Sign in with Facebook
13 Ways Book Lovers Make More Time for Reading
So many books, so little time? Every reader's been there. We asked on Facebook and Twitter: How do you make more time for reading? From savvy tips ("Listen to audiobooks while you drive!") to cheeky suggestions ("Just don't sleep!"), these are the ways your fellow book lovers fit reading into their busy lives.
1. "Throughout the day I play a little game. I read a chapter (just one) and then I get up and clean something. Example: Go and sweep the kitchen floor. Then read a chapter. Then fold a load of clothes and put them away. Then go read another chapter. I can do this all day. It works great for me!" (Shannon Strickland-Brown)
2. "I always carry a book with me, so if I have to wait—like at a doctor's office—I can get some reading in." (Brigitta M.)
3. "Get called for jury duty! Ha! Waiting can take hours. Get prepared to catch up on your reading." (Elizabeth Thayer)
4. "I take the bus to work instead of my car, which saves me money and gives me lots of time to relax and read!" (Michelle Garcia Ortiz)
5. "Well, I stay up late reading, which has lead to a mild sleeping disorder…but, guys, books are worth it!" (Kyushu Arora)
6. "I wake up a little earlier each day and enjoy a book with breakfast." (Kaitlynn Scribner)
7. "I am a huge fan of audiobooks. I listen to audiobooks while driving, taking a walk, cooking, and traveling…. Audiobooks offer huge opportunities to make the most of your time while you are doing something else." (Emile Armanious)
8. "Instead of watching TV before bed, I read! You sleep better that way, too. (Raquel N. DeSouza)
9. "I actually 'plan' my reading time each day and night. Even if I have a hectic day, I schedule at least 30 minutes for myself." (Susan Master)
10. "It's not the safest way to make time, but I read while walking to work." (Eliza viola Legault)
11. "I've actually called in sick when I've been reading something particularly good!" (Angela Free)
12. "I watch TV a LOT. However, it finally dawned on me that the commercial breaks these days are much longer than they used to be. So I keep my book with me when I'm watching TV, and I can get several pages read during commercial breaks. I average about 30-40 pages per night this way!" (Sara Foster)
13. "Get old. Retire from your job. Presto! More reading time!" (Linda White)
How do you make more time for reading? Share your tips in the comments!
(Top image credit: Beauty and the Beast)
Comments Showing 251-300 of 319 (319 new)
At work I read curriculum books, and books for four year olds. And books on lessons. At home I read anything and everything. Usually a physical book and a book on my kindle. And a book on my I pad using the kindle app . Now the time is the challenge, I read every night and any break I can get. Now I'm learning how to put audiobooks on my I pod.
Absolutely love #13 ! Getting up a bit earlier to read or I try to read before going to bed.
I take train to work. So i read While travelling . Then during lunch, tea breaks., then i Have kindle installed in my laptop, mobile and laptop . so every second i get free i switch back to kindle app. And ofcourse late nights and just one more chapters
I don't have a TV. Since I quit watching TV I have so much more time to read. I listen to audiobooks all the time when my hands are busy. I even listen when I shower or brush my teeth. I think I'm an addict, the other day my tablet's battery died on me and I didn't know what to do with myself while walking home (5 mins away from home).
So many good suggestions! I live in China and have to exit the country every 60 days to reactivate my visa. Taking the 8 hour bullet train tomorrow and looking forward to reading lots and lots of stories to pass time!
I try and make time everyday to read. At least an hour or so every day before I got to sleep. Plus I like to read in the bathroom & while a drink my morning coffee. Even more so when it's a book I'm seriously loving, like "Fangirl"
I also just started listening to audiobooks while coloring and doing housework. It's really gonna help me get even more books read.
Plus This guy that reads "Harry Potter" is absolutely fabulous. He does a PERFECT Hagrid voice :D
I can take about two hours from commute each day back and fort. I take half an hour at lunch time eating in the other half. I can squeeze one more hour at night, maybe two if I'm not too tired before bed. It gives me about 4h or 4h30 per day on a normal weekday, plus work and personal life.I can get much more time at weekends, if I don't have extra work to do or some family appointments.
Kelly wrote: "Skip the shower and take a bath instead, presto! instant reading time. Just don't drop it."Or get a waterproof bluetooth speaker and listen to audio books in the shower.
Laira wrote: "Never, that is impressive how much you read, i am jealous of you!!! "It's not that impressive. I read because it's fun. Now, if I were exercising that often, or volunteering for a worthy cause that many hours a month, that would be something to brag about. I just like to read. ;-)
I listen to audiobooks while driving, while cooking, while shoveling snow, raking leaves, and cleaning... That's in addition to my basics: reading while waiting anywhere and reading before bed.
Audiobooks are great for house work or yard work - I've painted countless rooms in our house while listening - and sometimes actually keep me more from getting distracted when I'm doing "mindless" tasks at work. Some people listen to music to stay on task, but I'd much rather listen to a good story!I also think smartphones have made it so much easier to sneak in a bit of reading in spare moments - I always have a few ebooks going, and I can always buy a new one (or borrow one from my library's app) at a moment's notice. Makes me actually look forward to waiting in line or being early for a doctor's appointment :)
My office has a small fitness center so I read as I walk on the treadmill or ride the stationary bike during my lunch breaks. I get to work out my body and mind and I feel refreshed and ready to tackle the rest of the day.
I love how one person said to read in bed and it helps them go to sleep. I CANNOT read in bed! Before I know it, it is 4am! Reading stimulates my brain too much! :) I nanny two little ones, I read when they are down for a nap! 2 whole hours of reading time! :)
I'll buy a train ticket and travel up the Hudson River. To me, nothing is more relaxing. Set the timer on my phone so I don't miss my stop, and boom - no distractions. Sometimes I'll take the subway out to Coney Island - but the subways are often filled with noise and entertainers, so it's a last resort.
W.I. wrote: "I've tried an audiobook while driving but I found that ..."I don't remember things I hear NEARLY as well as things I see, so I prefer to listen to audio books that I have already read. Since I reread books often, this works well for me.
Kathleen wrote: "I love how one person said to read in bed and it helps them go to sleep. I CANNOT read in bed! Before I know it, it is 4am! Reading stimulates my brain too much!"Exactly! I've stopped reading in bed because the next thing I know, I've finished the book and it's time to get up!
Definitely 2, 5 & 8. I always have a book with me "just in case." I read on my lunch break, when I get one, when I'm alone at a restaurant, in the evening, in bed at night, instead of doing housework. That last gives me lots of time for reading! I read while waiting for appointments, when I should be walking or working in the garden, while eating breakfast, and when I should be getting ready for work. I don't watch tv, just a movie very occasionally - I'd rather read. I suspect I have an addiction. Days need to be longer so there's more time for reading.
Gina wrote: "...sometimes I read through an entire TV show instead of looking at it."I'd usually rather read than watch TV, in any case.
I read all the time: while riding in the car, during breaks at work, while eating, instead of doing chores... Even when my kids were babies, there was always SOME time to read (but not much!).
And I love my Kindle! When I finish a book at work, I have more to choose from!
As a teacher, this is something i teach to my students--I teach them to carve out more reading time in every possible nook of their lives. And, I do this my modeling my own reading. 1. I listen to audiobooks in the car and on walks.
2. I read from books of poetry as I blow-dry my hair each morning.
3. When I arrive to my classroom as I ready things for the day, I continue listening to an audiobook, or I listen to various webcasts and radio shows about reading and books.
4. I read for 10 of the 20 minutes I give my students for independent reading. Then, I conduct independent reading conferences with students. (This is a book I read only at school.)
5. I devote 15 minutes of my 85-minute prep period at school to reading from a professional development text.
6. Transitional periods an other lulls in faculty meeting--enough said!
7. At home, I read before bed each evening.
8. I read while I'm cooking and stirring things or doing any other mindless waiting that's needed for cooking.
9. I read during commercial breaks.
10. I keep a book loaded on my phone to read while I'm waiting in lines, anywhere.
Alex wrote: "The commercial trick for sure! I do this all the time. And sometimes I'll get sucked into the book so I forget to unmute the television."Me too!
Don wrote: "Fabian wrote: "Helen wrote: "My trick is to have several books 'on the go' at once. One in my handbag to read in queues or waiting rooms or whatever; one in my work bag for tea breaks and lunch bre..."To keep my book plots separate, I try to have totally different books going. Right now, my hardback is Stephen King, my audiobook for my car commute is Terry Pratchett, and my Playaway (portable book for exercising) is Flannery O'Connor. Not much chance of any of those having the same plot!
Helen wrote: "My trick is to have several books 'on the go' at once. One in my handbag to read in queues or waiting rooms or whatever; one in my work bag for tea breaks and lunch breaks; one by my bed for readin..."I do this as well. Currently, not working so I have 1 by my bedside and one in the computer room. I play an online game so flight times and load screens are my reading time. I currently have 2 bedside books because an author has graciously allowed me to read a book before release so had to put the other on hold.
Maria wrote: "I love audiobooks. I listen while I exercise, and sometimes while I'm at work. I carry a physical book with me wherever I go, just in case."I listen when I mow the yard. I forget what I'm doing so it doesn't seem as daunting unless the book ends, then I'm disappointed lol
Given the choice between watching TV ( there's very rarely anything good on worth watching!) or
reading,I'll always choose the latter!
I sometimes come home from work,boil the kettle
and settle down on the couch and read!!
Such a simple pleasure but well deserved!!
Helen wrote: "My trick is to have several books 'on the go' at once. One in my handbag to read in queues or waiting rooms or whatever; one in my work bag for tea breaks and lunch breaks; one by my bed for readin..."
How do you keep trasck of all of the different books? My limit is 2.
You make sure all the books are different. So, they can't blend. Am reading a book on the Black Plague, one about the Southwest, A Tale of Two Cities and Portable Veblen. They're not going to merge into each others.
Erin wrote: "No matter what kind of day I've had, no matter how exhausted I am, I read once I'm in bed. It may only be a couple chapters; it may only be a few pages if it's already three in the morning. But dan..."I also make myself read each night in bed before going to sleep. Depending on the day I've had, I'll tell myself to read 5 pages, or a chapter, whatever I can handle.
Barbara wrote: "You make sure all the books are different. So, they can't blend. Am reading a book on the Black Plague, one about the Southwest, A Tale of Two Cities and Portable Veblen. They're not going to merge..." Though occasionally, I get frustrated to finish books. Where I am now.
I read on my treadmill at 5 am. Exercising and Reading.
My Paperwhite is always with me, so I read while waiting in line at the grocery and any slow-moving drive-thru lines.
cometstrike wrote: "Helen, you are the coolest person ever."I know right lol
I keep a bookwith me always, in my car and bag.I read whenever I wait for some service.
i tend to get books in big loads, so one moment I'll be scraping the bottom of the barrel for books to read, the next I'll have, on average, about 10. i carry around at least one wherever i go.
I always carry a book where ever I go, even to work.... I work in admissions in a hospital...so between the patients rushing in I read, and I've stopped watching television, I find I rather prefer to read. I am so tempted to try #11
as a general rule, i stay away from audio books. i do recognize that they're an awesome way to 'read' while working, but i find that if i listen to them for more than a few minutes at a time, i zone out, and the next thing i know, i've missed 10 pages. give me paper and ink anytime! :)
Charmaine wrote: "I always carry a book where ever I go, even to work.... I work in admissions in a hospital...so between the patients rushing in I read, and I've stopped watching television, I find I rather prefer ..."#11 sounds like the right way to go. #13 as well. retiring as a teenager? what could be better?
I have insomnia a lot, never have a hard time finding reading time. Also I do not watch TV, except for the news. Sometimes reading will however keep me awake as well. Drives my husband crazy. And yes--ereaders are great!! No need for lights.
Gigi Ann wrote: "I'm #13. I retired, and now I can read as much as I want."I'm really looking forward to retiring so I can read more. Just 8 more months, but who's counting?
I recently retired which gives me more time to read now. I have a goal to read more books each year and I also carry a book with me in case I have to wait anywhere.
I have always set a goal of reading at least 50 pages a day and read whenever I get a chance. Find that sometimes I will read 200 pages a day and I always read in bed for a couple of hours. Always read only 1 book at a time. So far this year I have read 45 books but I am also a card maker and scrapbooker so that cuts into my reading time. The past 30 years I have kept a book diary in which I record every book I have read (broken up by years and months) and I find it interesting to go back and see what my reading patterns have been.
Nancy wrote: "I have always set a goal of reading at least 50 pages a day and read whenever I get a chance. Find that sometimes I will read 200 pages a day and I always read in bed for a couple of hours. Always ..."I like your idea of a reading diary/journal. I do keep a journal, but don't include my books. Maybe it's time to.
Often I feel talked at by the television, radio or even people. It is then I switch the talk off--perhaps softly play relaxing classical background music--and read. The trick is to be in touch with that feeling and do something about it. I am retired and that facilitates my ability to do this.
Nancy wrote: "So far this year I have read 45 books but I am also a card maker and scrapbooker so that cuts into my reading time."I'm a card maker, too! I'm trying to decide whether or not to make cards for the troops again this year. Last year I made a few hundred, but I'm not sure I'll have time this year.
I read while I eat (and then often for a while afterwards :-).I read while I'm on the treadmill: I make the font on my e-reader large enough for me to read while I'm walking or running, and the time and distance go much faster.
I don't like most TV or movies, I don't have TV nor do I watch streaming video--I read instead, and that's a lot of time right there.
And I'm with Helen--multiple books on the go at once, everywhere I sit down or might have time, so there's always at least one in my bag, several by the bed, by the sofa, on the dining room table, etc.
One thing I disagree with, though: I generally don't like audio books. They don't go fast enough (although I happened to listen first to a reading of Beryl Markham's "West with the Night" that was so well read that I tried several more audio books before realizing that that particular one was an exception.)
Amazing how much easier it is to make time for reading than to make time for cleaning.
Katee wrote: "I, er, I read on the toilet. It's the one moment of the day wherein my brain can't say, "You should be studying!" because there just isn't space in my bathroom to hold a textbook. But there is spac..."That's how I get through books that I might otherwise not read -- currently it's a biography of my state's most revered past governor, but I've read dense horticulture books, books on death and dying, etc.
I'm with those who have several on the go! That way your mind can digest the subject matter of perhaps 'meatier' topics, and have a bit of light relief with something else. Oh, and as a wise teacher once said of me, 'she'll never be lonely with a book'...so true - you always have company and you always have something to talk about.
I read when hubby and son are asleep. I usually get to sleep about 2-3am. That's enough time, right?!?!? LOL
Katee wrote: "I, er, I read on the toilet. It's the one moment of the day wherein my brain can't say, "You should be studying!" because there just isn't space in my bathroom to hold a textbook. But there is spac..."We all do this Katee. You are just brave enough to admit it! :-)
This is exactly what I do, books everywhere , it is amazing how many books you can go through a year in just those few minutes here and there .