When was the last time you thought to yourself, “I wish I had time to read that?” Or gotten to the end of the year only to realize that you haven’t hit your reading goal? If you’re trying to find ways to fit more reading into your life — whether it’s a newspaper, books or audiobooks — we have some tips.
Set Real Goals
Want to know the fastest way to ruin a resolution? Make it impossible to achieve. Guaranteed failure often makes people unhappy about even hitting the goal partway. Look at how many books you read last year and maybe add a few on.
Quit Bad Books
Don’t make it so that you always have to finish books before moving on to the next. That’s a great way to guarantee you stall out on reading for months at a time. Not every book needs to be for you.
Read What You Enjoy
Look, if you want to try out the post-apocalyptic young adult genre for the first time, more power to you. If you keep trying to read non-fiction because you’re embarrassed by your love for romance — just get the Harlequin.
Bring Books Along
You never know when you’ll be stuck waiting somewhere for longer than you thought. Instead of mindlessly scrolling social media, have a book on hand. You can even have books or audiobooks right on your phone.
Rearrange Your Free Time
If you’re really struggling to find the time to read, borrow some time from another hobby or downtime activity. Like the aforementioned social media scrolling.
Get Competitive
Join a reading challenge or set one up among friends, family or coworkers. Let that competitive spirit help you hit your goal.
Make a Reading Nook
Do you always find yourself getting distracted when you sit down to read? Try turning your chair around to face a window and make sure you have a table next to it for something to drink and a snack. This way, you won’t be distracted constantly.
Build Your Library
Ask others for books as gifts, either ones that you know you want to read or ones that they think you’ll like. If you’re not sure about certain genres, get one book to try.
Skim (Sometimes)
You don’t always need to read every word as if it’s Shakespeare. Skimming is still reading 99% of the time.
Get Excited About the Next Book
Have your next book lined up and ready to go. This way, you’ll be excited to finish (or ditch) the one you’re currently reading so that you can move on to the next.
