5 TIPS FOR GETTING MUCH MORE OUT OF YOUR READING

Hello, hope your weekend was great! Welcome to a new work week. What will you be reading this week that will impact your life and career? Let me help you with some tips for getting much more out of your reading. Have an impactful week. YOU WILL SUCCEED!

                                                                  

Francis Bacon has been quoted as saying that reading makes a full man, but he gave further advice:

“Read, not to contradict or confute, nor to believe and take for granted, nor to find talk and discourse, but to weigh and consider. Some books are to be tasted, others to be swallowed, and some few to be chewed and digested.”

To get more out of your reading here are my suggestions:

1. RECOLLECT : This is mental recall. When you read, try to remember what you have read. The where; the who; the how and the why. Use your imagination. Picture what you’re reading.

2. REFLECT: Reading without thinking is like eating without digestion – it does no good. When you read, analyze and process the information being fed into your brain. Think!  Ponder deeply. Allow the judgment of the Holy Spirit. No author’s opinion or interpretation of scripture is final. Use the Bible and the witness of your spirit as the final arbiter before you digest any information; that’s why getting conversant with your Bible is supreme.

To enhance your thinking process, (i) you could seek the counsel or opinion of an older Christian, a mentor. (ii) You could also cross-reference or juxtapose different authors on a singular subject. Finally, be objective, not biased. Don’t fall victim of the sin of a closed mind.

3. RECITE: Recitation is part of the meditation process. The Hebrew root of the word ‘meditate’ means ‘to murmur in pleasure’. Recall to yourself the things you have learnt from the books you have read. Memorize facts. Memorize scriptures. It will help you in dire moments. “The memory is a treasurer to whom we must give funds, if we are to draw the assistance we need.”

4. RECOUNT: Share your knowledge with others. It helps retention of facts. “You will always remember what you teach.”

5. REVISE: Go back to revise and review that material. It will be well stored now. It also helps to cultivate the habit of writing down what you read. The faintest pen is always sharper than the sharpest brain. Information that is not documented will never be implemented! (Excerpts from the book, READERS AND LEADERS by Yomi Olufiade)

Please assist the bearer | Daily Times Nigeria

Please assist the bearer | Daily Times Nigeria

THE LITTLE CHAP WHO FOLLOWS ME

I should have posted this a week ago but permit me to still do it today. Seven days ago was my son Samuel’s birthday. The occasion made me reflect a lot. In three short years, the guy has taught me a lot. His birth and his growth have revealed many sides of me that I did not know existed before. I have become a better man all because of the privilege God gave me to father this “young man”.

I remembered that evening when he was born. I held him in my arms. The tiny bundle that he was, I wondered, “This is a human being, right from my very own loins.” God indeed, is awesome. When I called his grandfather, (my dad, of course, what do you think?) I cried on the phone. My voice broke and I wept. At last I’d become a father! The reality of the privilege and responsibility dawned on me and in that moment I couldn’t hold back the tears.

A boy we (my wife and I, of course) had prayed for. And a boy God had given us. He was a true answer to prayer. So we named him Samuel – “For him we had prayed”. How the boy taught me to pray. Or rather, I should say, he made me pray; the waiting period for his coming, his conception, his delivery, his first few weeks, the first year, boy, did I pray? And I’m still praying. And growing, and knowing God better as a result. That, I won’t trade for anything in the world!

He is my protégé, my friend, my playmate. And true to God’s Word, he is the beginning of my strength, the excellence of dignity and the excellence of power! As I reflect on this anniversary of his birth, this poem just about summarizes my sentiments.

A careful man I want to be,

A little fellow follows me;

I do not dare to go astray

For fear he’ll go the self-same way.

I cannot once escape his eyes.

Whate’er he sees me do he tries.

Like ME he says he’s going to be –

That little chap who follows me.

I must remember as I go

Through summer suns and winter snows,

I am building for the years to be –

That little chap who follows me.

To you, Samuel AanuOluwalofifunmi Oluwadamilola IyeOluwadamayo, Daddy, Mummy and Joyce will always love you. We are proud of you and we bless God for your life today and we celebrate you. You will grow up before the Lord and go forth like the calf of the stall, in Jesus’ name! Happy Birthday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!