How to read (and remember) if you struggle to stay focused?

I am always asked this question: "How can I read more if every time I try, I start drifting away after the first sentence? You know, I should read a lot; every successful person does, but I struggle with focus. I get distracted almost immediately, and I really need to read over and over the same sentence to understand it. Don't let me even start about remembering. Can you help me?"

Of course, I can, and in this email, I'll share with you one strategy (maybe two, it depends on how long you manage to read. But so far, you're doing a great job!)

So, I’ll share two strategies you can apply to improve your ability to read without getting lost immediately.

I've been reading my whole life. Even now, reading is vital for my business since its core is science-based content as a combination of existing studies and my original research about attention. But I love reading.

And here comes my first question: do you feel the same about reading? Do you perceive reading as something meaningful, or do you think you must just because people say you should, because everyone is talking about it, and you don't want to miss out?

First of all, it's totally fine to say, "no, actually, I don't care," you're totally entitled, but you have to be honest with yourself because attention is nurtured by motivation or interest (well, also fear, but you don't want to read because you are scared, wouldn't you?)

So, if you are not interested in what you are doing, in this case, reading, focusing is not impossible, but it becomes very demanding because you have to exert a significant effort on your self-control.

So it's better to find something you like more or that intrigues you instead of beating yourself up for not being able to focus on something you're not interested in.

Not because a million things are available, it means you have to be willing to read them.

It's fighting a losing battle.

Being involved, engaged, curious, and motivated is key to focus and attention; they are the most effortless drives we can leverage to become more focused. (If you want to know more about how to leverage curiosity, you can check the previous issue of this newsletter.)

That said, the quick fix people often choose to get books read is picking an audiobook instead of a physical book and listening to it while doing other things like walking, cleaning the house, or working (and I don't even want to think of more unlikely combinations). In this way, they reduce the burning of being busy with just one thing.

The second quick fix is reading summaries.

In my experience, reading summaries is helpful as a recap after reading the book. Often, all the real transformation, aha moments, or epiphanies come not from the book takeaway's bullet points but from stories, metaphors, or examples from the book. This is because stories stick more and affect us way more than theories.

So, it's better to use abstracts after reading the book to fix the most critical points.

The fact is that people often put the cart before the horses. They use these quick fixes because they think they cannot read because of their lack of focus.

The reality is that they cannot focus and thus read because they don't give any more permission to themselves to "stay and do one thing" and devote time to that one thing.

Reading requires its own time, which doesn't match our craving to feel busy or know that we are using our time at its best.

Not being able to focus on reading is not a matter of focus; it's a matter of time perception.

You think you'll be more effective if you can free up one of your senses and use it for other things, won't you? “What if I listen to a podcast to free up my hands and eyes to do something else in the same amount of time (aka multitasking)?”

This anxiety related to how efficiently we are using our time is the deep reason why we cannot focus very often.

Through quick fixes, we might be able to "finally finish that book," but we'll end up more exhausted because we had to manage all these stimuli simultaneously. Plus, we probably won't remember anything about what we've read. This is generally important, but even more so if we read with the intent to learn and apply something.

Having to re-read the book for sure is not saving time, after all.

But there is one thing we can do to fool our need to have all our senses busy and to understand and remember what we read (while we work on our patience ;) ).

It's precisely the opposite of what we are used to doing.

Let our senses converge on just the reading; let’s make the experience immersive.

Here is how:

- read the text,

- use your finger to follow what you are reading (on a physical book), or with a reading ruler (on a screen), because it will keep your eyes locked (I always use the fingers on the screen as well; that's why it’s always dirty),

- if available, and that's the best thing, use the audio version, for example, the audio version of the book or the audio tool when available (for example, you can read using the Immersive reading if you are on LinkedIn).

Last but not least, and that's the most crucial part for remembering and understanding, read along aloud if you can (otherwise, it’s ok to whisper or just move your lips).

I've been using this technique unconsciously since I was four. If you think about it, many children do the same spontaneously (even if many teachers believe this is not a good idea), but we lose this habit as soon as we grow up and get busier.

I also read about it in Jim Kwik's book Limitless, where he says he's been using this technique to overcome his severe dyslexia.

You'll be amazed by how this immersive experience engages your focus and memory.

Five minutes using this technique will save you hours of trying to squeeze audiobooks or summaries throughout your to-do list.

Instead of scattering your focus in a sea of activities, make it converge on a single thing in an immersive way. You'll be able to create all the neural connections you need to retain and retrieve all the info you read.

To summarise:

1. Be honest with yourself: always ask, "Does this really interest me?"

2. If you are forced to read something you don’t like, leverage curiosity or motivation.

3. Let your senses converge just on what you are reading. Don't spread your focus on many activities.

And if you made it up to this point, you can upgrade your beliefs and consider yourself a focus master!

Of course, these strategies are beneficial, but if you want a long-term change and you want to improve your focus, even if you think you may have ADHD, let's book a discovery call and let's find out the most personalized strategies to become sustainably focused and get done all the things you care the most about.I am always asked this question: "How can I read more if every time I try, I start drifting away after the first sentence? You know, I should read a lot; every successful person does, but I struggle with focus. I get distracted almost immediately, and I really need to read over and over the same sentence to understand it. Don't let me even start about remembering. Can you help me?"

Sustainable Focus is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

Of course, I can, and in this email, I'll share with you one strategy (maybe two, it depends on how long you manage to read. But so far, you're doing a great job!)

So, I’ll share two strategies you can apply to improve your ability to read without getting lost immediately.

I've been reading my whole life. Even now, reading is vital for my business since its core is science-based content as a combination of existing studies and my original research about attention. But I love reading.

And here comes my first question: do you feel the same about reading? Do you perceive reading as something meaningful, or do you think you must just because people say you should, because everyone is talking about it, and you don't want to miss out?

First of all, it's totally fine to say, "no, actually, I don't care," you're totally entitled, but you have to be honest with yourself because attention is nurtured by motivation or interest (well, also fear, but you don't want to read because you are scared, wouldn't you?)

So, if you are not interested in what you are doing, in this case, reading, focusing is not impossible, but it becomes very demanding because you have to exert a significant effort on your self-control.

So it's better to find something you like more or that intrigues you instead of beating yourself up for not being able to focus on something you're not interested in.

Not because a million things are available, it means you have to be willing to read them.

It's fighting a losing battle.

Being involved, engaged, curious, and motivated is key to focus and attention; they are the most effortless drives we can leverage to become more focused. (If you want to know more about how to leverage curiosity, you can check the previous issue of this newsletter.)

That said, the quick fix people often choose to get books read is picking an audiobook instead of a physical book and listening to it while doing other things like walking, cleaning the house, or working (and I don't even want to think of more unlikely combinations). In this way, they reduce the burning of being busy with just one thing.

The second quick fix is reading summaries.

In my experience, reading summaries is helpful as a recap after reading the book. Often, all the real transformation, aha moments, or epiphanies come not from the book takeaway's bullet points but from stories, metaphors, or examples from the book. This is because stories stick more and affect us way more than theories.

So, it's better to use abstracts after reading the book to fix the most critical points.

The fact is that people often put the cart before the horses. They use these quick fixes because they think they cannot read because of their lack of focus.

The reality is that they cannot focus and thus read because they don't give any more permission to themselves to "stay and do one thing" and devote time to that one thing.

Reading requires its own time, which doesn't match our craving to feel busy or know that we are using our time at its best.

Not being able to focus on reading is not a matter of focus; it's a matter of time perception.

You think you'll be more effective if you can free up one of your senses and use it for other things, won't you? “What if I listen to a podcast to free up my hands and eyes to do something else in the same amount of time (aka multitasking

?”

This anxiety related to how efficiently we are using our time is the deep reason why we cannot focus very often.

Through quick fixes, we might be able to "finally finish that book," but we'll end up more exhausted because we had to manage all these stimuli simultaneously. Plus, we probably won't remember anything about what we've read. This is generally important, but even more so if we read with the intent to learn and apply something.

Having to re-read the book for sure is not saving time, after all.

But there is one thing we can do to fool our need to have all our senses busy and to understand and remember what we read (while we work on our patience ;) ).

It's precisely the opposite of what we are used to doing.

Let our senses converge on just the reading; let’s make the experience immersive.

Here is how:

- read the text,

- use your finger to follow what you are reading (on a physical book), or with a reading ruler (on a screen), because it will keep your eyes locked (I always use the fingers on the screen as well; that's why it’s always dirty),

- if available, and that's the best thing, use the audio version, for example, the audio version of the book or the audio tool when available (for example, you can read using the Immersive reading if you are on LinkedIn).

Last but not least, and that's the most crucial part for remembering and understanding, read along aloud if you can (otherwise, it’s ok to whisper or just move your lip

).

I've been using this technique unconsciously since I was four. If you think about it, many children do the same spontaneously (even if many teachers believe this is not a good idea), but we lose this habit as soon as we grow up and get busier.

I also read about it in Jim Kwik's book Limitless, where he says he's been using this technique to overcome his severe dyslexia.

You'll be amazed by how this immersive experience engages your focus and memory.

Five minutes using this technique will save you hours of trying to squeeze audiobooks or summaries throughout your to-do list.

Instead of scattering your focus in a sea of activities, make it converge on a single thing in an immersive way. You'll be able to create all the neural connections you need to retain and retrieve all the info you read.

To summarise:

1. Be honest with yourself: always ask, "Does this really interest me?"

2. If you are forced to read something you don’t like, leverage curiosity or motivation.

3. Let your senses converge just on what you are reading. Don't spread your focus on many activities.

And if you made it up to this point, you can upgrade your beliefs and consider yourself a focus master!

Of course, these strategies are beneficial, but if you want a long-term change and you want to improve your focus, even if you think you may have ADHD, let's book a discovery call and let's find out the most personalized strategies to become sustainably focused and get done all the things you care the most about.