Everyone has their own "secret" to reading books.
I've heard many people say "you must know how to read books," or "reading books requires this method, that method." But honestly, up until now, I haven't found a method that truly works for me. Maybe I've picked up bits and pieces here and there, but ultimately the reading method that suits me best is... reading books like scrolling Facebook.
Scrolling Instead of Reading Sequentially
Sounds a bit strange, but think about it. When you go on Facebook or any social media platform, do you open a fanpage and commit to reading all the posts from beginning to end?
No, right?
You just scroll through, see what's interesting, read the posts you care about, then move on to find something else. Reading books is the same for me. I don't force myself to read a whole book from cover to cover; instead, I find what I need first, then decide whether to continue reading.
Searching for PDF Documents
One method I often use is searching for PDF documents online. Just go to Google, type the topic I'm interested in with the word PDF—for example, Agriculture PDF, Technology PDF—and out comes a bunch of interesting materials.
These PDF documents differ from regular articles in that they're usually well-structured, with introduction, body, conclusion, and a proper table of contents. Like books, but more accessible. And the best part is I don't need to read from beginning to end.
How I Read PDFs:
- I open a PDF document, scroll through the sections, see if any part is appealing.
- If I find an interesting passage, interesting illustrations, or catchy headings, I'll read that part first.
- Then I open another document, continue finding interesting parts I want to read.
Like this, I gradually find materials that truly suit me, similar to how I "stalk" a Facebook page or someone. If this material is interesting, I'll investigate who the author is, which research institute it belongs to, whether there are other articles by the same author.
Kindle Strategy
Kindle is how I read books more seriously. But there's a problem: how do you know which book is worth reading before spending money to buy it?
With Kindle, there are two options:
- Kindle Unlimited – Like Netflix for books, monthly subscription to read some books in the catalog. Sounds good, but the problem is the book catalog is very limited, many good books aren't available.
- Buy individual Kindle books – Own forever, but the price isn't much cheaper than physical books.
Utilizing "Send me a sample"
So instead of buying a book at random then forcing myself to finish it, I take advantage of Kindle's "Send me a sample" feature.
I scroll through the book list on Kindle, whenever I see one that seems good, I send a sample to my device.
A Kindle sample is usually 20-30 minutes of reading, enough for me to sense whether this book is worth continuing.
I download 10-20 samples at once, try reading each one, then decide which to actually buy.
This method helps me save time, save money, while still ensuring I find good books to read.
Don't Force Yourself
Many people read books the traditional way: hear someone say this book is good, so they buy it, then force themselves to read from beginning to end. But if you feel bored halfway through, or the book doesn't suit you, then forcing yourself to read only makes you lose patience, not learn much.
So reading books is like scrolling Facebook—no need to follow order, no need to force yourself to finish a book if it's not truly engaging. Just find what you like first, try reading, and only invest time in things that are truly valuable to you.
Most importantly, don't let reading books become pressure. Enjoy it as a natural part of life, like how you discover new things on social media.