For sales executives with the attention span of a gnat…
How to read a book in two hours and remember it!
1- Write your burning question BEFORE you start the book. When you picked up this book [Imagine it in your hand] there was something that you wanted to work on, a question, a problem, a frustration so be really clear on what you want to get out of this book from the outset.
2- [Open the table of content section] – WRITE the table of contents, each part, on a separate post-it note. This is how to get the scope of knowledge in your head.
3- Jump to the section that answers your burning question. Read the section fast and write your findings on your ‘burning question’ post-it note. Timebox yourself [30 mins].
Remember the CEO of a large company doesn’t have 5 hours to read a business case, neither do you!
4- Go back to the table of contents and pick two (2) more topics that might be relevant to you, your business and your team. Fast-read those sections and write your findings and take-aways on the relevant post-it note.
5- Review the table of contents again – Write ONE ACTION you can execute NOW! I mean today, this week, on a new post-it note and take it with you to your work space to execute.
Bringing it all together…
You can fast-read a book and remember it by writing a few post-it notes, your burning question and table of contents.
However, you only gain confidence in what you have learnt as soon as you put it into practice.
Pro tip: Write with your hand, pen & paper: 7 out of 10 executives, and senior sales managers, when I ask them to send me a snapshot of their post-it notes → they sent me their digital notes!!
I can refer to millions of books that scientifically prove that handwriting activates a different part of your brain and this helps you truly remember a topic/ concept.
But for the purpose of this post, how to read a book in 2 hours and remember it: just write your post-it notes!
For these techniques and more to level-up your executive skills check out my executive course on how to apply Agile and Lean practises to your sales pipeline.
#allergictoslow
Love it! I’ll certainly try this out on the pile of books that have been accumulating on my bedside table!