Steps for doing 3 to 5 books at a time

by Paul Scheele

Last week I posted an article on the process of Syntopic Reading, which is about applying the steps of PhotoReading to three to five books at a time. It's a powerful process that aids study, research, and learning any topic in a short period of time. Let's continue that discussion with the steps of syntopic reading. You might not be familiar with some of the terms if you haven't already learned PhotoReading through the seminar or the self-study.

1) Establish a purpose

The first active step of syntopic reading is to state a purpose that has meaning and value for you. Be clear and specific—it is crucial. Suppose your purpose is to learn money management strategies. An effective purpose statement could be: "I want to learn effective methods to save money and invest wisely so I can build my financial independence." That statement is clear and specifies a purpose with personal meaning. Meaning also increases long-term retention. Notice how much more power it has than a broader statement like "I want to learn more about financial planning."

2) Create a bibliography

The second active step is to create a bibliography—a list of books that you plan to read. Preview your books to determine if they fit your purpose. For this exercise, choose nonfiction books by different authors on a subject that you really want to understand.

3) PhotoRead all materials the day before activating

The mind needs incubation time to create new connections. PhotoRead your selected books the day before you plan to activate them. PhotoReading makes the difference in your ability to process ideas at high speeds. During sleep, your brain finds ways to categorize information exposed to it during PhotoReading.

4) Create a giant mind map

Take out your books, a large sheet of paper, and colored markers for mind mapping. Use mind mapping for making notes during the remaining steps of syntopic reading. Look at the chart shown as a suggestion for how to organize your mind map. Your initial statement of purpose takes a prominent place in the center of your sheet of paper. Leave enough room to revise your purpose statement later if you desire. The purpose statement in the center will help remind you that your mind map is about your purpose, not about the books. Use it to capture material from all the books that speak to your purpose. The content of any individual book takes less priority over the importance of your purpose. You'll find a sample mind map in the chapter on syntopic reading in my PhotoReading book.

5) Find relevant passages

Super read and dip through each of the books finding passages relevant to your purpose. In this step, your purpose reigns supreme over the purposes of the authors. The reason for holding your purpose as the guiding light is to pull out the otherwise obscure passages that can serve your purpose. Continue mind mapping the passages you find. Let go of your desire to read in too much detail at this point. Use only light dipping throughout the books, and restrict your dipping to relevant passages. You may find during this step that your purpose statement will be refined as the complexities of the topic become clearer. Think of this as a discussion with the authors of these books. Imagine these authors sitting around in a circle with you. Ask them a question and let them speak to your purpose. The objective is not to understand their books; it is to understand your purpose.

6) Summarize in your own words

If you step back and look at your mind map, you will notice a number of important concepts being addressed. Briefly summarize what you think about the subject so far. It helps to create neutral, jargon-free terminology of your own. Different authors may use different words to say the same things. Finding a neutral set of terms creates meaningful associations and makes the concepts your own.

7) Discover themes

Explore your mind map and your books for similarities and differences among the various authors' viewpoints. When you reach this stage, you will begin to uncover the central themes that all or most of the authors are attempting to address. Make note of these.

8) Define the issues

When authors have opposing viewpoints, these differences are points of contention or issues. Uncover differing viewpoints, and you will enhance your knowledge about the subject. In this step, you super read and dip to find key points related to these issues. Picture yourself as an investigative reporter in a room with your authors. Pose the central questions to each of them. Go quickly from one book to another, answering one question at a time. As soon as you find it in one book, leave that book and start flipping through the next one.

9) Formulate your own view

As you discover issues and explore various viewpoints, you automatically begin to synthesize your own viewpoint. Look at all sides and take no sides at first. Make a deliberate effort to remain objective and avoid being partial in your analysis. After gathering enough information, create your own position. Formulate your own opinion based on your research.

10) Apply

After choosing your position on the subject, you must create an argument to support your view, based on specific information from your books. Order the key issues in such a way as to throw more light on the subject. Be specific in creating any argument for your position. To add credibility to your argument you should be prepared to quote your sources. In this case, it helps to always accompany a statement of an author's view with an actual quotation from the text, referenced by the page number. Create another mind map of your viewpoint before writing a formal report. This saves time and helps you present your ideas clearly. Most business people and students fulfill their needs by the end of the previous step. That may be as far as they want to go with their subject. But for the person writing a college-level paper or detailed business report, this additional step is important.

How much time do you expect to invest in syntopic reading? We suggest you take only two 45-minute periods for activation. That is all. The investment before is approximately 10 to 15 minutes per book to quickly preview, PhotoRead, and postview. When finished, most participants recognize that they have achieved 80 to 90 percent of what they really want and need.