particular section. (Unless, of course, it’s a library book). This
process of marking books as I read allows me to come back at
anytime and recapture all of the key lessons, ideas, and benefits
without needing to read the book again, cover to cover.
§
I highly recommend re-reading good personal development books.
Rarely can we read a book once and internalize all of the value
from that book. Achieving mastery in any area requires repetition
—being exposed to certain ideas, strategies, or techniques over and
over again, until they become engrained in your subconscious
mind. For example, if you wanted to master karate, you wouldn’t
learn the techniques once and then think, “I got this.” No, you’d
learn the techniques, practice them, then go back to your sensei
and learn them again, and repeat the process hundreds of times in
order to master a single technique. Mastering techniques to
improve your life works the same way. There is more value in re-
reading a book you already know has strategies that can improve
your life than there is in reading a new book before you’ve
mastered the strategies in the first. Whenever I’m reading a book
that I see can really make an impact on an area of my life, I
commit to re-reading that book (or at least re-reading the parts I’ve
underlined, circled and highlighted) as soon as I’m finished going
through it the first time. I actually keep a special space on my
bookshelf for the books that I want to re-read. I’ve read books like
Think and Grow Rich as many as three times, and often refer back
to them throughout the year. Re-reading requires discipline,
because it is typically more “fun” to read a book you’ve never read
before. Repetition can be boring or tedious (which is why so few
people ever “master” anything), but that’s even more reason why
we should do it—to develop a higher level of self-discipline. Why
not try it out with this book? Commit to re-reading it as soon as
you’re finished, to deepen your learning and give yourself more
