[thisisit]

Slight OT, I had two questions: a. how do you guys apply the stuff you read? b. How many re-reads helps you get most out of the book?

I am on a recent reading spree and as I read the books I keep forgetting the lessons therein. While I have set of highlights, using Play Books and Google docs combo, one thing I found was that 2nd read seems to be better than the first one.

[psto]

I use Paul Graham's advice from his "How You Know" essay http://www.paulgraham.com/know.html

"Reading and experience train your model of the world. And even if you forget the experience or what you read, its effect on your model of the world persists."

Also check out It’s Okay to “Forget” What You Read https://medium.com/the-polymath-project/its-okay-to-forget-w...

[stevenkovar]

Similar to what Cal Fussman says, "the good shit sticks."

To me, reading is more about developing an internal vocabulary that makes it easy to bridge two ideas together—ultimately enabling you to create ideas of your own. With more ideas to pull from, you can ask yourself better questions.

Here's an interesting perspective on the matter: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vR2P5vW-nVc

[byproxy]

I tend to remember a general evoked feeling from waht I've read rather than the details of each "wow" moment. If I remember a book having some profoind effect, it's worth reading again sometime down the line.