personal development

How to read more

September 25, 2021Rabea

You hear all the time that people miss the days in their teens when they read two books a week and that they don’t read anymore. The correlation to social media doesn’t seem to come to their mind. That’s why I figured I’d write a little guide on how to read more again.

Reduce your screen time

Reduce time on apps you read on a lot. Twitter for example. It used to be my favorite platform and now I can see it as the toxic place it is. Maybe Instagram also takes up a lot of time for you. I have a time limit on apps and an app that blocks me at certain times of the day that I assigned the apps to. It has made a big difference in both my sleep routine and reading goals.

Figure out preferences

There isn’t just one way to read. There are physical books, eReaders, reading apps and audio books. If you haven’t tried them all you can’t really know if your reading type might have changed. I thought books were my way of reading until I started using a reading app and placed it on my mainpage. That way I actually consider reading more easily and reduce the friction between me and starting.

Use 5 sec rule to start

Counting down and just doing it is a thing people with ADHD have adopted to push through executive dysfunction, but it also helps when you want to build a habit. Sometimes reading crosses your mind or you have a reminder on your phone to do it and you just have to count down and do it so you can get in the groove. If you don’t feel like it after five minutes, you can stop.

Make it a habit

Make it a consistent thing. It doesn’t have to be daily, but maybe a weekend thing. It could be a morning routine habit, evening routine habit or simply the thing you go to when you feel a certain way. I for example have a very specific type of exhausted but bored where I’m much more likely to open my app and read a chapter or two. Those little moments add up too.

Write down your favorite quotes & thoughts

Have a little place where you collect your favorite quotes from the book or pick an app that has that function. Also prepare to write down your thoughts on the book, either in a notebook or on an app like Goodreads. That way you don’t just read for yourself, but know exactly what you can recommend to others when they need something specific to read. It also helps you figure out what books you can’t stand.

Take your time

Please, take your time to figure out which books you actually enjoy & stop setting expectations for how many books to finish in a year. Once I stopped setting reading goals I actually started getting into reading again. And if goals motivate you, set a lower goal so you can reach it and exceed it. Mine usually is 6 books a year and if I can get to 10 or 12 that’s nice but also doesn’t disappoint me when I don’t.

Those were my tips on how to read more. This is what helped me and the people I’ve talked to and you can add anything that helped you if you want to.
If you wanna work on habits beyond just your reading habits I have a personal development plan in my resource library that you can access by signing up for free below. Or you can do a deep dive into your life with my workbook to clear the path for your habits.