How to Be The "Type of Person" Who Loves Reading & Learning

Let's align our thinking & moving.

A lot of people ask me how to become “the type of person who reads a lot” or “the type of person who loves learning.”

First off, you need to identify as someone who loves learning first.

I am being quite literal, say to yourself (out loud) - “I am the type of person who loves learning and reading.”

You (probably): But Sarah, I don’t read that much-”

Actually, you do. You read all the time. You learn shit all the time on the internet. Most of the time it’s passive (we’ll get to active learning) but it’s still learning.

And I *do* understand that you mean you want to be the type of person who sits down and reads books, non-fiction specifically. I get that, but again, you need to identify with learning first.

“I love learning.”

“I am the type of person who likes learning.”

“I read stuff often and enjoy it.”

Important Nuance: I need you to use “I,” “me,” “mine” - first person and first person possessive. You are the narrator of your life, language literally shapes self-concept. Using first person and first person possessive makes the sentence more intimate and relative to you, it communicates authenticity and ownership. You are trying to identify with reading and learning here, it is your goal, this is crucial. — We’re also going to be discussing “feelings” and this is necessary for “metalinguistic awareness.”

Identity.

[I am setting up a “parallel” here, as well as providing background information]

Who you are, your habits, your preferences, your self image and concept, rest on the same network your music preferences do - your Default Mode Network (DMN).

[Source: This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers, PhD and Ogi Ogas, PhD.]

So think of this like music.

What makes discovering and learning new music easier, genuinely incorporating new genres into your life?

Identifying as a “music lover.”

When most people want to transition to new hobbies, new modes of living and moving throughout the world (music literally moves us, shapes us) they often mistakenly approach it like this:

“I listen to pop music but I want to be the type of person who listens to classical music.”

That’s wonderful.

However, there’s going to be an aching, there’s going to be reservations, resistance, and a certain sadness because they’re now purely identifying as a “classical music lover.” They’re leaving behind pop, which they likely deeply love and identify with. But so long as pop music is not actually hurting you, you don’t need to abandon it.

Just incorporate more classical music.

Don’t zoom in, zoom out.

Identifying as a “pop lover” is great, but if you identify as a “music lover” you can still remain true to who you are and also give yourself the range, the ability to move across genres.

Circling back to This Is What It Sounds Like by Susan Rogers (Prince’s former producer turned neuroscientist - fun fact, she also produced ‘One Week’ by the Bare Naked Ladies. She’s cool af.)

In her book she discusses the seven dimensions of “listener profile” which is basically “who you are” as an individual, your self-image in reference to music.

[This will get “mathy” - please stay with me]

There’s three aesthetic dimensions: authenticity (expression), realism (appearance), and novelty (risk, reward).

There’s also four musical dimensions: melody (feel), lyrics (identity), rhythm (movement), and timbre (essence.)

The three aesthetic dimensions are binary —> finer tuning.

The four musical dimensions are not binary (decimal points, no base 2, NOT black vs white) —> larger, sweeping edits.

[Apologies for the third parallel but it’s necessary.]

Think of the aesthetic dimensions as “fine motor skills” and the musical dimensions as “gross motor skills.”

If you want lasting change, flexibility, strength, more range - you need to invest in the musical dimensions (gross motor skills) first.

Expression, appearance, risk and reward are important, yes, but they are built upon feeling, identity, movement, and essence.

The goal: “fine” and “gross” motor skills working together, not favoring one over the other, but taking time to develop “gross” motor skills more as it is the foundation.

Getting Started.

When it comes to identifying as a lover of learning and reading, focus on:

Feelings — Melody

Identity — Lyrics (self-narration)

Rhythm — Movement

Timbre — Essence

First.

Do you have triggering feelings associated with learning? Those likely came from the school system or your parents. They aren’t here now — you’re safe.

You’re not the type of person who learns? That is incorrect. You just have a very narrow working definition of learning as, again, school system and parents. You learn everyday. Edit the lyrics, “I am the type of person who loves learning.”

You have a hard time sitting down to read? That’s completely normal. Also, you don’t have to sit down to read, that’s *again* the school system’s preference. Listen to audiobooks, read while standing up - when I read on the treadmill I literally wear car sick goggles because the back and forth motion makes me sick (“does that really work?” Um yeah! Get into it.)

Accommodate yourself, it is not a privilege, it’s a right.

Lastly, your essence. The essence of freedom is individual choice. Allow yourself to choose topics that feed the nature of you - your interests, your passions. Again, this isn’t school, you don’t need to follow their curriculum. Find books on topics you give a shit about - this is a functional (gross motor skills) entry point.

Fine tuning is great, but if you feel constricted in any way, gross motor skills (musical dimensions) are what will “release” you.

I “read with my knees” (lol) - it gives me endurance, strength, flexibility, grit. I can also “read with my fingers” - get the finer details and nuances.

You can also do this, I know you can, you just need to build by starting with the foundation of you.

Society…

Society stresses and polices the aesthetic dimensions heavily.

Expression, appearance, and novelty (the emphasis on risk - rejection, normalcy, etc.)

That sort of top-down control doesn’t just trickle down, it floods the full system — fine and gross movements and skills - skills are habits.

They’re operating on a zero-sum, competitive mindset. If they give you slack (grace, refinement of movement) they will interpret it is as them losing. They want to remain in a fixed power position - knowledge, information, learning is power, and that status relies on you being fixed as well.

They’ve tied your *mental* hands and thus, your entire body.

However, you are not fixed in real life, you change daily (literally, the brain and body are constantly changing.)

You may have also become numb to the world, learning, and yourself.

The nervous system goes: thought, movement, feeling, sensing.

If you want to feel something, get a sense of self that’s true to who you actually are and want to be, you need to move differently first.

And yes, moving differently will be anxiety inducing, but that’s a good thing (in this context). If you’ve ever sat on your foot too long, there’s a weird prickling sensation when you get up because feeling is returning.

If you are anxious, you are not numb.

With you tingling foot in mind, reassure yourself that the anxiety won’t last forever and soon you’ll be moving, walking, reading, learning, with ease.

You got this.

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Sources:

This Is What It Sounds Like - Susan Rogers, PhD and Ogi Ogas, PhD

Your Brain on Art - Susan Magsamen and Ivy Ross

What We Value: The Neuroscience of Choice and Change - Emily Falk

On Muscle - Bonnie Tsui

Finding Perspective on the First Person Perspective

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I also have a podcast called Schauer Thoughts where I discuss neuroscience, physics, math, sociology, psychology, etc - I just love learning, reading, and sharing. You should check it out!

Schauer Thoughts - all platforms.