Why you should stop reading more books (and what to do instead)

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There’s been a lot of book trends circling around for awhile to read '100 books a year’ or read 'one book a week.’ Reading more is celebrated as a good thing BUT... I’m here today to tell you that these trends to read as many books as possible are actually doing more harm than good.
Reading goals are fine to help motivate you to read, but reading for the sake of meeting that goal ruins the whole point of reading in the first place.
In this video, I go over why you should stop reading more books, and instead focus on reading less books, but better. Becoming better readers should be our ultimate goal. Hope you enjoy :)
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This video is sponsored by Blinkist.
PS: Some of these links are affiliate links that I earn 💸from.
Business email: [e-mail] tio

[@aleidius192]

An active recall exercise I do is to read a chapter of a book and try to write a one page summary of what I have read. If I can't, I read the chapter again.

[@vancoppedge]

Dear [Video Creator], I recently came across your video and I wanted to take a moment to express my gratitude for the positive impact it has had on me. Your video resonated deeply with me, leaving me inspired and motivated. Your ability to reference Frederick Douglas and emphasize the value of celebrating each other truly struck a chord within me. The way you highlighted the importance of recognizing and appreciating the achievements and contributions of individuals from all walks of life was incredibly powerful. It served as a reminder that by celebrating each other, we foster a sense of unity, empathy, and understanding in our society. I appreciate how your video tackled this concept in such a thought-provoking and uplifting manner. It shed light on the transformative power of acknowledging and honoring the strengths and accomplishments of individuals, regardless of their background or status. Your insights were incredibly valuable, and I feel motivated to actively embrace this mindset in my interactions with others. Furthermore, the production quality and your delivery were exceptional, making the video even more engaging. Your passion and enthusiasm were palpable, and it made watching the video a truly immersive experience. Thank you for creating such an impactful video. It has undoubtedly made a positive difference in my life by reminding me of the importance of celebrating each other. I will be sure to share it with others who could benefit from its message. Keep up the fantastic work, and I look forward to seeing more of your content in the future. Best regards, [Van ]

[@the_eerie_faerie_tales]

I prefer to read physically, one main reason is because I want the time and space to think about what I'm reading.. doesn't work like that with audio.

[@JustAn0therSoul]

@@BriDoesAI there are actually studies showing we learn far far better with pen and paper than on a computer this is true across all fields even for computer science... a german neurobiologist held a insightful lecture on this but only in german, his name is Manfred Spitzer maybe you find one with english language or subtitles in case it interests you

[@vibesmom]

Preach! All schoolteachers please take heart regarding this video. These are all strategies I have employed my whole life. In school this didn’t work because we had to fly through the material. English classes were easier because we actually had discussions, but in History or science class the discussions were pretty much non existent. It was just read this, then answer this, then take a test. Those class discussions, your classmates thoughts, and projects based on concepts of the reading were the key to my success in understanding concepts and personal further inquiry.

[@GoldenRainbow1987]

You are appreciated for this video, for the beginning of it, for the research, for your insight, THANK YOU!!!!!!!!

[@luisevidal]

Great content, Bri. Very valuable insides and recommendations to enhance our knowledge.

[@verojonesbrown]

You ask good questions and give excellent supporting statements. Thank you.

[@tanuki88]

Love Blinkist and I love your channel. You got a new subscriber

[@renatasabo9810]

I just loved your video! Actually I liked your whole channel content. 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻

[@Buharialtinee]

Thanks for sharing

[@MitchellGreen]

Wow fabulous job!! Such a great video subject and thought provoking. I rarely read paper books. I like to be able to consolidate my notes when I read on my kindle or iPad.

[@illumina-t-info]

I need to reread more. good video and great timing with the dog hopping on the couch lol

[@JPTAG33]

Thank you for helping

[@carlosalexandrecosta4234]

Topic very well addressed .Well done.

[@ShariqKhan-uo1ll]

Great tips. Especially the re-reading tip which you also ended with a lovely quote, cause that's not emphasized on that often considering how important that is. Discovered you through the video about learning prompt engineering video. Good luck and looking forward to see more!

[@avidhossanmansur9830]

A good rule of thumb is to focus on having moderation between quality and quantity. Going all in on quality was the mistake I made I'd read and re-read the whole book repeatedly until I had the entire thing memorized. I wondered what the point of reading was if I didn't remember what I read. But the problem was that a decent-sized book would take me 4 to 7 months to fully grasp. Yeah, this wasn't the most efficient way of reading But just scrolling through a book like Instagram also didn't feel right. So I do now divide each chapter into Concepts, Sets of facts, and Processes and then turn them into flashcards. And the actual book then becomes the reference for my flashcards. Using this technique I have successfully digested 7 books since this February which is more than the last 2 years combined. Edit: I forgot to mention the spaced repetition system that I use to retain the information. Please keep in mind that I am only talking about nonfiction and mainly engineering books, and this menthod may not work with a novel or poetry.

[@the_eerie_faerie_tales]

I read 1-3 books a week, just because there are SO many books I want to read. I know I'll never read them all, but I want as many as I can get. I annotate most of my books and also have a reading journal.. you could say books are a pretty big part of my identity 😆

[@jottin1359]

you're awesome! You are teaching an old dog many new tricks! Thank you!

[@spiralsun1]

One thing about this is you miss a lot of the unique meanings you bring to the book in knitting your own style and life. Your own creativity. Read whole books too-the ones that really resonate with you especially. My books all have extensive indexes which I wrote myself while reading. ❤

[@nourkamel1133]

Heyy pretty, i came across your channel a few days ago and I’m so in love with your content, keep going you have such amazing vibes 🥰 Also can you recommend some books that you think helped you in some sort.

[@MayronDev]

I agree with everything except writing in the book. I use journals for that. I find it very irritating when checking out a book in the library and seeing someone elses notes written all over the place and words highlighted. It's distracting, and I see it as damaging the books quality. I like keeping them in good condition as a collectable. But I write a TON of notes with different pen colours and highlighters, so it's still good advice no matter where you write them.

[@patricksweeney6334]

"I find it very irritating when checking out a book in the library and seeing someone elses notes written all over the place and words highlighted." In library books... yeah... totally misguided or (ok) wrong to mark up a shared public book. In owned books, however... (for me) that personalizes them. You can tell which of the far-too-many-books-that-I-own that I've actually read, by whether or not they have any of my own thoughts/questions/footnotes/etc contained on the pages throughout.

[@valala2987]

Amazing video and I completely agree. Reading most non-fiction fast is imo just a massive waste of time. If you read 50 books a year and only remember 5 and have no way to review the contents of the other 45 books then you have only read 5 books that year. Anyway, in the book "Beginning Theory" Peter Barry talks about a method of working through complicated texts which I think would interest you. Even though he presents this method in the context of trying to understand fundamental texts of different literary theories I think you could adapt it to pretty much any non-fiction text you encounter. The method is called SQ3R (or SQRRR) and stands for Survey, Question, Read, Recall and Review. First, you Survey a whole chapter (or just parts of it if it's too long), which basically means skimming it. This should be done fairly quickly and the point is to gain a general sense of the content and scope of the entire chapter. Because information tends to not be spread out evenly, Barry suggests that you focus on the opening and closing paragraphs of the overall chapter as well as the beginning and ending sentences of each paragraph. The closing and opening paragraphs tend to give you a summary of the overall chapter while presenting you with the final findings/look-to-future/call-to-action while the opening and closing sentences of a paragraph introduce the specific ideas and their concluding thought/connection to the next idea. Having completed the Survey you should then write down some questions. Since you have now a general idea of what you will be reading you should come up with questions for which you hope to find the answers in the text and write them down. This will make you an active participant in the conversation with the author and will give you a reason to read. You are not just passively passing your eye over information without doing anything Having written down your question you can finally start the reading process. You slowly read the entire chapter from top to bottom while doing something similar to what you said. You underline key points, mark and note passages where you have difficulties understanding or where you come up with questions and finally circle passages which are very important and are worth remembering. Basically, note everything worth noting, I think creating a difficult vocabulary list like you are doing is also a great idea. After doing all of that you move on to the recall stage. Now that you have finished reading the whole chapter try to summarise the main point. Here you also look back at the questions you wrote down before reading and ask yourself whether they have been answered. If some questions are still unclear you can ofc note down the difficulties that remain. The last stage, the review stage, happens preferably the day after. Without re-reading the chapter or your notes you try to review what you have learned the day before. Try to remember the main points you noted as well as the questions you ve had including the answers. If you find yourself unable to remember all the main points just look at your notes again and if that still doesn't help read through the text quickly again and try to make sense of your notes and pencil marks. Of course, this is a slow process and you can adapt this method to the books that you are reading and the way you process information. With practice, you will also get a lot quicker and additionally, I think having something similar to this will get you through most difficult texts, help you to stay an active reader as well as make sure you actually remember what you read. You'll be able to read and remember things you never thought you could before. Btw 2 ways you could adapt this is for example if, during the "read" part of the process, you summarise each paragraph in one sentence (1st paragraph: summaries the first paragraph in a sentence / 2nd paragraph: summarise the 2nd paragraph in a sentence 3rd paragraph: summaries everything before in a sentence (trying to make a connection) plus in a second sentence summaries the 3rd paragraph / 4th paragraph: summaries everything before in a sentence and summaries the 4th paragraph in a second sentence / etc. -> I got this from this kzbin.info/www/bejne/q5qxc2BsiNqkjKM&ab_channel=JeffreyKaplan video) or alternatively, you could take the main key points you've marked in your text while reading and paraphrase them into something like a Zettelkasten system. The idea is that you have something to refer back to at a later date. I agree that rereading is a great idea to solidify and remember important points from a book but realistically if you are going to read slowly you sometimes don't really have the time to do that. Having good notes or summaries will speed up that whole rereading process tremendously. If you really want to get back into the nitty gritty detail you can ofc reread the book but if you just want to have a little refresher, go through your notes and summaries instead. Anyway, thank you for coming to my TED talk.

[@johnibat]

Thanks a lot...👍

[@TomNook.]

its like any other form of media. You don't have to be constantly engaging with it to be fulfilled from the material. Sometimes its good to just go along for the ride.

[@garfieldmtify]

Very good video good information. What’s your thoughts on for example Kindle paper like e books? Thank you.

[@garfieldmtify]

@@BriDoesAI cheers:)

[@maplebob23]

Remember the old RIF commercials? “Reading Is Fundamental. “

[@MrTmont22]

@ 8:40 "I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times." Bruce Lee

[@eb8984]

Wow!

[@murranz]

What is a halfway done movie?

[@Corteum]

1. Read 2. Assimilate 3. Apply 4. Revise

[@adithyavattikonda7524]

I am really looking forward to get in touch and having a talk, cuz i share the same passion of being the jack of all trades.Andd are you a gemini?

[@fuzexi]

I’ve always done this with reading. Not deliberately, but when the author says anything noteworthy I need to put the book down and think about it for a few days. Sometimes I only read a couple of pages, or even a paragraph. It takes me years to finish some books but I get a lot more out of it. But I’m not in a hurry to finish anything, and I read several books at a time. Sometimes I can’t even remember how far I have read the next time I pick a book up. I did however read all the Game of Thrones books pretty quickly but that’s because they are page turners.

[@e-genieclimatique]

in brief: The video discusses the importance of reading effectively rather than just reading more. **1. Introduction:** - The presenter, Bri, begins by referencing a quote from Frederick Douglass about the liberating power of reading. Douglass, an abolitionist born into slavery, credited his journey to freedom to literacy. - Bri questions whether modern readers are truly harnessing the power of reading and if they are reading effectively. She notes that many people read just to tick off book titles from a list, especially with trends like reading 100 books a year. This approach can lead to rushing through books without truly digesting their content. **2. Pre-reading Strategies:** - Before starting a book, readers should: - **Define their reading purpose:** Understand why they are reading a particular book (e.g., for entertainment, learning, etc.). - **Research for clarity:** Gain some background knowledge about the book to enhance comprehension. - **Preview the book:** Look at the title, cover, table of contents, and preface to get an overview. **3. Sponsor Segment: Blinkist** - Bri introduces the sponsor of the video, Blinkist, an app that provides summaries of non-fiction books and podcasts. She shares her experience using the app and offers a discount for her viewers. **4. Engaging with the Material:** - Bri emphasizes the importance of engaging with the text while reading. Historically, readers would underline or write in the margins of books. - Readers should underline key lessons, impactful sentences, or standout quotes. - The margins can be used for notes, disagreements with the author, connections to personal experiences, or definitions of unfamiliar words. This makes the reading experience interactive, like having a conversation with the author. **5. Post-reading Strategies:** - After finishing a book, readers should: - **Take notes:** Write down relevant notes, key passages, quotes, and actionable takeaways. - **Ask questions:** Reflect on the book's themes, development, logic, and challenge its content. - **Re-read:** If a book has a significant impact, consider re-reading it periodically to discover new insights. **6. Conclusion:** - Bri concludes by reiterating the importance of reading effectively rather than just reading more. She references Frederick Douglass's quote again, emphasizing that to achieve the freedom Douglass spoke of, one must learn to read well. - She encourages viewers to engage with texts actively, question, reflect, and connect. The video ends with Bri asking viewers for feedback on this style of content and wishing them happy reading. Overall, the video promotes the idea of quality over quantity when it comes to reading, emphasizing the importance of understanding and engaging with the material.

[@jaishrikrishna70]

You are higly creative n motivated to learn new things. These are the things I would want my girlfriend to have😅. I haven't made any yet😬 .

[@frogozzzz]

solution : become a writer. i literally know everythung about my book (draft 1 still) and relate it to everything.

[@clarifyingquestions]

Print is no longer the dominant media. So what is the dominant media - visual ie films, pictures, fashion, music, sports, tv, - this is how we are now being . Many , many people can not decode visual media just able to decode print. regardless of what is the dominant media - one still needs to synthesis information. So can you decode visuals:)

[@IAmWandaful]

Hello Bri. I was just having this conversation yesterday regarding slavery , knowledge and Freedom. Slaves were forbidden to read because they would know their masters' were LYING to them. I know this was not the goal of your video. Slave Masters would read Bible passages to their slaves out of context. The passages regarding how a master is supposed to treat their slaves was skipped over. The application of knowledge is power. Slaves were forbidden to read so that they would have no knowledge to apply (unless there was a slave who could read) Slave literacy was a threat. A slave could loose their life if they knew how to read. I am just going to leave it at that..... Moving forwarded, I underline, take notes, and increase my vocabulary. I usually put the year in the column that I underlined a passage. I use different colors per year.

[@feliciahines8074]

I feel like these tips are generally good, but a lot of it seems to relate specifically to self-help or self-improvement books. Does anyone actually read any other kind of books anymore? I find that most people use Blinkist for self-help books, and people would probably only write in the margins, highlight, or underline if it's a self-help book or an informational kind of book.

[@dustinyarc]

Blinkist sounds great. Honestly, most books feel like 10 pages of useful info and 150 pages of filler. Letting someone else summarize the key takeaways for me seems like a way better use of my time than reading full books cover to cover, and will save potentially years of my life compared to reading through millions of pages that I won't remember anyway.

[@patricksweeney6334]

@@BriDoesAI The preview idea makes total sense (to me).

[@CarpeDiem-cw2hq]

Ohhh girl, i don't know what brings so much attraction from you tbh(maybe your intelligence), been watching many of your videos and found that you are actually smart, how lucky your boyfriend or hubby is, if you don't have one let me know and i'll prepare myself to get to USA asap and make you fall in love with me by any mean possible!😍.thanks for your knowledge sharing, Greetings from Medellin,Colombia.

[@ivanmeetsgijoe1073]

A tiny correction. You're pronouncing preface the wrong way, as though it had 'face' as its root. It doesn't. Preface comes ultimately from lat. praefor ('to speak beforehand'), from prae + for (“beforehand” + “to speak”). Yes, in classical Latin, 'for' means to speak.

[@Stephen937]

Excellent advice! You might enjoy the video How To Read Fewer Books and Get Wiser by the KZbin channel The School of Life :)

[@Liberationbooks]

This was something that I first became aware of when I went to the university. We were supposed to cram so much information into our heads, that we seldom had time to stop and think about it. This may also be a reason why so much propaganda passes for information in today's educational system.

[@dr.abdullah.noman.]

58.7k subs 09Jul2023

[@taconinza]

read mo' better

[@philippkowalski1105]

With all due respect, Bri, but you definitely lost trust here by packaging an affiliate / sponsored link to blinkist as one of your quality tutorials. Let me tell you, blinkist (nor any of the other services like it) can keep up with reading the book for real. It's not only the pure content, because then you could learn nearly everything from Wikipedia etc. It's the authors tone, which these services (blinkist etc) cannot maintain plus one of the most important things that come from reading the entire book: inspiration. You never know when it hits you, it could be in a total strange spot (maybe the intro, maybe on the last page) and stuff like blinkist can simply not - quantity wise - keep up with reading the original book. It seems like you are optimizing for the wrong thing here: time efficiency. But is that really the best thing to do when it comes to reading? Isn't it a value in itself to not take the "easy route" but also stick with it if it gets a little bit rough (aka boring or difficult passages). I'm all with you when it comes to prepping the actual read through blinkist - it's a good primer to see if a topic in general will be interesting and getting an understanding what the book to be read will be about. But don't use it to replace a book, this is also disrespectful towards the authors.

[@buzzaldrin2556]

The "boo boo" sound in the background is annoying, please fix this in the next video if possible.

[@kbegemotHD]

Beware of these clickbait videos and ones that are sponsored by companies that rely on people being lazy reading.