How to Read More Books
I read 81 books last year. I had a goal of 100. I also wrote three novels (Books 2-4 of the Age of Dawn) while holding down a full-time job in IT. I’m not saying this to pat my own back. I wish I could have read more, but I also don’t have kids. I know people who read 200+ books a year. I also know people who can hardly manage to read a book a quarter. This post is for those of you who want to read more, but aren’t sure how exactly to do it.
How did I manage to do it?
There are two things I do that have made a huge difference in the amount of reading(listening) I do every year.
1) The first is audiobooks. There are so many little spaces of time where you could either be reading or listening to an Audiobook. Cleaning, walking the dog, bike riding, working out, weeding the garden. If you’re serious about reading and educating yourself then you will make the “sacrifice” to listen to an audiobook rather than listening to music or anything else that you might consider more enjoyable. I am torn between having times of quiet contemplation and learning new stuff. That’s a decision you’ll have to make. During the weekend, I’ll keep my phone in my pocket with the headphones plugged in. Whenever I’m going to do something where there might be some time gaps, I’ll throw in my headphones and start downloading a book into my brain. It’s pretty damn to close to the Matrix.
2) Waiting in line at Starbucks/bus stop/cafeteria? Open your phone and read on your Kindle rather than checking Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, etc. It’s amazing how much time people waste on social media when they could be reading. If you’re on Facebook for twenty minutes a day, that’s at least a full novel a month you could’ve read.
Just like writing my biggest tip for reading everyday is to TIME IT. Everyday when I set out to read I put a 30 minute timer on my phone and do nothing else but read until the buzzer goes off. This way I can guarantee I have carved out at least 30 minutes a day to read.
If you give these tips a shot, please let me know, I’d love to hear it. What do you do to read more books?
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