The Art and Discipline of Reading

Reading is an active, complex activity. It is the primary way the human mind moves from understanding less to understanding more.

To overcome resistance to reading, small and practical habits matter: reading before the internet, habit bunching, and setting very low goals such as one page a day. Once a routine is established, the reader can focus on reading well.

There are four cumulative levels of reading:

• Elementary — understanding what the words say
• Inspectional — skimming to grasp structure and category
• Analytical — deeply understanding, evaluating, and fairly criticizing a book
• Syntopical — reading multiple books on the same subject to form an objective view

Each level builds on the previous one.

Good reading also depends on the genre. Practical books ask the reader to act, imaginative literature asks the reader to experience, history asks the reader to compare sources, and philosophy asks the reader to think through fundamental questions.

The goal of disciplined reading is not information, but the continued growth and vitality of the mind.