I’ll tell you a little example. If you think you suck in life (and therefore have a negative attitude) your success will be very limited. I don’t want to go into great detail here, but basically, having a negative attitude leads to a vicious circle: You think you fail, therefore you fail. This failing increases your negative attitude, making it even more likely for you to fail in the future.

Fortunately, this vicious circle works very similar with a positive attitude. Well, the circle ain’t really vicious in that case but the principles remain the same: Having a positive attitude directly increases your success. This success reinforces your positive attitude. (Read Why a Positive Attitude Leads to Success for a detailed explanation on why a positive attitude leads to success.)

But not only does your attitude influence your success. Getting knowledge and understanding is dependent on your attitude as well for the same reasons.

So what exactly is the right attitude for learning, reading or thinking?

Be Interested

First of all, you need to be interested in the subject. Being interested leads to a better memorization and keeps you motivated. You might know from school that learning about some boring subject is way harder than learning about a subject you’re interested in.

So, if you want to know a lot about different subjects, the first step you should take is to become interested in all those subjects.

I know, this sounds easier than it actually is, but once you’re interested in a topic, it will be so much easier for you to learn more about it.

Be Open-Minded

Don’t disapprove of something just because it seems to be strange at first glance.

Many great theories seemed weird when they’ve been proposed. The theory of relativity is a perfect example for this. It suggests some really strange things but it has helped scientists a lot to understand more of the world around us.

However, don’t mistake being open-minded for believing anything that is told to you. People lie and people talk about stuff they don’t understand themselves. That’s why the next point is crucial.

Be Critical

This one is especially important if you browse the internet a lot. So this might be especially important for you, I mean, you are just reading an article published in the internet. Don’t believe everything I tell you without asking yourself if it makes any sense.

Seriously, people tell a lot of bullshit. If something seems to be very obscure, then you might want to check the source of this information before you believe it in all its fabulous details.

Try to keep those points in mind.

Of course, it doesn’t need to be like this. There are other people who think about the things they perceive and don’t forget all of it after a couple of seconds. People who are able to increase knowledge and understanding by thinking. People who use the right technique, be it consciously or unconsciously.

So how can you too become a productive thinker?

First you need to know that forgetting is the major problem. Forgetting is easier than learning. Forgetting just happens. If you let it happen all the time, learning is as efficient as trying to fill a bottomless pit. A total waste of time. But why not just add a bottom to the pit? Suddendly your effort would pay off. In other words, remember your thoughts and thinking will lead to great knowledge and understanding.

Sounds easy, right? Just remember your thoughts… But how to do it? How do you think the right way? There’s one easy technique I highly recommend:

Write down your thoughts! Yeah, good solutions don’t always have to be complicated. I will make some additional explanations though.

You need three things to write down your thoughts in an efficient way:

1. Something that allows you to make quick notes wherever you are. A small notebook and a pen would do fine for example.
2. Something to file your thoughts. Such as a computer.
3. Something that creates thoughts. I strongly recommend a brain but you can use a computer as well.

What you do with these three things (or two if you’ve chosen the computer twice) is… No wait, forget about the third item, I’m tired of this stupid joke, this is a serious topic. So what you have to do is:

• Always carry the notebook and pen (or the like) with you. Write down anything that you consider to be important. Any idea, insight, piece of knowledge or theory. Instantly jot it down on your notebook. At any time. Wherever you are. Make notes while reading, learning or travelling. Even if you wake up in the middle of the night.
• Having written down some interesting thoughts, it’s time to file them. Put them into categories and update them regularly. You don’t need to create many categories in the beginning, you could start with only one file and create directories later.

Making quick notes allows you to remember almost every important thought. Filing and updating is important because it forces you to think about the stuff you’ve jotted down. This leads to new insights and new ideas, ready to be written down as well. You acquire more knowledge and a deeper understanding in addition. So finally thinking pays off. Thinking has become productive.

Of course, there are other ways to make thinking more productive. Some people found ways to think productively without the need of an external help, but even they could probably profit from the technique I just presented. I use it myself and it yields great results.

Now you can either give it a try or decide to forget about this article. It’s up to you.