Why rereading books is important

Most people think that once they hear or read about an idea, they will immediately grasp it and change. The problem is that our subconscious doesn't work that way. Many different factors are competing for his attention at the same time. Only when you come across certain information over and over again does it manage to get through all the noise. Then your subconscious begins to understand that it is really important.

This principle applies to books, courses, seminars, and just about anything we meet and learn in an effort to change our behavior.

We all have books that we have read more than once. We rustle the pages of some of them regularly, using them as a source of inspiration. And there are special works that would be nice to re-read once a year.

So why is it helpful to reread books?

1. This makes you more likely to remember the information

Everyone knows that the best way to remember what you just read is to write a short summary of what you read from memory. Another good way to memorize is to read the book or material again. The goal, of course, is not to mindlessly re-read something over and over again.

You can use the method of media strategy developer, marketing expert and writer Ryan Holiday.

As Ryan reads the book, he makes bookmarks in the places that he especially liked, and then writes out the thoughts from the laid pages on separate cards. These cards are stored in an organized way, each he relates to a specific topic (category), so that at any time he can view the most important moments for him from any book he read.

You can also use the method described by the author of books on business and communication, Cal Newport.

Cal suggests that as you read the book, you write down the main ideas that are most interesting and place pages opposite them, where you can find quotes that illustrate these ideas. So you can at any time find a quote on the desired topic and remember the contents of the book without rereading it completely.

2. You notice something important that you missed when you first read it

When you reread the book, you will be very surprised why you did not fold the corner on some pages during the first reading. And there can be a lot of such pages. Perhaps you missed exactly the phrase or paragraph that you needed the most.

3. You are more likely to take action

If you both hear a thought and read about it, then you are more likely to translate it into reality.

Zig Ziglar Writer, Network Marketing Expert

Do you love audiobooks? A good recording will undoubtedly brighten up a long car trip. Sometimes you want to know what will happen next that you even spend an extra few minutes in the car waiting for the denouement.

You can first listen to the audio version of the book, and then, if you find its content useful, re-read it. This is especially true of non-fiction literature, which is more difficult to perceive by ear. After listening to such a book, you are unlikely to understand anything. Turn it on over and over.

The more often you hear the same idea, the more it penetrates your mind. Repetitions literally screw it into your brain. As a result, the likelihood that you will follow it and take any real action grows with each new listening or re-reading the book. Repetition is the mother of learning. And the sister of action.

4. The effect of the learned information will last much longer

If you've ever attended conferences, seminars, or other fairly motivating events, you know the emotional uplift that comes after them. On the last day of the conference, you feel that now you will fundamentally change your life, write a book, the idea of which has been spinning in your head for a long time, or start a new mind-blowing campaign.

In a day or two after returning to your usual work channel, all your fuse is hopelessly wasted, you descend from heaven to earth. One of the reasons for this is your environment and the environment in which you are. At events, everything is organized in such a way as to motivate you as much as possible. After that, this effect inevitably disappears.

From all this it follows that we can change what surrounds us, and thus achieve optimal performance and increase our creativity. Surround yourself with useful books, re-read what motivates you. The impact of such motivation lasts much longer than the effect of activities.

According to Zig Ziglar, some people admit that when things get really bad, they include his motivational notes. This helps them to cheer up a little and get inspired for further work. In response, he asks them why the hell are they waiting until things get really bad? As if in order to fill the tank, it must first be completely emptied.

Don't wait until you turn into a squeezed lemon. Make the repetition of useful information a good habit.

How best to re-read books

You can just take the book you want and reread a specific paragraph. Get yourself a special shelf for books that you can constantly refer to in this way. Let them give you the inspiration you need every day.
Read the entire book a second time. This works well when you first read it a long time ago. You may find yourself perceiving its content in a completely different way.
Put the audiobook on repeat and listen to it until you start to feel sick from it. It sounds like torture, but when you feel the result of these re-auditions, they will not scare you so much.

Don't underestimate the importance of re-reading books. Each new reading brings something new and useful. It's hard to predict what exactly rereading will help you, but why not give a good book a second chance to surprise you and perhaps even change your life.