@rosieodsey recently shared her on-off relationship with reading and with books, which made me chuckle because it’s so true for me too. I often read a book, drop off, come back to it, read some more, write some notes, drop off, absolve to finishing it, but almost……ad infinitum, ad nauseam. 

“Done for me is when it’s fully applied, documented, and shared.”

Likewise for me too, especially when it’s a great book with lots of practical applications. But the hard part is that it feels like a job in itself and sets up too high a barrier, to completely absorb, document, share and apply everything that the book has to offer. Maybe that’s why the on-off thing happens - the massive undertaking implied and expected is half the battle lost right at the onset. At least for me.

There’s also the phenomenon of dry periods. My reading is akin to a desert. Years of dry weather, then all of a sudden, downpours for days and desert flowers bloom all over the sand. My recent reading bloom was actually preceded by years of not reading, because I was super busy doing. I think the reading is a response to seasons in life where I reach an intersection or a new path where I’m searching and seeking. Makes sense that I would want to explore the informational landscape, discover who the key actors and sources are, and to research how to take on the new season. Which is exactly what’s happening for me right now. Sometimes I wish there was a place where I can go back to to read all the notes from all the books I ever read, so that I don’t have to re-read them all over and can build on the efforts of the previous read.

I wish there were better tools to help me do that, especially the application aspect. Currently, my stuff are all over the place - 

• Telegram and Amazon Kindle for book notes
• Bookreads for book lists, book count, brief reviews
• 200wad for documentation, thinking about application, sharing, discussion
• Physical notebook for planning how to apply book learnings in life
• Google Calendar and Reminder app for setting aside time/opportunities to apply what we learned from the books (e.g. when planning new habits)
• Twitter and Facebook for social interaction and discussion
• (Book clubs - I’m not part of any but would love to be able to have in-depth discussions on books or chapters)

I’m not sure if a one-stop tool that does it all is the right answer. But the current fragmented experience speaks for a need that’s not well served by existing market solutions. Or maybe whatever solution that comes doesn’t have to solve everything, but a meaningful cross section of the various issues packed into conceptually tight, well-designed package.

What would this product(s) look like? ?