How to Coach Yourself and Others Happiness Is No Accident | Page 21

you want to see or whether you should do your laundry. The way to remove internal distractions
comes from clearly identifying a purpose and a motivation.
6) Find Your Motivation
If there was one piece of advice I would
offer to improve your reading rate it would
be simply to engross yourself in the
material you are studying. If you can
connect what you are reading to a deeply
held motivation, and determine your
specific purpose for reading you can
maintain a very alert and focused state.
Most people don’t do this. Instead they
force themselves to study the book they
know they should and end up having to
refocus themselves every thirty seconds
when their mind decides that this book is
boring and would like to be somewhere
else.
First, find a general motivation. This is
how what you are reading relates to your
truly motivating goals and passions in life.
When I read my psychology textbook I
focus on the fact that many personal
development principles come from an
understanding of human psychology and
that I may discover new ideas if I look carefully. When studying ancient Asian history I focused on
the fact that studying a completely different culture could offer insights into how Western and
Eastern value systems differed, giving me new thoughts on whether my values are as absolute as I
once thought. I also focused on the fact that many great philosophers such as Buddha and
Confucius lived during these times with a profound influence on the ideas of these nations.
The general motivation should make you want to read the book. If you don’t genuinely want to
read the book, come up with more reasons it is attached to your deepest interests or it is going to be
a struggle to move through. You can find a general motivation for reading any book if you are
creative enough, so don’t tell me you can’t figure out one.
The second portion is to determine your specific motivation for reading. What are you specifically
looking for when reading the book. New ideas? A practical solution to a problem? An
understanding of a concept? A chance to flex your mental muscles? Figure out what you want to
get out of each reading session so your mind is primed to intake that knowledge.
If you are interested in improving your speed reading, I strongly suggest Breakthrough Rapid
Reading by Peter Kump. The book goes from beginner concepts that I’ve detailed to even more
advanced ones that I have yet to master (such as reading several lines at once and reading
sentences backwards to save time on a pointer backstroke). Speed reading is definitely a
worthwhile skill and at the very least your friends will be impressed.

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