- Imagine being able to pick up any book, read it, and remember
almost everything from it. This kind of superpower
memory recall might feel like fiction, but there are
people in the real world that seem to carry an incredible ability to hold on to information and I'm definitely not one of them. I've read hundreds of books,
blogs, and newsletters, but my ability to recall
any of it is terrible. So I decided to finally
look into this blind spot, to learn about how the smartest people in the world
remember information and to uncover their systems
so I can use them for myself. This video is brought
to you by Squarespace, I'll talk more about
them later in the video. If I were to show you a non-fiction book that you've read over the past year, whether it was for school, work, or your own personal development, how likely are you to be able to remember five facts from the book? How well could you explain
the book to someone else? All right, let me give
this a try for myself. "Steal Like An Ar
tist" being
creative means getting inspired by other people and you
should steal like an artist. It's really a book about- (lip trills) I just read this book so this
one's a little bit unfair. What else was it? What else was in this book? Great ideas are really simple and clear. I think that's all I got. I can't even remember one of the 48 laws. I just read it, I just read
this book like a month ago. There's not much of a point
of reading non-fiction books, particularly books about
personal deve
lopment if you're not actually going to absorb and implement the insights, but remembering everything
might be a bit of a stretch for the average person. After some research, I
discovered that our ability to remember things varies
wildly from person to person. Some have terrible memories,
others exceptional, and even others have
photographic memories. As you might have guessed,
the average memory is body, messy, and often unreliable. It's easier for us to
remember events that provide a deviation
from our
typical sensory experience. Like getting hit in the face with a ball, that interesting thing you
learned from that self-help book, not so much, but my question
is can we change that? I knew exactly who I needed to speak with. I read online that you've read over 3,000 books is that true? - I don't know, I think it's
probably bad form to count, you know, like with the romantic partners. - I don't know about you, but that number, well, it wouldn't take
me very long to add up. Ryan Holiday
is the
international bestselling author of great books like "The
Obstacle Is the Way" and "Ego Is the Enemy" and
while I can't remember much of what I read in these books, I do remember them being really good. Ryan, thanks so much for being here.
- Of course. - [Matt] One of the things
that I was struck by when I first interviewed
Ryan back in 2019, was his memory recall. He pulled quotes and stories effortlessly from the books that he's
read over the years. - Eisenhower, he had this line, he s
aid, "William James talked about this. I have a quote in the
intro from Blaise Pascal. Buddha and Marcus Aurelius
and Seneca and Confucius and-" - I seriously needed to know his secret. So I jumped on a video call
with him so we could get to the bottom of it. One of the main reasons why
I wanted to chat with you is because I have this problem
where I read a non-fiction book and then I completely
forget about everything. Like I can look at that book and be like, "I don't remember one or
two thing
s from this book." How can we get better at
remembering what we read and putting into practice what we read? - First off, I'd be a
little kinder to yourself. Having one or two things
that you take from a book, if those are important things
that could change your life, you know, you paid $11 for
this book like is it so bad that you only got two life
changing things from it, right? So like I think sometimes people are like, "I don't have perfect recall of the book," I mean, the book was supposed
t
o take you on a journey and leave you with something. I started in publishing
as a research assistant. I work for this amazing
author named Robert Greene and he showed me a way of reading that I practice to this day
that I think could be valuable, which is basically, as I read a book, I fold pages as I'm reading and
then I make notes to myself. I'm highlighting the
things that I'm liking and then what I do as a writer
because I want to use a lot of this information is I
then transfer the stuff t
hat I really liked or
that really impacted me and I put them on note cards
and so I just write the thought that I had that it inspired
or I write down the story and then I sort those note cards by theme. So I'm kind of creating
like an exterior brain that organizes the stuff
that I took from the books. - So I decided to put
Ryan's system to the test and try it out for myself and
what better book to start with than "Courage Is Calling," that's Ryan's latest book by the way. All right, so I've got
my
tools here, highlighter, pen, my post-it bookmarks here,
and a stack of note cards and, of course, my book,
let's see how this works. So when you really break
down Ryan's system, there are three main parts. First, take notes while you read, second, revisit and revise your notes when you're finished with the book, and third, categorize and file your notes. The reason why this kind
of system is so effective at helping us retain more
of what we read comes down to how our brains process informat
ion. 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, and making use o
f the information
that you're taking in. In other words, having
a system like Ryan's and while Ryan said that he
enjoys audiobooks and eBooks, he thinks that there's an
advantage to going analog. - I do tend to find that
people who are like, "Oh, I listen to a lot of
audiobooks or I listen to- I read a lot of eBooks,"
the recall's not there. They're like, "I do my highlights, but they just go
somewhere on my computer." I think there is something
about getting away from the screen, sitting
down,
and engaging deeply with the world in front of you. (gentle music)
(mug thuds) - All right, so I have
completely finished reading "Courage Is Calling" and I have taken extensive notes throughout. So I am a slow reader in
this process of taking thorough notes throughout the entire book, definitely slow 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 sticky. Now, I need to go through this entire book and take a
ll of my notes,
all of the best notes that I've taken and put them
down onto these note cards. So this video is sponsored by my friends over at Squarespace. I've been using Squarespace
for nearly a decade for one main reason, they
make it insanely easy for me to bring my ideas to life,
let me show you what I mean. Let's say that you've
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mattremember
severything.com. Next, you browse through dozens of beautifully designed
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start your very own newsletter, and outline your core business offerings. You could even start doing online coaching and earn money through your
very own E-commerce store. You could call them Memory Mentorships. You know, that's actually
a really good idea, let me write t
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s
o thanks for considering. So now, that I've gotten
two thirds of the way into this note taking
experiment, it's become clear that this is a very slow
and methodical process. If you're anything like me, this can make you feel a bit antsy, but what I continue to remind
myself is 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
to try to find ways to reuse and repurpose what I'm learning
and
really more importantly to actually enjoy the process. - Reading is a pleasurable
activity, I enjoy doing it and so you would never
hear someone be like, "Dude, I have the fastest sex you would not believe it," right? Or like, "You should see how
fast I can scarf down food at this fancy restaurant." I'm having a conversation
with Ernest Hemingway or Marcus Aurelius or
Doris Kearns Goodwin, these are like the best people
in the world at what they do. I wanna enjoy that like I'm
gonna take my time
doing it. - So I have finished taking
the best ideas, note stories, and quotes from this book
and put them down onto about 20 to 30 note cards
and now, is the point in the process where I need to go through and organize all this. One thing that I've realized
from this process is 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. It's probably too early to tell whether this system will impr
ove
my memory in the long run. I have a feeling I'm still gonna be on the goldfish end of the memory scale, but I've learned something
even more important over the past few weeks
of following this system. You actually can't remember
everything you want to, you just need to store
it outside of your brain. Oh, and if you're wondering whether I'll keep this up myself, maybe, but I don't know if it'll
look exactly like this. I don't know how many boxes
of note cards I can have at my place and still
keep my sanity. How many boxes of note cards do you have? - Well, at least one for every single book that I've written, but I'm
looking I have one, two, three, four, five, six, I have
seven in my office right now. My system is an amalgamation
combination of Rob Greene's and yours can be your own spin on mine. - [Matt] Whether you decide
to follow an analog system like Ryan's or go digital, the important thing is
to just get started. - You're better off starting imperfectly than being paralyzed b
y the hope or the delusion of perfection. My system has evolved over the years, it will continue to evolve. Maybe there's some version in the future where it does become digital, but right now, this is what works for me and the main thing is
that I'm doing it always and I'm getting better as I go. - Thanks so much for watching this video, if you liked it, don't
forget to hit Subscribe and especially that
little Notification Bell so you get future videos from me that way you don't have to
work to
o hard to remember to watch my videos later. By the way, my exploration into memory and learning is only just beginning. Stay tuned in a couple weeks for new video about how to build a second brain by taking all the information we consume and putting it into an
intelligent digital system. - It's the complete ecosystem of apps that you use to manage information. - [Matt] Thanks for watching
and I'll catch you next time.
Comments
Huge thanks to Ryan Holiday for taking the time to chat! Iâd def recommend adding Courage Is Calling to the top of your reading list! đ https://amzn.to/3K207XF
âImperfect Action is better than Perfect Inactionâ Most important takeaway is to just get started, make it a regular habit, and you will discover what works for you well, whether it be highlighting stuff, keep a journal, or just re reading those books again đâđź
I learned a fast way to improve my memory of books in college. Instead of highlighting phrases, sentences or paragraphs I would highlight only one word in an important section. The key was to highlight a word that would make me question why I had underlined that word. For example, in the sentence "Studies show aspirin use to be associated with reduced risk for a number of cancers including prostate, pancreatic, and rectal" (Source: "Surviving Cancer Covid-19 & Disease, The Repurposed Drug Revolution" by Justus R. Hope, M.D.) I would highlight one word like "risk" so that when I scan through the book later my curiosity makes me ask "What's this about risk?", or I might underline "aspirin" so that when I see it later I think "What's this about aspirin?" This way I can quickly reinforce the key points by scanning the book several times until I can recall all the important points.
âYou are better off starting imperfectly than being paralysed by the hope or delusion of perfectionâ Loved this statement and it hit deep
I feel like this quote by Ralph Waldo Emerson fits perfectly here: âI cannot remember the books Iâve read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so they have made me.â
Great video: 1. Read a book. Analog is better than digital. 2. Donât be scared to take notes in the book, Highlight, book mark. Youâll have to build a system. 3. When youâre done, go through all the notes that stood out to you and write them on flash cards. 4. Digest the information, think of ways to use it. 5. Enjoy the process!! Take your time. 6. ORGANIZE ALL YOUR NOTES. File them in separate boxes.
When I was a kid I was to be able to read any book and summarize almost everything in it. My teacher ask me to summarize all the points we read yesterday for a student who missed class. Almost word for word I said everything that happened and finished exactly where we left off, my teacher accidently blurted out you so smart. I laughed because I though see was over exaggerating but turns out to be very hard for most adults to do this . After a decade of tik- tok I find myself finding it hard to remember what I did this morning let alone a book I read I month ago. I'm hoping after a social media detox I get my brain back to that exact point.
'It's better to start off imperfectly rather than be paralysed by the hope or delusion of perfection'. Thank you Ryan.
Memory is derivative of necessity. It's similar to learning a language (either your first or a foreign language) -- we don't learn by passively absorbing what others say, but by feeling a need to speak in a way that's understood by others. Same with retaining information in books. Memory is created not when you passively receive some idea, but when you feel a need to explain it to someone else. Read every book as though you intend to be able to teach the same ideas to others.
When you want to retain what you learn while you're learning: 1.) Take conscious time in taking down key notes you want to remember. 2.) When done, Review your notes, revise when necessary. 3.) Apply what you have learned in the real world (In this case, its the organizing and categorizing into a box). 4.) Repeat. You get better at it and can develop a system that suits better for you.
I think the best way to recall what you learn is to use the data as soon as possible, even if its just jotting stuff down and discussing it with friends...playing around with it in as many ways you can think of, so you create "doingnesses", which solidify things in your mind.
"You better off starting imperfectly than being paralyzed by the hope or delusion of perfection" got me!
"I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.â âRalph Waldo Emerson
A wise saying once said, âRepetition is the mother of learningâ The way our brains & neurons work are very similar. By learning new things, we establish new neural links in our brain, & with repetition we consolidate these neural links to become stronger & and easier to remember when we want to retrieve what we learned. This doesnât apply just to things we read, but to almost every activity we have ever done or learned since birth. By repetition over and over again, we consolidated it to become a part of us.
Recently finished 'Wealth's Loyal Companion: The Uncharted Path to Prosperity,' and it's an eye-opener. It brilliantly goes beyond finances, offering insights into a well-rounded life. The book's blend of true success stories and actionable advice is fantastic. It really drives home the importance of discipline and continuous growth. Highly recommended for anyone looking to enhance their life in a meaningful way!
What works for me is to learn or study with the intention of teaching it later on. This gives the brain a real life application to memorize it better.
9:58 - 10:04 BEST QUOTEđ âYouâre better off starting imperfectly, than being paralyzed by the hope or the delusion of perfectionâ --Ryan Holiday
I love how he actually demonstrated the advice and gave his own commentary, instead of just compiling all the tips and feeding it to us. This made the method look reliable and I'm definitely gonna try it. : ))
I used his exact system to make it through my undergrad with flying colors. Now Iâm in graduate school and Iâve been struggling, well itâs because itâs 100% online! I forgot about index cards!! This is finals week for me and I swear I feel like I hit a gold mine with this video. Going to start making my cards now! Thanks!!
As any university student knows, using Holiday's technique is definitely the most effective route but by far the longest. I tried his technique a year ago in university, and it worked great. By the mid-semester test, I nailed it - a 50% increase in grade from all previous tests for my courses. However, come the end of semester test, not only was I unprepared but my knowledge and notes were five whole weeks behind. Obviously this is a skill worth practicing, but just be aware that it's not easy to develop straight away. I still find myself over-highlighting and taking too many notes because almost every sentence has value. A 30 page anthropology reading quickly turns into a 3 hour expedition, and there goes my day. It's far better to accept prior to reading that, when time is on your shoulder, you won't remember everything. I'd say that it's more about reading less books but with more intention. There's often more knowledge to be learnt in a single book than the knowledge gained by reading 100 books without intention.