The Read Well Podcast – EP120

Episode Title: My #1 Trick for Remembering Books
Host: Eddy Hood
Date: December 1, 2025

Episode Overview

In this episode of The Read Well Podcast, Eddy Hood reveals his number one strategy for truly remembering the most important insights from books. Moving beyond common reading and note-taking tips, Eddy demonstrates a reflective and practical approach to reading that increases retention and meaning: applying the ideas from books directly to your life. The episode walks listeners step-by-step through his refined reading and note-taking process, illustrated with concrete examples, memorable anecdotes, and actionable advice.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. The Problem: Forgetting What You Read

• Most readers can summarize a book’s main idea but struggle to recall specific lessons, themes, or actionable insights.

  “You’d probably really struggle…because you haven’t applied what I’m going to teach you in this lesson.” (03:05)

2. Eddy’s Multi-Pass Reading System

First Read – Establishing Familiarity

• Approach every new book like meeting a new friend.

  “It is the same with the book…you don’t know enough about this book yet to pull the major concepts out…so I just read the darn thing.” (04:25)

• Don’t pressure yourself to extract lessons on the first go; just enjoy and absorb.

Second Read – Highlighting and Annotation

• If the book’s worthwhile, reread it.

“If the book is a book worth putting the effort into, we should probably read it a second time.” (06:29)

• On the second pass, use highlighters or flags for memorable and impactful passages.
• Don’t overthink note-taking methods—use what suits you.

Rest Period

• Let the book “cool off” for several days to a week before reviewing highlights.

  “If you let the book sit on your desk for a week or so and cool off, what you’re going to do on the third pass…is you’re going to go back and only read the passages that you highlighted or marked” (09:08)

Third Read – Distilling the Best Ideas

• Revisit only highlighted passages.
• Ask:

  “Does this passage matter? And am I willing to put the work in to apply this to my life and do something with it?” (09:41)

• Narrow down to the 5–10 most valuable ideas.
• Don’t transcribe passages—write your response, page reference, and what the passage means to you.

“Don’t write it down word for word…What we want to do instead in our note taking system is write out page 48 so you can remember where this thing exists…then write your response to it…your feeling and your experience with it.” (11:15)

3. The #1 Trick: Apply the Ideas

• Mantra: Read slowly, take notes, and apply the ideas.

“That’s the secret. You have to apply the ideas.” (12:31)

• Reading, annotating, and summarizing are not enough. Real understanding and memory come from experimenting with and acting on the ideas.

• Personal anecdote about learning accounting:

  “When I graduated, I got a job in accounting and…immediately…had no idea what I was doing…That’s because I had spent my entire college career in the books and not in the real world.” (13:15)

4. Practical Application Examples

• The Denial of Death (Ernest Becker)

  • Key idea: The “Hero Project” – our existential drives.
  • Eddy identified and reflected on his own “Hero Projects” and connected them to Becker’s concept.

  • “Because I went through that work, I remember the concept of the HERO Project from the Denial of Death.” (16:01)

• An Immense World (Ed Yong)

  • Key idea: Dogs’ sensory world; walking dogs to experience smells.
  • Eddy applied this by letting his dogs stop and sniff thoroughly on walks, embedding the lesson in both memory and behavior.

  • “He challenges us as readers not to walk our dogs so that we get from point A to point B …Your job is to let them do that, let them be a dog. And that will always stick with me because I’ve done that with my dogs now.” (17:55)

• The Death of Ivan Ilyich (Leo Tolstoy)

  • Key idea: Confronting self-deception and seeking truth.
  • Eddy journaled with the prompt: “What am I lying to myself about?” — generating personal insight and anchoring the lesson.

  • “This book has forced me to ask whether or not those stories in my head are really true. So I will always remember…because I’ve applied the ideas in my life.” (20:13)

5. Reinforcing the Core Message

• If you want to remember more from books, you must do more than just read:

  “You actually have to sit down and apply what they’re teaching.” (21:43)

• Simply reading books on a topic (e.g., finance) without acting on the advice results in no real change.
• Repeat mantra: “Read slowly, take notes and apply the ideas.” (22:19)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• “It’s more important to read well than to be well read.” (00:40)
• “Don’t put that much pressure on yourself…I just read the darn thing.” (04:40)
• “Don’t write it down word for word in your notebook…write your response to it.” (11:17)
• “That’s the secret. You have to apply the ideas.” (12:31)
• “Books are not the thing that teach you action…That is how you learn.” (13:41)
• “I will always remember what The Death of Ivan Ilyich is about. And I can pull specific lessons out of it because I’ve applied the ideas in my life.” (20:17)
• “If you want to remember more from your books, you have to do more than read them.” (21:43)

[Book Recommendations Segment]

[23:10] This Week’s Book Recommendation: Ray Bradbury’s A Medicine for Melancholy

• Inspired by Bradbury’s own “nightly reading challenge”: one poem, one essay, one short story (linked in show notes).
• Bradbury’s story “In a Season of Calm Weather” offers a poignant lesson about presence versus documentation, relevant to the era of technology.

“Instead of being present, instead of being alive, we’re busy taking pictures of all of this stuff and we’re missing life itself.” (25:00)

• Suggestion: Check out A Medicine for Melancholy for inspiration and reflection on being present in daily life.

Episode Structure Timestamps

• 00:00–03:15 — Introduction & Motivation for Remembering Books
• 03:15–12:30 — Eddy’s Reading & Note-Taking System, Step-by-step
• 12:30–22:15 — The #1 Trick: Apply the Ideas (with personal and book-specific examples)
• 23:10–25:45 — Book Recommendations & Ray Bradbury’s Reading Challenge

Key Takeaways

• Reread worthwhile books, highlight what stands out, let it sit, then distill to a handful of potent, actionable insights.
• Don’t copy passages verbatim—write your personal response and link it to an action or reflection.
• The ultimate key to remembering what you read? Apply the lessons to your daily life.
• “Read slowly, take notes, and apply the ideas.”

For Further Exploration

• Bradbury’s Reading Challenge (poem, essay, short story nightly)
• Titles discussed:
  • The Denial of Death by Ernest Becker
  • An Immense World by Ed Yong
  • The Death of Ivan Ilyich by Leo Tolstoy
  • A Medicine for Melancholy by Ray Bradbury

This summary preserves Eddy Hood’s conversational, practical tone and provides a clear, structured map to the episode: perfect for both new listeners and experienced bibliophiles seeking to transform their reading habits.