From the course: Note-Taking for Business Professionals

The read and recall method

From the course: Note-Taking for Business Professionals

The read and recall method

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- Have you ever read a whole page of text and then wondered I have no clue what I just read. In this video, I'll go over a simple exercise you can practice so this doesn't happen as often. It's called the Read and Recall Method, and it will help you remember more of what you read. Here's how it works. You read a paragraph and then, take a quick note of what you just read. Then you simply repeat this process, read a paragraph, take a note. Read another paragraph, take another note. These notes should be quick. Just write a word or a phrase that describes some of the content in that paragraph. Why are we doing this? The idea is to get you into the mindset of constantly asking yourself, "What did I just read?" If you force yourself to take a quick note after every paragraph you read, you'll find yourself paying more attention to the material. And with practice, you'll improve your ability to retain the information. Now I'm not suggesting that you need to take notes after every paragraph you read for the rest of your life. This is simply an exercise you can practice to improve your recall abilities. If you feel like you have a lot of trouble remembering what you read, I'd suggest practicing this 15 minutes a day for a week, if you want to strengthen your recall abilities. With practice, you'll find it easier to remember what you're reading, because you'll be in the habit of constantly thinking, "What did I just read?" Part of the reason why we forget information is because sometimes we weren't paying attention to begin with. The Read and Recall Method helps you pay attention because if forces you to take notes after every paragraph. If I know I need to write something down, then I'm more likely to pay attention while I'm reading. It's a simple but effective exercise for improving your retention. And here's a little variation of this method that you can apply to courses here on lynda.com. Instead of the Read and Recall Method, let's call it the Watch and Recall Method. You may have noticed the My Notes tab within lynda.com courses. Here you can add notes for any video that you watch. The nice thing about this feature is that it will keep track of the time when you take your notes. So all of the notes during the video will be associated to a specific place where you added them. At the end of chapters, or when the course is over, I recommend that you review the notes that you previously made. So whether it's the Read and Recall Method, or the Watch and Recall Method, keep in mind that taking notes will help you better remember the material.

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