Practical Tips To Read More!
Yearly Reading Goals:
I have an entire blog written on the importance of reading goals! I can link it at the bottom of this page for convenience, but the purpose of the article is to describe just how important reading goals are to rack up those pages. Challenging yourself is so important, and this goes for reading too! If you are reading the same thing over and over again with no tool for measurement, then you are likely not going to find long term enjoyment in the act. Reading goals ensure that you continue to read by giving you something to work towards, and once those goals are met or exceeded, the feeling of satisfaction is amazing! Reaching your goal can definitely spark a new goal in reading and can make you try to read even more the following year. Having a list on Goodreads on in a journal of your reading goals is a great physical reminder of what you are working towards, and each book you finish puts you one step closer to completing that goal, which feels so encouraging, and physically marking that down can give you the extra boost you need to pick up another book once one is finished.
Keep a Book on Your Person:
This tool is pretty simple, yet very effective. How often do you find yourself sitting for a few minutes before an appointment, in between classes, waiting for an order to be ready, on the bus, etc. There are so many moments in the day where we pick up our phone for entertainment because it is so easy. Imagine if we had a book on us along with our phone. It might make you more likely to pick up the pages throughout the day and read. Sometimes we need a physical reminder of the habits we’re trying to build, and keeping a book on your person is just that. Keeping a book in your tote bag, purse, or backpack can add a lot of convenience and entertainment to your day, and honestly just knowing that you’re carrying the book around all day can make you pick up the book for the simple fact that you don’t want your effort to go wasted. It’s such a main character move to pull out a book while you’re waiting for class to start or sitting in a waiting room, and it’s so much better for your brain than scrolling on social media. This tip for implementing reading is easy, accessible, and makes all the difference without you even noticing much difference, which is a huge plus!
Ten Pages Per Night:
Reading before bed has been proven to be better for you than scrolling, and it can also help you meet your goals! Even setting a small page minimum such as ten pages per day can help increase the amount you are reading, because with any luck, after those ten pages you’ll get sucked in and read more than the bare minimum. Even if you don’t end up reading more than your set minimum, it still feels good to absorb some pages per day, and it can be satisfying to add such a healthy habit into your routine. I find that, especially when I am enjoying a book, reading ten pages (or more) per night is very relaxing and just gets mee ready to go to sleep. I find myself rushing through the rest of my night routine so that I can get cozy in my pajamas and sheets and curl up with my book, reading until I get drowsy. Romanticizing this habit has definitely helped me become more consistent in reading every day, and giving yourself grace is a lot easier when you know you’re at least doing something every night. Ten pages may not be much at all, but it’s better than zero! Keep that in mind when you feel discouraged!
Mix formats:
Mixing formats is another great way to implement reading into your life What I mean by this is to introduce more than one method of reading into your day to keep the task interesting and achievable. If you want to read, but you have to commute forty minutes to and from work or school, listening to an audiobook might keep you interested in the book so that you want to pick up the physical copy when you get home. Maybe consider mixing e-books with physical copies to try and decide what form you like better. I know a lot of my friends have a Kindle and use that over physical copies of books depending on the scenario. They might use a kindle in low lighting, but they prefer a physical book on the beach. You can also combine different formats to spice up your reading. Listening to an audiobook while reading the book can make you feel more invested in the story with the voice in your ear but can help you stay focused as your eyes are on the page rather than on the dishes. There are many ways to mix and match reading formats to implement it more frequently in your day, and experimenting with this idea can be an implementation tool in itself.
Make it social:
The last (and maybe most fun) tip to implement reading into your life is to make reading a social event. This can be done in many ways. As many of you know, I have a book club with a few of my reader friends, and it has been such a fun way to try out new genres and have people to discuss what I am reading with. One of the worst things that can happen when reading is that you really want to talk about that book but have no one to talk about it with. Making reading a social event can eliminate this problem. Book clubs are a great way to get you outside of your comfort zone when it comes to reading as well, as your friends may want to try something that you wouldn’t necessarily gravitate towards. Social media is a great way to implement a social aspect into your reading as well. Many different social media platforms have space for readers. They even have specific names for the book side of social media platforms. There’s booktok, booktube, bookstagrams, and more. Facebook groups can help you get connected to people who love reading just as much as you do, and Goodreads can allow you to discuss your thoughts on books with other readers.
That’s It:
Let me know if you guys have any other reading implementation tips, and if you try any of these! I know all of these tips won’t work for every single person, but I hope somewhere in this article you found one tip that stood out to you as a possible method to increase your reading. Don’t forget to read the blog all about reading goals below!