Special reminder: In this article, "bookmark" refers to the physical bookmark used when reading physical books.
Because I was reading several books at the same time and ran out of bookmarks, there were a few books that I finished reading without using bookmarks. I discovered some unexpected gains and wanted to share them with you.
Not using bookmarks brings up a problem: Where did I last stop reading? I had to start by locating the headings, then quickly flip back and forth, while also searching through my memory. It felt like I was looking at the place where I last stopped reading, then carefully flipping through page by page, paragraph by paragraph, sentence by sentence, until I found a sentence I remembered but didn't remember the next one. This became the starting point for my current reading.
Although the above process is cumbersome and inefficient, in extreme cases (such as long intervals between readings), it can even lead to circling around a certain part of the text for a long time. However, after going through the whole experience, I found that I could remember more and more points. And the attention during the reading process is not evenly distributed. There are inevitably mistakes and omissions in crucial parts. Through the above process of quickly flipping and recalling, I always discover the information that was overlooked in the past reading process. In short, the process of reviewing has quietly been embedded into the above process.
On the other hand, I use the text itself as a bookmark and try to stop at the most exciting parts. It could be the unveiling of a mystery or the understanding of a certain theory. In any case, when you can't wait to read the text below, you have to consider whether to stop and use it as a starting point for the next time. This will give you more motivation to start the next reading. After all, no one wants to open a book and get stuck in a quagmire. It can also reduce the cost of finding breakpoints.
The above two aspects, one is the gains brought by "inconvenience". In fact, this point is easy to understand. In terms of problem-solving, reading itself is an inefficient method, and "inconvenience" runs through the whole process. I don't think it will become a pain point for most readers. When people encounter inconvenience, they often think about how to reduce its impact. This is why we have the second point mentioned above, which is to stop at the most exciting parts. At this point, there is a question: Aren't the two points contradictory? The second point is to alleviate the inconvenience of the first point, but the benefits of the first point are precisely brought by inconvenience.
The key to resolving the contradiction is to recognize that inconvenience cannot be eliminated. Even if you stop at an exciting part, it is impossible to accurately focus on that sentence every time. The process of reviewing still exists. In addition, when you fully practice and understand the above two benefits, you will actively review and appreciate the attraction of reading. Even if you pick up the bookmark again, it will not diminish its influence in the slightest. This is also the way most so-called methods or workflows work.