Studying The Masters

At the very beginning of “How to Win Friends & Influence People,” Dale Carnegie gives some very useful advice on how to study his book so that it can do the most good. It’s great advice that can be applied to any self-development work. I’m just going to paraphrase his nine suggestions.

1. Get the desire. You’ve really got to come up with a good reason for reading whatever you’re reading or studying whatever you’re studying. This reason will become the drive that keeps you on track.
2. Read it twice. Read each chapter twice before moving on. the first time swiftly, the second time taking a little longer so that you can mark, ponder, and really soak in all the best thoughts. If it’s an audio program, listening twice is always a good idea.
3. Stop often while reading/listening to let things rattle about in your head. Any decent program is going to set off completely new trains of thought on a regular basis. If you don’t put the book down or pause the CD, you’re going to miss important points.
4. When you’re reading, don’t be afraid to mark up the text. This act makes powerful ideas easier to remember, and easier to find when you need them.
5. Review it. Every so often, read through the best books again. You’ll catch things you missed before and remind yourself of all the “best practices” you wanted to put to use.
6. Try out whatever you’re learning. Honestly, it doesn’t matter what you’re trying to learn. It’s not going to stick until you’ve tried it for yourself.
7. Get somebody to hold you to it. When you come across something you really want to try in your own life, tell somebody you are going to try it. Make sure they know to check up on you. Adding a little extra responsibility can make all the difference in the world when you’re trying to start a new habit.
8. Track your progress. As you study and make goals to change your life, write them down and review them as often as you need, but at least weekly. Consider what you’ve learned by doing.
9. Write down what you’ve learned. The act of reformatting the best material into your own words will help you truly own it.

nThere you have it. Nine ideas for studying and implement any self development program. I think it’s great stuff.