The French philosopher René Descartes wrote, “I think, therefore I am,” which translated in Latin is Cogito, ergo sum (28). Actually, he wrote “I am thinking, therefore I exist,” but the former is more catchy. He coined the term to create a foundation for his philosophy of reason. Descartes questioned everything from the existence ofContinue reading I Write, Therefore I Am
I feel like most days are similar, and that’s the problem. I get out of bed at the same time everyday, shower, and then commute to work. From there, I sit at a desk and stare at a computer for eight hours until I commute home and make dinner for my family. I spend aboutContinue reading A Love Letter to Books
Because I spend all my time in the reading community, I hear the same proclamation weekly – someone has set a goal to read a certain number of books this year. I often wonder how they decided on 50 or 100 books. Are they basing their goal off an arbitrary internet list? Or did theyContinue reading The Problem with Reading Goals
I finished my notes for A Discourse on the Method by René Descartes and found a 4-step method to thinking critically, a skill I’d like to improve (17). Let’s see how it works: (1) Never blindly accept something as true – How does this rule apply to what I learn on social media? What aboutContinue reading The 4 Steps of Critical Thinking
Most of what you learn is surface-level drivel. You never get into the meat of something because you’re trying to learn too quickly. You can’t learn well if you’re in a rush. I start all books the same – casually. I give them a read, and if I’m interested, I highlight passages along the way.Continue reading Some Books MUST Be Read Twice
I talk about reading slowly, but why does it matter? You can watch YouTube summaries, purchase cliff notes, and conspire with ChatGPT to say that you’ve “read the novel.” In high school, we were assigned Hemingway’s beautiful book, The Old Man and the Sea. Most of the students cheated and rented the movie. I’m workingContinue reading It’s Not Enough to Possess a Good Mind
I don’t have time to write today’s post, but I’m doing it anyway. I’m an accountant, and with the tax deadline looming, my industry is slammed. I don’t do taxes personally, but I am a partner in the firm and that’s enough madness for one day. Anyway, I’m writing this at 7:45 p.m. after havingContinue reading There’s Always Time
When you stop to think about it, Shakespeare really was a genius. In Richard III, we find one of literature’s most famous lines, “Now is the winter of our discontent” (Folger Shakespeare Library). Richard, who eventually becomes King Richard III, speaks this poetic and memorable phrase. Before we look at why this line is soContinue reading Now is The Winter of Our Discontent
I’ve been meaning to read Oliver Burkeman’s Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals for a few months, but I just couldn’t do it. I’ve read so many “productivity” books that I needed a break. Once I finally turned the cover, I was happy to see that Burkeman’s approach was not only new, but actuallyContinue reading Life is Finite. Make a Choice.
When you read, how long does it take before the first distractions appear? For me, it’s less then a minute. We’ve forgotten how to be alone, and reading is a solitary activity. It requires time by yourself in silence. Author David Foster Wallace pointed out that people feel a sense of dread about having toContinue reading Do You Require Noise?