Journal Technique: Retain The Essentials Of A Book

Often, we forget the content of a book quickly, so that we often don’t even remember the key points. The journal technique can help you retain these essential elements and have them available for reference whenever needed.

To use this technique, you’ll need a journal, a pen, a highlighter, and, of course, the book you’re reading.

Start by reading the book, highlighting the most important passages as you go. Even this simple step will help you retain these passages better and make it easier to find them again if you revisit the book.

To reinforce this effect even more, write the key points in your journal as well. Use your own words to process the content more deeply and distill it down to its essentials. This way, you’ll retain these points for much longer, and you’ll have a concise summary to revisit at any time in your journal.

After finishing the book, review your notes and highlight the most important parts. This allows you to look up the key insights of any book you’ve read and see immediately what the most essential points were. Additionally, you can expand your notes, using arrows, stars, or numbering to connect related points.

Using your notes, you can also create a mind map or action plan for the book, making the content even clearer and easier to apply.

By applying this technique to every nonfiction book you read, you’ll fill your journal with increasingly valuable content. This way, your journal becomes something you can open at any time to reread and apply interesting insights, transforming it into the most valuable and personal book you own.

TODO
Get yourself a journal and use the journal technique for the next books you read. You can also apply the journal technique to videos, audiobooks, articles, or lessons from your own life, allowing you to look up and apply what you’ve learned anytime.