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Note-Taking Anxiety for Readers
Published 27 days ago • 3 min read
Note-Taking Anxiety (as a reader)
Hello Reader,
I used to feel anxious every time I opened a book with a pen in hand. I wanted to take better notes, but I had a thousand questions.
Am I doing this right? Should I be using a different system? Should I have a color-coded setup? What if I forget something important? What am I supposed to highlight? Am I highlighting too much? Not enough? Should I use a digital platform or keep everything digital? Ugh!
It’s funny how the act of taking notes—something meant to help us learn—can stop us from reading. I’ve met so many people who stall out before getting to page one, endlessly hunting for the right note-taking method, the perfect app, the smartest system.
I can't read this book until I get everything organized!
🧑🏫Here's what I've learned: No one can hand you your process. Your system will be mish-mashed, messy, and it will evolve. That's the point.
You might go through five, ten, even twenty books before you find your system. And that’s fine.
Just start reading. Don’t put so much pressure on yourself to be the perfect student. You can't ruin anything. Sure, a few books might look funny when you're done, but you're growing. Deep reading is a skill. Pay attention to what’s working, and let go of what’s not.
Your system will find you as you go, young grasshopper.
👋 Until next time, read slowly – take notes – apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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The Dictator's Handbook
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This Week's Book Recommendation
The Dictator's Handbook
One book I’d recommend—especially if you’re working on becoming a more confident reader of nonfiction—is The Dictator’s Handbook: Why Bad Behavior is Almost Always Good Politics by Bruce Bueno de Mesquita and Alastair Smith.
It’s one of those books that completely reframes how you see the world.
On the surface, it’s about dictators and corrupt leaders. But really, it’s about incentives—how power works, how it’s maintained, and why so many systems reward the worst kinds of behavior. The authors don’t write with outrage or sentimentality. They write with clarity, logic, and brutal honesty.
And here’s the thing: it’s dense in the best way. You won’t agree with everything. Some parts will make your stomach turn. But it’s exactly the kind of book that challenges you to take notes—not because you’re trying to get it all down perfectly, but because your brain will be buzzing with connections and reactions.
So don’t worry about having the perfect system. Just read it. Underline what surprises you. Jot down the questions that come up. This is a book that rewards curiosity.
As a kid, I used to read by flashlight under my covers—completely absorbed, completely amazed. Somewhere along the way, I traded that sense of wonder for utility. In this episode, I talk about what happened and how to get it back. I’ll share one book that lit the fire again and offer a few tips for reclaiming a deeper, more joyful experience of reading.
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Feel free to respond to this email. Let me know how I can make your experience in our reading community better, or if you have questions, I'm all ears.
As always, read slowly - take notes - apply the ideas.
-Eddy
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Subscribe to my newsletter for tips on close reading, detailed note-taking, and applying bookish wisdom to your life. I talk about fiction and non-fiction, interview literary experts, and host The Read Well Podcast. Subscribe today and build better reading habits.