The Cry for Self-Learning

You won't need to take a test on this text and you won't be evaluated, so there's no reason to read it. It's highly recommended that you skip this publication.

Contrary to what everyone thinks, the habit of reading is not about accumulating records of books read in a week; there is a very fundamental difference between the act of reading and the feat of absorbing knowledge. The traditional education system forces us to consume books and fill our brain's stomach with as much information as possible so that we have an indigestion of "knowledge" and vomit memorized facts with the purpose of getting that much-desired grade. The perfect grade that will prove to your classmates, parents, and teachers that you meet the standards of intelligence established by the respected academic world.

Nietzsche unfortunately got it quite right in some of his statements; according to him, the academic world is full of scholars whose role is only one: to accumulate as much knowledge as possible so that, under the guise of authority, they can pass on this erudition with class and arrogance in the act of teaching or showing off. The problem at hand is the difference between being a human Wikipedia who loves to mention in circles of friends the historical precision of the day Napoleon tripped over a gravel stone and being a wise human who can apply with perspicacity the valuable words of an author in an important moment of professional or personal decision in your life.

Reading out of obligation is more penance than an act of evolution. Now the reading of the free soul, born from the fruit of curiosity, that indeed has the power to move mountains, because when there is genuine interest in researching a subject, the absorption of the words read and the magical pollination of knowledge in the atmosphere of the mind occurs in a much more natural and efficient way. The first requires piling up stacks of books; the second doesn't even require finishing a book or reading the Wikipedia page to the end, only the rationality to validate through reason and data correlation the veracity of what you're consuming. The challenge, and at the same time, the secret, is to cultivate the gift of curiosity, the infamous hunger for wisdom that fundamentally differs from knowledge.

The strategy? Enter a bookstore without the intention to buy, the same way we do with clothes and other material goods that, unlike knowledge, lose their value over time and drain your money instead of generating more wealth in the long term. From the moment you're in an environment of delights for your brain, everything becomes easier. It's just a matter of flirting with the available covers and titles, questioning what kind of field of study makes more sense with your profession or personality. Fiction to inspire your heart with art? Self-help to support your therapy? Philosophy to poke you and develop your critical sense? History to teach you from the mistakes of the past? Politics to make you a more active citizen in society? Psychology to make you a better marketing professional? Infinite possibilities written by an infinitude of brilliant minds.

The action plan? Surround yourself with books. Spread books in your office, bedroom, or living room. Set traps for your mind that is bombarded daily by distractions and make it remember that right there, next to your coffee cup, or under your little dog who is taking a nap on top of a copy of Sophie's World, there's that book that once awakened your interest and thus constantly remind yourself that it's flirting with the idea of teaching you something new. The most important thing is not to pressure yourself; it's the book that desires you, not you who desires it. There is no obligation whatsoever to read or finish it; no one is charging you and you don't need to prove anything to anyone, not even to yourself, whether you really understood those pages.

The magic? This part is going to blow your mind, won't let your phone drop, hey. When the book converses with your curiosity, everything changes. Each word, each sentence, and each idea that travels from the pages of the book into the dimension of your intellect becomes part of you forever. Even if the reading doesn't make sense at the time, there won't be an evaluation waiting for you to test whether you learned; your brain will have all the time it needs to calmly process and savor that gift. When you least expect it, weeks, months, or years from now, in a decisive moment of your life, it will repay you for your effort in having studied autonomously in the past. Distinguishing you in your work or helping you solve a personal challenge.