4-Step Method for Reading Any Book Faster

I read a lot. Seriously, a lot.

Once, at a meeting, we all had to introduce ourselves with a little fun fact. My fun fact was that I usually read a book or two a week. I thought this was maybe a little quirky, but it was apparently NOT NORMAL. Seriously, the record skipped. Dead silence. People came up to me later to ask about how I can possibly do such a crazy thing.

The truth is, most of my reading is just for fun. I read a lot of fiction and I do a ton of re-reading just because I like it. But I also read a lot of non-fiction, lots of which is useful for my business. And I do actually have a secret method for reading lots of non-fiction pretty fast.

Here’s my secret to reading a lot

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How I Spent My Recession Vacation

Like many freelancers and small businesses, at the end of 2008, I had some free time on my hands. I'd just moved from the Washington, D.C. area, where I had a network of colleagues and clients, to the St. Louis area, where I didn't know anybody — just in time for the economy to go kerpluey.

Instead of moping or scrambling for business, I put my energies into expanding my skills. I focused on learning more about search engine optimization and writing for the web. I'd always spent time reading great business books, but this time I was more focused.

Websites for Web Writers

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Business Books I Love

Since I started my freelance business in 2006, I've always put time and effort into increasing my skills. I talked with more seasoned freelancers and I joined business groups. But most importatly — I read great books and articles.

My favorite resource for a long time has been the Personal MBA.

I stumbled across it several years ago when I was looking for business school syllabi online. I was hoping to identify books that people read in MBA programs, so I could read the books without spending

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