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Tag: consistency (page 2 of 2)

Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading
Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading
March 17, 2024

Bibliophile: How to Fall in Love with Reading

Is it possible to be a bibliophile in this era?

A Bibliophile is someone who loves books. In today’s fast-paced world, information is everywhere. But with so much content at your fingertips, how do you sift through it all and truly learn? The answer is simpler than you might think: reading.

This guide will unveil the power of reading, not just for staying informed, but for personal and professional growth.

You will learn why reading is essential, what to read, and most importantly, how to love the process.

Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading

Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading

WHY SHOULD YOU LEARN TO READ EVEN TILL NOW?

You can stay up to date on the latest research and trends in your field by reading. For instance, keeping up with the most recent findings can offer you a competitive advantage if you work in a technical field. Similarly, if you work in a creative field, branching out into new genres can inspire innovative ideas and techniques.

Reading also enhances your writing skills and communication abilities. And these are valuable assets in any profession.

WHAT SHOULD YOU READ?

The secret is simple – Read what you love until you love to read.

What do you enjoy reading now? Starting with topics you’re interested in makes reading fun. And you’re more likely to stick with it and develop a lifelong habit.

Since every person is different, finding the right books for you is more important than anything else.

HOW TO START READING?

It almost doesn’t matter what you read.

Books. Blogs. Tweets. Anything with ideas and information and learning. The best ones to read are the ones you’re excited about reading all the time.

You will eventually read enough to make a significant improvement in your life (and your interests will lead you there).

HOW DO YOU INTERNALIZE WHAT YOU READ?

Explain what you learned and read to someone else.

Teaching forces real learning. Do you know that you retain approximately 90% of what you learn when they explain/teach the concept to someone else. This is the best way to internalize and remember what you read.

3 Important Factors to Consider if you want to Love to Read

  1. Reading is not a race.

Infact, the better the reading material, the slower you should read it. Enjoy it like a delicious meal – slowly instead of gobbling it down. Take your time to absorb and understand the content fully.

  1. The number of books completed is a vanity metric.

A true bibliophile focuses on quality, not quantity.

Stop counting how many books you finish in a month or year; rather focus on what you get out of reading. The truth is that as you gain more knowledge and experience, you might start reading more challenging books or in-depth articles. Because you’re now choosier about what you spend your time on, it’s okay to ditch reading materials that isn’t grabbing your attention.

So it’s not only about finishing books; it’s also about also about the quality of learning and insight gained from them.

  1. No book or article should scare you.

Whether it’s a lengthy Medium article, complex e-books, or X threads. You should be able to pick any book or article from the internet and read it to the end. You might find many of them to be too challenging. It’s alright, read them anyhow. After that, go back and read them again and again.

After all, the beauty of online information is you can revisit it easily.

Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading

Bibliophile-How-to-Fall-Love-with-Reading

Embrace the Journey, Reap the Rewards

Remember, reading isn’t a race to the finish line.

Becoming a bibliophile is undertaking an adventure filled with discovery and growth. Don’t be afraid to tackle challenging material, and revisit what sparks your curiosity.

By embracing the joy of reading, you’ll unlock a world of knowledge and empower yourself to excel in all aspects of life.

So, grab that forgotten book today (or your favorite online resource!), and happy reading!

Be Consistent
Be Consistent
January 13, 2024

Consistency Building – The Fool-Proof Way to Achieve Your Goals

You need consistency.

Consistency helps you get better at things. When you consistently work towards a goal, you are more likely to succeed. It’s like taking small steps every day towards something big.

For instance, Great musicians become excellent over time because they practice playing their musical instruments every day. Athletes become exceptional at their sports by consistently practicing their skills, whether it’s shooting basketballs, kicking football, or running. This regular practice helps them improve their techniques and perform well during competitions.

It’s the same for you. Consistency is your secret weapon in reaching your goals.

Being consistent means showing up and doing things, over and over till it is successful.  Good habits are also formed from consistency. And good habits make things easier because you don’t have to think too much about doing them – they just happen automatically.

Photo by Maria Teneva on Unsplash

Photo by Maria Teneva on Unsplash

And What Happens When You Are Not Consistent?

You miss out on learning new things when you are not consistent. For example, if you only practice learning a new skill at your work, you can get fired.

If you don’t consistently manage your time well, you will procrastinate, struggle to meet deadlines and experience stress.

You will find it challenging to handle unexpected expenses or plan for the future if you don’t consistently save money and keep spending impulsively.

People will also find it hard to depend on you if you’re not consistent. It’s like they have a friend who sometimes shows up and sometimes doesn’t – it makes it tough for them to count on you.

You need a plan to stay consistent. A fool-proof way to always achieve your goals.

After you read this article to the end, you will learn how to be consistent, build trust in yourself and achieve the things you want in the long run.

THE HACKS TO BUILDING CONSISTENCY

Consistency is like having a special recipe for success, where you follow certain steps every time to get a great result. To be consistent and always complete your goals, here are three hacks you must follow:

  1. BUILD RHYTHMS, RITUALS AND ROUTINES TO TRIGGER CONSISTENCY

The easiest way to be consistent is to transform your goal into simple regular habits. It starts with rhythm. Firstly, you must generate a strong regular repeated pattern of your work. This removes the need to make it extremely easy in accomplishing your goals.

Secondly, there is no correct ritual or routine when establishing your rhythms. the right fit depends on you and the type of goal pursued. But there are some general questions you must address:

  1. Where will you work and for how long: Have a specific location(s) where you are working towards the goal. Regardless of where you work, be sure to also give yourself a specific period to keep your goal interesting and not an open-ended slog.
  2. How will you work once you start to work: Have rules and processes to keep your efforts structured. e.g., switching off your phone if it’s a goal not related to any electronic device.
  3. How will you support your work: Ensure your brain gets the support it needs to keep operating at a high level of depth. The answers to this question are simple – Eat, sleep and rest.

ACTION PLAN:

To make this principle stick better, choose a goal, and answer the questions below:

  1. Where you’ll work and for how long: Have a specific location and give a specific time frame.

Location: ________________________________

Period: ______________________________

  1. How you’ll work once you start to work: State the rules and processes to keep your efforts structured and focused.

1st Rule: ___________________________________

2nd Rule: ___________________________________

3rd Rule: ___________________________________

  1. How you’ll support your work: Schedule sleep, rest, and short breaks at appropriate times before, during and after your goal-related activities.

Time to work on goal: ___________________________________

Resting time: ___________________________________

Time to eat to regain energy: ___________________________________

Photo by Breakingpic

Photo by Breakingpic

  1. CREATE CHECKLISTS TO BREAK DOWN YOUR GOALS

Checklists are handy for remembering things that must be done every time you work on your goal. They’re a way to build your consistency and systematize your process. This frees your attention to always focus on more important matters.

It’s important to transform your long-term goals into daily ones. Attack them bit by bit. Big tasks need to be translated into smaller ones that show up on your daily task list. The only way to walk a journey of a thousand miles is to take one step at a time.

That’s what the daily and weekly to-do lists will help you achieve.

Both lists will help you calmly step back, look at the big picture, and set priorities every day and week. Setting out your daily list the evening before can also help prevent you from making last-minute decisions that can cost you for the next day.

How can you effectively use your checklists?

Write down your weekly goals on the weekly to-do list. Break them into a daily to-do list. Execute your weekly list from the first to-do list of the day.  Reflect on your daily doings – what went right and what went wrong. Adjust as needed. Always measure how well your practice session went.

You can add some accountability to help you follow through. Share your progress with your inner circle or online. Join like-minded groups who have similar goals and compare progress.

ACTION PLAN:

  • Create a weekly to-do list for your goal.
  • Create a daily to-do list before each day.
  • At the end of the week, reflect on your doings.
  • Repeat steps till the goal is achieved.

The next step will show you to measure your progress while being consistent.

Photo by jessica-lewis-🦋-thepaintedsquare-606541

Photo by jessica-lewis-🦋-thepaintedsquare-606541

  1. JOURNAL TO MEASURE YOUR PROGRESS

To be consistent, you must use journaling to measure your progress as well. Journaling is the activity of keeping a diary or journal and taking down notes for personal and productive purposes.

Journaling is easy to do. There are two ways to start journaling. You can either:

  1. Get a notebook and a pen. Start recording your activities and report your progress after your deep work sessions. There is this sense of serenity and sincerity within yourself when you take a pen and write in a physical journal.
  2. Download a dedicated journaling app on your phone or computer. Various apps can help your journaling journey.

The key to effective journaling is to be minimal and avoid distractions. Ideally, you should also maintain separate sections in your journal for every goal you want to achieve.

Journaling: How To Constantly Channel and Control Your Thoughts

In sum, journal to record and measure your progress. Whatever you do, don’t stop when it hurts. That’s when the learning truly happens.

ACTION PLAN:
Record your progress in your dedicated journal after each daily to-do list.

That’s all. With these hacks, you have all you need to be consistent and always accomplish any goal you have.

 

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