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2 Getting round obstacles

2.5 Poor environment

Were you held back at all in your reading by the environment you were reading in? Were you reading in bed, in the bath, sitting at a desk, on the bus, or in the park? Any of these could be a good time and place, but did it actually work for you?

Were you able to maintain your concentration for a good long spell? Did you have all the materials you needed to hand, such as pen, paper and dictionary? Did you need a surface to write on as you read? Do you read best in a regular spot, or do you need to keep moving to different places? Don't just take your reading environment for granted. Think about whether you are giving yourself a reasonable chance of success. You may not be able to arrange a ‘perfect’ reading environment, but there are often significant things you can do to improve the one you have.

Key points

To get through large amounts of reading you have to be ready to cope with obstacles. You need:

  • strategies for coping with difficult words and with passages you can't understand;
  • patience with the academic style of writing;
  • an ability to detach yourself from disagreements with the author's views;
  • a well set-up reading environment.
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