Writing

I’m writing this article just for the sake of it.

I love writing. I love fitting words together. I love to create a chained melody for the reader, to get him/her into a flow of energy that fuels up his/her mind, heart, spirit, and soul.

I love writing with no rules, without following standards, and that type of constraint that limits my expression.

Writers existed before standards. Knowledge was transferred before all this stuff.

Was Cervantes limited to standards? No, in fact, he smashed the entire world of cavalry novels. After that, he became a genius. That’s how History usually goes. One day you’re in Hell, the next one you’re in Heaven.

If your content is good, sooner or later, you will catch people’s eyes.

Do you think Seth Godin writes using SEO techniques?

We need a set of minimum rules to live together but, beyond that, we need space to express ourselves, share our thoughts, and try to convert an abstract concept (an idea, a thought) into something understandable by other human beings with different ideas, thoughts, and concept of life.

Reading

It’s the same about reading.

I got hooked on reading with a goal. I had to learn, to memorize, to grow…

I’m an avid reader and, when I read books, I read a minimum of one book per week. There were years where I read over 100 books.

Now I don’t read so many books. Here’s “Why I Won’t Read 52 Books a Year Anymore”.

I love reading, but I got hooked on that goal-achieving process. What the heck???

I see articles and studies about how you should read a book. How should I read a book? Can’t I do it any way I feel like?

How I read

I changed my mind a little bit.

Why don’t you read just for the sake of it?

Just to enjoy a moment to disconnect from reality, reading without pressure, just having the joy of what other human being is trying to, from humility, communicate to you.

It’s then when your brain is free to absorb every word, every concept.

Forget about highlighting, about searching like a hunting dog for the prey. Your saliva will not come out with this process.

Your joy will come from calmness, relaxation, not looking at the watch to go for another article, another piece of information to be devoured.

When I changed my mind, I took the best out of each article, of each paragraph, of each author.

Managing piles of information

Never in the History of Humanity have we had so much access to information.

This tsunami of information is beyond us. Too much information is more dangerous than too little information.

We have to process it without dying in the attempt.

I was subscribed to hundreds of newsletters. My inbox was collapsed.

I was collapsed.

I read 3 emails, and 30 come in afterward. It was insane!

What did I do?

I created a label. “TOP” was its sacred name after 2 seconds of deep reflection. I selected just 5 newsletters. That was all.

I just pay attention to my TOP newsletters. The rest is automatically marked as read and archived, just to make any searching process in the future (who knows…).

Whenever I am fed up with a newsletter, whenever my goals and priorities change in my life (because we are or should be dynamic species), I archive a newsletter, and another one becomes a TOP.

That’s the way it should be.

Last thoughts

We have technology, but we’re still humans, as citizens of the ancient Roman Empire who read Apuleius, enjoyed it and took some little piece of advice to improve their humble lives.

Reading for its sake will give you the moments of relaxation you need in this crazy hyperactive society you live in.

I’m totally conscious that you and I are very fortunate to live in the times we are living in. We live better than any king of the past. I wouldn’t trade places with him. I’m perfect where I am.

That’s why I’m going to make the best out of all the means at my disposal, which are many, good, and cheap, very cheap, as they never were.

I just want to take with me one idea from each of my readings. If it’s none, nothing happens. You don’t have to take something out of every single thing you do, experience, or live.

Fortunately, you are exposed to a vast number of experiences every day. It’s 100% sure you will go to bed each day wiser than the day before, effortlessly.

Let’s take the pressure out of you.

Let’s write, read, enjoy each of your precious moments that your life and time give you every day.

Photo at the top courtesy of Siora Photography on Unsplash.