Home Improvement...

A few years ago, a young mom asked me if I had a list of books I could recommend to her. She knew I was a big proponent of reading and wanted me to pass along what I had read. It was then that I realized that I couldn't recall what I had read off the top of my head! Oh, there were a few books that came to my mind, but I had to dig deep to come up with a many worthy titles. I was frustrated and embarrassed that I could be so dogmatic about something and yet so clueless when it came to the specifics.

Can I spare you this scenario in your life and encourage you to spend this Home Improvement weekend setting up a system to record what you read?

Write down what you read every month. Add to this list throughout the year and at the end of the year you will have a neat inventory of what you have put in your mind. Perhaps it will shed light on how your year went as well, because what you read is what fed your mind.

If you already do catalog what you read, maybe you are ready for a more complete summary of your books. Make a short book report after reading every book.

Example:

Name and Author of Book:
Month/Year read:
Number of Pages:
Where I heard about the book:
Did it meet my expectations:
Would I recommend this book to other women:
What are key points I would like to remember: (copy quotes, key thought, or page numbers you can refer back to)

Do this for every book you read, whether it is a no-brainer or a philosophical wonder...it will reveal to you what you are spending your time on as well as what you are learning.

Sounds like added effort, I know, but when a younger woman asks you someday what you have spent your life reading...you can hand her an overstuffed notebook, filled with book reviews that will not only be beneficial to her, but will have made you into the woman you have become!