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In 1982, the U.S. Air Force shared a reading-improvement guide to help senior military members handle heavy reading loads.
I read all 63 pages so you don't have to.
Here are the 10 most interesting quotes from it:
1) "Reading is more than picking up word after word. Reading is picking up ideas, sorting them, weighing them, and then throwing away the useless and saving the good."
2) "Reading habits matter more than most people realize—lighting, posture, distractions, and especially interest. There is no spur to concentration like honest interest."
3) "Are you careful about having good lighting when you read? Do you read with the radio or television on? Do you pay any attention to having a comfortable position when you read?"
4) “Different materials have to be read at different speeds. As Francis Bacon wrote over 300 years ago, ‘Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested'…You have to vary your reading speed according to the kind of material you’re reading and what you want to get out of it.”
5) "You don't drive at the same speed in traffic or over a bumpy road as you do on an interstate highway. In the same way, you have to vary your reading speed according to the kind of material you're reading and what you want to get out of it."
6) "One of the basic reasons for reading loss is the lack of an incentive–that is, lack of purpose or direction. A man wandering about in a snowstorm or otherwise without sense of direction will travel in circles. That holds true also for a man who reads aimlessly."
7) "When you read, read for a purpose. Tie your reading to your work, your hobby, or your personal life. If there is no real connection there and you still feel you ought to read the material, set it up as a challenge–a mental contest between yourself and the author."
8) "You have to push yourself hard in your regular reading, find out where you are weak, and concentrate on strengthening those points. This will require concentration and perseverance. It will also take time. But if you follow through conscientiously, your efforts will pay off."
9) "By reading, we gather all the accumulated knowledge of all the generations all over the world."
10) “There is no magic formula. You have to find out what the essentials of good reading are and in which of those essentials you are weak. Then, by special exercises and by particular attention to those essentials in your daily reading, you can gradually increase your speed and understanding. It takes work and more work, but if you stick with it, the results will amaze you.”
And my favorite line from the guide:
“Good reading is not like good looks—it doesn’t come naturally. You have to work at it.”
I read all 63 pages so you don't have to.
Here are the 10 most interesting quotes from it:
1) "Reading is more than picking up word after word. Reading is picking up ideas, sorting them, weighing them, and then throwing away the useless and saving the good."
2) "Reading habits matter more than most people realize—lighting, posture, distractions, and especially interest. There is no spur to concentration like honest interest."
3) "Are you careful about having good lighting when you read? Do you read with the radio or television on? Do you pay any attention to having a comfortable position when you read?"
4) “Different materials have to be read at different speeds. As Francis Bacon wrote over 300 years ago, ‘Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested'…You have to vary your reading speed according to the kind of material you’re reading and what you want to get out of it.”
5) "You don't drive at the same speed in traffic or over a bumpy road as you do on an interstate highway. In the same way, you have to vary your reading speed according to the kind of material you're reading and what you want to get out of it."
6) "One of the basic reasons for reading loss is the lack of an incentive–that is, lack of purpose or direction. A man wandering about in a snowstorm or otherwise without sense of direction will travel in circles. That holds true also for a man who reads aimlessly."
7) "When you read, read for a purpose. Tie your reading to your work, your hobby, or your personal life. If there is no real connection there and you still feel you ought to read the material, set it up as a challenge–a mental contest between yourself and the author."
8) "You have to push yourself hard in your regular reading, find out where you are weak, and concentrate on strengthening those points. This will require concentration and perseverance. It will also take time. But if you follow through conscientiously, your efforts will pay off."
9) "By reading, we gather all the accumulated knowledge of all the generations all over the world."
10) “There is no magic formula. You have to find out what the essentials of good reading are and in which of those essentials you are weak. Then, by special exercises and by particular attention to those essentials in your daily reading, you can gradually increase your speed and understanding. It takes work and more work, but if you stick with it, the results will amaze you.”
And my favorite line from the guide:
“Good reading is not like good looks—it doesn’t come naturally. You have to work at it.”
