with of course all of the
analytics you need to keep track of the
interaction to get started yourself you
can go to squarespace.com and use their
free trial to design your first website
and once you feel ready to launch it you
can then go to square space.com odesus
and use code Odus to get 10% off of your
first website or domain so do have a
look at that my third big Pitfall was
listening to
YouTubers that's awkward you see the
problem here I mean I'm offering advice
just the same as anyone else's and it's
easy for gurus to call out gurus for
being gurus in this stupid endless cycle
but look not everyone is out to trick
you and deceive you and you know you can
think critically so so what's the
problem here when I first took
literature more seriously I turned to
videos on here for advice and you know
school did a good job but I wanted more
I was naive and I saw these YouTubers as
high sources of authority cuz you know
they had the subscriber counts they had
the big bookshelves in the background
and all the rest and to be fair most of
them had the evidence to back it up but
look it's it's still YouTube there's
sensationalism there's marketing and
there's the business side of it that can
get in the way of the honesty listening
to people is not a bad thing obviously
my mistake was that I took their advice
at face value and I put it on a pedestal
I tried to copy every tactic they had
word for word I tried to be like them
and in doing so I gave up all of my
Independence and my agency in learning I
was different to them just as you are
different from me and our minds don't
work the same way my favorite reading
strategy might cause you to hate
literature forever and vice versa you
might hate taking notes in obsidian or
whenever you're writing a book it makes
you feel uneasy and that's fine I like
it personally but doesn't mean you have
to so the point is here is to not
distrust people automatically but to
take their words with a grain of salt to
weigh it up to consider it and most
importantly to experiment yourself
because you don't know how good advice
is until you've seen it in reality not
every book is truly finished on the last
page meaning you can get to the end of a
book full for this mistake and then your
effort evaporates into nothing mistake
number four is reading practical books
without taking any action every book has
a different purpose to it Persian Fire
by Tom Holland not the actor was written
to teach us about the Persian Wars with
Greece it's a history book this book The
Way of men by Jack Donovan it's about
masculinity and it was written both to
discuss the topic but also to argue a
point that you can consider whether you
agree or dis agree but this set of books
is different they are all practical
meaning they offer you guidance on how
to do something in the real world the
most obvious types will be handbooks
like these ones on Bushcraft and I also
have quite a few books that teach me how
to become a better writer and you can
clearly see how they are practical
however some books have a mixture of
both Theory and practical advice for
example 12 ruls for Life by Jordan
petson it talks about ideas from
religion from Philosophy from psychology
but then it offers also real world
advice based on all that the Common
Thread with all of these books is that
they demand action from you the reader
trust me it's so easy to binge all of
this practical stuff and feel like
you're taking action and that you're
moving forward in life I fell victim to
that fake accomplishment so many times
the only way we can truly honor these
books is to make their ideas a reality
to take their advice and use it of
course assuming you agree with it I do
this by taking notes on the Practical
points and then finding a way to
gradually Implement them into my life
and I say gradually cuz if you write
down 30 different points of action it's
not happening that's such an
overwhelming flood for your mind and you
can't just overhaul your entire you know
set of habits and routine in a few days
it's not happening for example I
recently finished on writing well and I
will not read any other writing books
until I've taken good notes on this one
and of course given myself some time to
practice what it was actually saying
again I'll link some videos Below on how
you can approach content with a bit more
intention and mindfulness kids are dumb
they're naive and it's not just kids you
probably think the same way about your
past self even as an adult you might
look back and the memories make you
cringe a bit and that's normal much of
the time this embarrassment comes from
phases you went through maybe you were
an Emo or you were crazy into anime or
hobby horsing or something I don't know
but that's all pretty innocent it's part
of growth and it's normal but there's
one aspect that's a bit more Sinister
and I felt it in full force it's
intellectual Pride thinking you know
everything when you really don't
whenever I approached books I came to
them looking to agree or disagree
depending on the stance I was expecting
to hear if I knew that the author's main
argument was something that clashed with
my world view I'd approach it with a
very defensive and closed off attitude
and this wasn't critical thinking my
mind you this was just being stubborn
straight up it was the noit all attitude
I didn't treat their arguments fairly
and it killed my learning and equally if
the author and I shared the similar
worldview I would agree with everything
they'd say I'd lick their boots all
because my own opinions were being
reinforced it's glazing as they say now
you can't go through life thinking that
you know everything because then you'll
never find anything new You' just be
this walking ideology with no room for
CR iCal thinking or independent thoughts
so whenever you read drop your
prejudices drop your ideology and hear
them out I'm not saying you have to
agree obviously you can be critical but
the point is to give them a fair
platform to stand on in the first place
the authors aren't there to defend
themselves so in a way you have to do
that for them I have a confession which
you probably know already but whatever
for the longest time I hated fiction and
I know I can't even look at you in the
eyes right now but seriously I mean it's
not that unusual in the world of reading
especially in the hustle culture sphere
people on fiction all of the time
they think it's useless there's nothing
to learn from it it's a waste of time
but why is that and what changed for me
since then because I love fiction now
it's like half of what I read one big
thing that pushed me away from fiction
was that I stopped reading it too often
and you'll see what I mean with that my
attention span is still not my strongest
suit but a while back it was far worse I
struggled to focus on a story from more
than 20 30 pages even then I felt
productive with that I felt like I was
checking off my daily reading time which
to be fair I was but the problem was I
could never get immersed into the story
no matter how hard I tried I didn't feel
a connection to the world and the
characters I never felt what it was like
to be truly sucked into a story like
those people you see who can read for
hours straight on the weekend weend I
was jealous of that actually fun fact
the first book to do that for me
actually I think I have it here hang
on the first book I don't know why it's
a bit of an odd one but the first book
to ever like truly absorb me into it
story was uh Nelson Mandela's
autobiography you wouldn't expect it but
they did so I recommend it it's a good
read but yeah back to the point I know
today why it was so hard for me to get
into the flow and it was because I read
the fiction in small chunks which made
immersion almost
impossible I remember just you know just
as I was about to get invested into the
book I stopped reading and I could only
see it the next day again it chops up
the World building it makes you forget
all the important details and you find
it harder to relate to the characters
and to get to know them when I first
read about this mistake in how to read a
book I tried an experiment I tried for
once to push through my attention span
and read for an extra half an hour let's
say and I think at the time this was The
Hobbit and miraculous well not
miraculously it was expected I actually
found myself getting more invested and I
got into that almost state of reading
where I could just keep going for ages
so if that's something you relate to I
would try two things first read for a
little bit longer than usual so you give
yourself that time to get into motion
and second try to save fiction for when
you have or when you know you have a
long block of Time ahead of you so you
again allow yourself that time to feel
absorbed so I don't know it could be
worth a shot or maybe I'm delusional and
it's just my problem I don't know one
brisk Autumn night you are feeling
scholarly you pick that one thick book
off your shelf that you've been meaning
to get to for ages and you start reading
it maybe it's philosophy or one of the
classics you realize that you are only
10% of the way through the introduction
and you have not understood more than
two or three
paragraphs what in the am I reading
it's not looking good it's even worse
when you know the book has a lot to
offer you but it all just completely
flies over your head and no matter how
many times you reread the same stupid
sentence it just doesn't make sense and
that's a problem because it puts you off
you don't want to approach a book and be
mentally beaten up every time because
what's that going to do it's going to
push you away it's going to make you
potentially dislike the hobby that you
once found fulfilling and no one wants
that however that expectation you have
for yourself might be the problem that
is crushing your motivation it's okay to
struggle with a book in fact I'd even
say it's a good thing it's the best
evidence that the book is challenging
your mind and pushing you to new levels
this is only true however if you
approach it with the right mindset
because you can set yourself these
really high expectations to understand
everything but that's going to leave you
feeling inadequate or you can manage
them a little bit so that you give
yourself the room to grow slowly yes but
surely and sustainably Justin song Here
on YouTube mentioned somewhere that
reading a hard book is not 0 to 100 it's
n Plus one this means that you will
almost never understand the whole book
in the first read through and that's
okay the point is you can return to it
with a more mature mind and understand a
little bit more than last time maybe
it's still not a lot maybe even after 10
attempts you still understand only half
of it but that's okay it's your journey
it's your wisdom it's your thinking and
the point is you are doing the best that
you can if I constantly compared myself
to these 60-year-old professors and
these you know you know really
intelligent speakers I would feel
miserable because of course they're
ahead of me but you know at least I can
be satisfied with my own progress and my
own journey and learning out there there
will always be better readers than you
but if you want a realistic path ahead
then you have to be fair with yourself
and patient because this is not easy
it's damn difficult and those are eight
of my worst mistakes in Reading I think
it was eight seven eight I'm not sure if
you have any of your own mistakes that I
missed I'd love to hear them in the
comments ments and of course it would
help other people too and uh my email is
also open so feel free to message me
there I read and respond to everything
it might take some time but it does
happen so if you have any questions or
problems just know it's there and of
course thank you for watching
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