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Hey folks,
By the time you read this, I'll be on a walk with my two beautiful Dalmatian doggies. Mental health is important for continuous learning.
Let’s get into it.
In today’s newsletter
I have learned that experiments are the best way to find the right system, and a learning system should be dynamic. It's possible that what works for me or someone else might not work for you.
Develop a habit of how to apply the First-Principle Thinking & Trial & error techniques.
You will learn some basic concepts: anti-library, eidetic memory, pain points, a system to remember everything, and how our brain processes information.
A System for Remembering Everything
Let’s learn a system to remember everything.
My long-term memory is terrible. I don’t know why. Maybe it's genetic.
The following system is helping me stay on top of everything.
Instead of finding out why my long-term memory is bad, I have started to find a way to improve it or at least remember what I read or learn from different sources.
Some people have excellent memories and remember everything even when they were 5 years old. For example, my wife can recall every detail from her childhood, but I cannot.
It does not matter that I had a bad childhood. As much as I remember, mostly the major events, I had a beautiful childhood in lush green fields.
But it doesn’t matter how hard I try; I cannot recall.
In this article, I will try my best to explain a couple of recalling or remembering techniques that are working for me and other people.
If you are a returning reader, you know that I love books.
I keep buying books, and sometimes I wonder if I will ever be able to read them all.
If the above question jumps into your brain, why do I keep buying books or think I won't have enough time to read all the books?
Here are the top reasons to keep buying.
1- Quotes
When I get a little money, I buy books, and if any is left, I buy food and clothes. Desiderius Erasmus
I have this weird obsession about buying books and looking at them with a smile, even if I won’t read them soon. At least they are mine now.— Anaïs Nin
2- An anti-library
As I mentioned, I have a terrible long-term memory.
It is also worth mentioning that I have excellent short-term memory.
When I was an undergrad student, my short-term memory made it easy for me to get a grade A by merely recalling the material before the exam in one night.
It's also worth sharing that despite these systems, I am not perfect at recalling everything, but some people are doing great.
For example, an accomplished author on this platform, Ryan Holliday, has a great system for recalling almost everything while reading and writing a book.
I have read 900+ books, newsletters, and blogs, but I cannot recall 100% until I look at the system to help me.
My system is not 100% aligned with Ryan Holliday, but I optimized it with the trial-and-error method.
Let's start the learning.
Can you recall 3–5 main points of a nonfiction book you read last year?
Here are my top 2 books. I can recall what they say even in sleep.
Book one
Meditations by Marcus Aurelius is for anyone who wants to live a better life.
“Forget everything else. Keep hold of this alone and remember it: Each of us lives only now, this brief instant. The rest has been lived already or is impossible to see.”
“At dawn, when you have trouble getting out of bed, tell yourself: “I have to go to work — as a human being. What do I have to complain of, if I’m going to do what I was born for — the things I was brought into the world to do? Or is this what I was created for? To huddle under the blankets and stay warm?” — But it’s nicer here.… So you were born to feel “nice”? Instead of doing things and experiencing them? Don’t you see the plants, the birds, the ants and spiders and bees going about their individual tasks, putting the world in order as best they can? And you’re not willing to do your job as a human being? Why aren’t you running to do what your nature demands? — But we have to sleep sometime.… Agreed. But nature set a limit on that — as it did on eating and drinking. And you’re over the limit. You’ve had more than enough of that. But not of working. There you’re still below your quota.”
The book will help you understand many things that have remained the same for 1000+ years, regardless of whether you are an emperor or a nobody: sorrow, anger, hope, fear, etc.
The book is nothing but a practical wisdom.
Book two
The War of Art by Steven Pressfield is for anyone who wants to skyrocket their productivity.
Remember, everyone struggles, including the smartest people; you are not alone.
Treat your creative work like a full-time job.
Learn how to beat the resistance; the rest is a piece of cake
Finally, read this book if you are afraid of failing before starting a project.
After some digging, I learned that our ability to remember things varies wildly from person to person.
Some have terrible memories, including long-term and short terms.
Some have excellent memories, including long-term and short-term
Some have photographic or Eidetic memories, like the show Mike Ross from Suits.
What is eidetic memory?
An eidetic memory is also known as a photographic memory.
It is a special type of memory in which a person can store lots of visual information, and store it for a very long time.
Let’s accept it: an average memory is messy and often unreliable in this information-loaded world.
It’s easier for us to remember events that provide a deviation from our typical sensory experience.
For example, I was cycling at a very young age when the cycle tripped, and I broke my arm, that one I remember vividly.
I lost my father to open heart surgery at merely the age of 62, and he was the only person who never missed a single week making a call to say.
How are you?
How is the weather?
Then, he handed over the phone to my mother. It’s the strongest memory and so vivid.
I was looking for a system that could help me recall everything, like an event; I also knew it would take some time to develop the habit.
I was more inclined to find a system that works great for highly successful individuals.
My pain point
In the end, I wanted to write at least one article or story per day. It was painful to recall what I consumed vividly on paper.
Ryan Holiday is the international bestselling author of great books like “The Obstacle Is the Way” and “Ego Is the Enemy.”
While I can’t remember much of what I read in these books, I do remember them as really good. By the way, I read all his books.
If you know Ryan, he can easily pull quotes from something like this.
Eisenhower talked about this thing
Marcus Aurelius said this quote
Robert Greene talked about that thing
Seneca etc
At least for me, Ryan Holliday's system solved these three problems while looking for the optimal system to recall or remember everything.
#1
He helped me to recall effortlessly, especially nonfiction books.
#2
He helped me organize information, quotes, or something interesting that I can use in my own writing.
#3
He helped me to become better at whatever I read.
Note
Not a single person on the planet has a perfect recall of a nonfiction book.
A book is supposed to take you on a journey and leave you with one to two thoughts.
Ryan used to work as a research assistant for one of my favorite authors, Robert Green.
Here is Robert Green’s way to recall
“You read a book, you fold pages as you are reading, and then you make notes to yourself.” Ryan
I simply copy-pasted his practical method, but, of course, I tweaked it a bit from my side.
Ryan highlighted the things he liked in the book and then transferred the information that really impacted him to note cards.
He also wrote a thought that inspired him to develop that notecard and sort these note cards by theme.
It’s like creating a second brain, an exterior brain, or, I call it, dump information but in an organized way.
After struggling with a couple of systems, I decided to implement Ryan’s note-taking system, or I would create a system to recall or remember everything.
I went to the local store, the cheapest one being a dollar store or any book bookstore, to buy the following stuff: You have to be prepared before you go to war.
I always say that teaching your brain something new is a war, a struggle, and an unpaved path that you have to pave by doing continuous experiments.
You never know what you are going to find out.
Anyway, here are the basic tools.
Two Highlighters ( I use green or yellow for general stuff to highlight and red for the most important ones)
I need a pencil to write in the margin; I don’t like to write with a pen.
Tab notes or sticky notes
Stack of note cards — basic index cards
It would look something like this.
I have read many books using the same system. But for this example, we will stick to Ryan's “Discipline is Destiny.” He has written 12+ books, and fortunately, I have read all of them.
How does the notetaking, recalling, and remembering everything system work?
It's a three-step process.
Step 1
Take notes while you read
Step 2
Revisit and revise your notes when you’re finished with the book
Step 3
Categorize and file your notes.
This system is so effective at helping us retain more of what we read because of how our brains process information.
How does your brain process information?
Specialized sensory neurons respond to input from the environment. This input is then transmitted to the brain as electrochemical signals. In the brain, signals are received in categories. Thus the processing of sensory input begins with specific regions in the brain separately deciphering each message. — National Library of Medicine
The following images will help you to understand how the information is processed in our brains.
Over time, we’ve developed a sorting process to help us determine what information to hold onto in our explicit memory.
That’s the type of long-term memory that’s concerned with recollection of facts and events.
Thanks to what’s known as heuristic memory processing, we tend to prioritize information that is frequently used, recently used, or likely to be needed to make decisions.
So, becoming a better learner is all about putting in the work, reading, taking notes, studying (focused or deep sessions), and using the information you’re absorbing.
In other words, having a system, while Ryan said that he enjoys physical books, is an advantage to going manual.
I do tend to find that people who say, “Oh, I listen to a lot of audiobooks, or I read a lot of eBooks,” do not recall this information.
They say, “I do my highlights, but they just go somewhere on my computer.”
There is something about getting away from the screen, sitting down, and engaging deeply with the content.
All right, I have completely finished reading “Discipline is Destiny,” and I have taken extensive notes.
Here is an image with sticky notes.
I am a slow reader.
Taking notes throughout the entire book definitely slows me down even more, probably by 30% or 40%, but the idea is that, hopefully, this will make these memories and ideas just a little bit more solid.
Now, I need to go through this entire book, take all of my notes, including the best ones, and put them on 3x5 note cards.
Now that I’ve used this note-taking system many times, it’s become clear that it is a very slow and methodical process.
I continue to remind myself that this isn’t about becoming superhuman and devouring books in a day.
It’s about taking the time to digest the information, think critically about it, and try to find ways to reuse and repurpose what I’m learning.
More importantly, it's about actually enjoying the process.
Reading is a pleasurable and engaging activity.
I enjoy doing it.
As Ryan says, you would never hear someone say.
“Dude, I have the fastest sex. You would not believe it,” right?
Or
“You should see how fast I can scarf down food at this fancy restaurant.”
I’m having a conversation with Ernest Hemingway, Marcus Aurelius, or Doris Kearns Goodwin; these are the best people in the world at what they do. — Ryan
I want to enjoy that and will take my time doing it.
I have finished taking the best ideas, note stories, and quotes from this book and putting them on about 25 to 35 note cards.
Now, I need to go through and organize all these note cards.
You don’t remember things by accident; where is the system?
I’ve realized from this process that you don’t remember things by accident, which means I need to systematize and organize all of these notes into different buckets, categories, and themes.
I wasn’t sure whether the system would work or not.
However, in the past few years, I have learned that instead of thinking or wishing, I must take action.
That’s one reason I have completed many 30-plus-day challenges: to build new habits.
I did what I always do to give it a try for 30+ days: I spent one hour reading.
I had the feeling it might not work, but that was roughly 10%; I was 90% sure it would give me something.
Following this system, I’ve learned something even more important over the past few months.
You actually can’t remember everything!
You need to store it outside of your brain.
Would I keep doing it?
The answer is partial yes.
I don’t know how many boxes I can keep buying and placing in my place.
I also love technology.
I truly believe technology is the best way to learn. I will keep the manual notetaking system but with some technological tweaks.
According to Ryan, he has at least one box full of note cards for every book he has written.
His notetaking system is an amalgamation of Robert Greene’s.
The most important thing is taking action.
It won't work until you start.
It might not work for you in the first week or a couple of weeks.
How do I start it?
Just reread this fundamental method of trial and error.
Ryan’s system has evolved over the years and will continue to evolve.
I followed his exact system for the first 1–2 weeks, but now, after months of practice, I follow his system and also tech apps like Apple Notes or Google Keep.
The tech system helps me find anything easily.
Maybe in the future, I will choose a digital option, but right now, it's almost half manual and half digital.
I like it that way. By the way, Ryan's system is 100% manual.
The bottom line
Some people have a remarkable ability to remember information, while others, like me, struggle with it.
Experimenting is the only way to find the best system!
Do the trial and error practice. It will help you. What works for you?
Don’t worry about tweaking or evolving.
A system should be dynamic.
I don't follow Ryan’s notetaking system, as he said it's evolving. My system is half digital and half manual. It's something that works for me.
What will potentially work for you?
No one can answer this question.
You have to take action and find out if the system is helping you; I learned that it does not matter, even if it is working for the most successful person on the planet. It might not work for you. You have to tweak a bit, but make sure to give your %100.
The key is to take notes while reading, revisit and revise them, and categorize and file them for easy reference.
While it may take longer, this process can help retain and utilize the information we learn.
Our ability to remember information differs from person to person.
Every person's memory is often messy and unreliable. It’s the information age, everything is abundance except peace of mind.
It means that relying solely on our natural memory may not be enough to retain properly.
Taking notes while reading can significantly improve memory recall.
It involves highlighting important points, making personal notes, and jotting down inspiring stories or quotes.
This active engagement with the material helps to recall the information.
Revisiting and revising our notes after finishing a book is crucial for retention.
Reviewing the key points reinforces our understanding and makes it easier for us to recall the information later.
Organizing our notes is key to creating an external brain.
Enjoying the process of reading is super important. If you don't enjoy it, you won't do it for long enough to build a habit.
Engaging deeply with the material can create a positive relationship with reading.
Reading is not a passive activity. It’s an active task.
The key is to start imperfectly, start right now, and adjust the system as needed.
The goal is to find the right method that suits your preferences and helps you retain more knowledge.
Improving memory needs consistent effort.
Improving memory needs consistent practice.
Improving memory needs to be recalled.
The best way to remember and keep learning is to be an intentional and purposeful reader, engage with the content, ask questions, reflect, reuse, and repurpose the knowledge.
Book recommendation
Moonwalking with Einstein: The Art and Science of Remembering Everything by Joshua Foer
It is forgetting, not remembering, that is the essence of what makes us human. To make sense of the world, we must filter it. “To think,” Borges writes, “is to forget. ― Joshua Foe
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This was a great read! And I hope to recall the lessons
You are right, I have encountered people that have an unbelievable ability to recall relevant knowledge.
It’s interesting, as part of the reason I started my leadership newsletter was to help (force) crystallize those life lessons. I find by writing and summarizing them, it helps in the process.