The BEST Way to Summarize Books with ChatGPT

Tiago Forte

425.0K Views . 2023-10-12

I used to read 50 books a year but none of the wisdom was sticking or making a difference in my life. Then I made a rule to summarize every book in my own words so that the knowledge could really sink in. Not only did I retain the takeaways far better, these summaries became building blocks that I’ve incorporated into my work and shared with others. The only issue: Writing book summaries is extremely time-consuming. But with ChatGPT, I've found a way to create personalized book summaries in a fraction of the time. 🤓 Get the prompt and AI book summary of Where Good Ideas Come From by Steven Johnson from this video: https://fortelabs.ck.page/6e7ca5e5d8 🧠 How I remember everything I read with Readwise: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OlWomVta4DU 📝 How to take notes from physical books: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fES9ZrLXY9s 📚 View my entire collection of book summaries: https://fortelabs.com/blog/category/types/book-summary/ 00:00 Introduction 02:00 The Challenge of ChatGPT 03:07 Step 1: Export Highlights 03:31 Step 2: Use Progressive Summarization 05:34 Step 3: Make an Outline 07:34 Step 4: Paste the Outline to ChatGPT  09:41 Conclusion ----------------------- Building a Second Brain is the proven method to organize your digital life and unlock your creative potential. We're on a mission to help you increase your productivity, and lead a more fulfilling life with more ease and less stress. 🤓 TEST YOUR PRODUCTIVITY POTENTIAL If you had a Second Brain, how much more organized, effective, calm, and creative could you be? Take our quiz & find out: https://fortelabs.com/productivity-potential 🧠 HOW YOU CAN BUILD YOUR SECOND BRAIN Order the book: https://www.buildingasecondbrain.com/book Take the course: https://www.buildingasecondbrain.com/foundation 📬 JOIN THE FORTE LABS NEWSLETTER Level up your productivity and life with new essays, videos, event invites, and other resources every Tuesday. Join 125k subscribers exploring the frontier of modern work, experimenting with new ways of doing more with less, and discovering what it means to fulfill our human potential. Subscribe here: https://fortelabs.com/subscribe 🐥 FOLLOW US ON SOCIALS Always get the latest updates and insights around Building a Second Brain. Twitter: https://twitter.com/fortelabs LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/tiagoforte/ Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/fortelabs Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/fortelabsco/