What do you know to be true about yourself? Are you living (and working) in a way that honors and reflects that?
I love Gretchen Rubin (The Happiness Project, The Four Tendencies, etc.) and I've been a longtime follower of her work. When I taught writing at Harvard, I used to assign her book on habits, Better than Before, as a jumping off point for students to find a topic that interested them (better sleep, better study habits, etc.), that they could then research further in the academic literature.
So, it was a happy accident the other day when I read something she had posted online that jogged my memory about something of hers I'd read many years before. One of Gretchen Rubin's big tenets is to know and embrace herself for who she truly is, and to live in accordance with this knowledge. "Be Gretchen" is how she puts it, as a pithy, shorthand reminder. Living in this way cuts out a lot of noise in life, and also makes living more enjoyable. As an example, maybe other people like parties, so I think: I should like parties too. But, if I'm honest with myself that I don't like parties, I can a) stop wasting time and precious mental energy trying to make myself into the kind of person who likes parties and - bonus - b) stop making myself go to parties just because I feel like I "should." Instead, I can spend my time doing something that truly does feel rewarding to me. It's a double-win!
The helpful tidbit I remembered was Gretchen writing that she typically takes notes on what she reads, and that this is a time-consuming process. (I know this pain point very well!) She used to lament how much time it took to take notes, and she would find herself going back and forth wondering, "Should I really spend this much time taking notes? Will I ever use these notes?" But, at some point, she decided to let this dithering go, and she embraced the fact that taking notes as she reads is how she learns best. Taking notes helps her to process, and therefore, remember the material better. She also found that her notes helped her future self in unexpected ways--notes on material she had read years before even having had the idea for certain books ended up being helpful in putting together manuscripts later.
I remembered this at just the right time! I have been reading a lot, as I usually do, since reading is my primary hobby, but lately I've been frustrated with my inability to keep things straight. I've been super-interested in the history of the British monarchy lately (I'll admit that this started when I read Prince Harry's memoir) and the history of the colonization of the US. I've been reading books like: Crown and Sceptre, Behind the Palace Doors, Lies My Teacher Told Me, and America's Forgotten Colonial History. But then I'll find myself wondering: Which English king was beheaded? Was it Charles I or Charles II? Or, where did I read the argument that the Pilgrims were motivated by the prospect of financial gain more so than the pursuit of religious freedom? (See Notes below, if you're curious about the answers to these queries.)
Enter, note-taking!
Since it's been a while since I've been a student myself, or even since I've read material because I plan to teach it, I think I'd forgotten how helpful notes are to my way of taking in material, processing it, and giving myself breadcrumbs to get back to it.
If you're in a similar position -- needing to learn something new, or trying to learn something and feeling frustrated that it isn't quite "sticking," I would encourage you to try note-taking as a way of taking the material on board. Your notes don't have to be anything fancy. I often read on my Kindle app on my cellphone at night, after my children have fallen asleep, so I've started taking notes in the "Notes" app of the iPhone. I keep the Notes app directly below the Kindle app, so it's easy to toggle back and forth.
On a bigger level, I'd encourage you to think about what you know to be true about yourself. What do you KNOW that you may have "forgotten"? Or squashed down? How do YOU learn best? Under what conditions do you WORK best?
It's worth spending some time reflecting on these questions so you can set up your life in a way that maximizes the conditions for you to do your best work.
Do you need earplugs to block out ambient noise (including the dulcet tones of your beloved children, if that applies)? A pillow on your desk chair to support your lower back? A private room where you can close the door? I'm listing the ones that work for me, but you get the idea. Be a student of your own work process and start implementing what you know works best for your style.
As Gretchen Rubin would say, Be You!
Notes:
1. Charles 1 was beheaded.
2. I read about the non-religious motivations of the "Pilgrims" in Lies My Teacher Told Me but, when I went back to the book to sort this out for myself, I realized I had mis-remembered the author's argument. He didn't say that the group of people who came over on the Mayflower, commonly referred to as the "Pilgrims" had NO religious motivations, but rather that the travelers on the Mayflower were a mix of people seeking religious freedom *and* others who wanted to join existing colonies in Virginia and were seeking opportunities for financial expansion, and that this latter group is conveniently written out of the official story.
Photo by Önder Örtel via Unsplash