I grasp the hyperbole of titling an online article, “You’re Not Going to Read This”, but the statement is true. We don’t read, we consume. And when we consume, we are not fully comprehending information.
I have always enjoyed reading. Diving into a great story is like entering another world and exploring all that it has to offer. The small bookshelf across from where I’m writing is littered with past literary conquests.
Last September my wife gifted me with a subscription to Audible for my birthday. It really opened up my ability to “read”. I was now “reading” while driving to and from work, while walking the dog, while doing chores. I was “reading” more than ever.
However, this new form of “reading” also meant things slipped through the cracks. There are a few titles in my Audible library that are marked “read” where I have zero recollection of the story. I didn’t “read” those titles, I listened to them.
Listening is an act of consumption. Reading means the content is not just consumed, but comprehended.
Our brains have been trained to simply consume content. We put something on TV to provide white noise and mindless consumption while playing games or “reading” articles on our phones.
Students are taught to consume the information in their textbooks and retain it…
