Unsolicited Tips On Reading More
How to read a few more pages every day
There are just too many books to read and too little time to read them.
If you are someone who feels this way, then I am sure you would have tried and explored different ways to read more. As an avid reader of books, I constantly look for ways to read more and thought I could share some practices and tips that I have tried that help me to read more (Honorary mention — my nonexistent social life).
1. Set yourself a reading target
Setting a reading target is a good way to motivate ourselves to read more. Goodreads Challenge is an annual book reading challenge that hundreds of millions of readers worldwide participate in every year (217,501,676 readers have pledged to complete their Goodreads challenge this year, as on 7th of June, 2020), where readers set target of number of books to complete during the year.
You will be surprised to see how much a little bit of positive peer pressure can help you read more.
2. Read multiple books simultaneously
This might sound counter-intuitive to many. But, from experience, I can say that reading more than one book can help in overcoming the slump that many readers feel when they are 20 to 30% into a book. Reading 2 books, preferably a fiction and a non-fiction (or 2 different genres of fiction or non-fiction) would help overcome the monotonicity that one inevitably hits when reading a not-so-small book.
3. Read on the go
If you are an ardent lover of paperbacks or hardcovers, I am sure, you would be sceptical about what I am going to suggest here. Believe me, I was a sceptic myself before I tried e-books.
Yes, give e-book readers a shot! You will be surprised to know how user-friendly they are. I have been using Kindle Reader for 4 years now and I am pretty sure, I would continue using it in the future as well. The pros of using an e-book reader are so many and easily outnumber the only con — that it simply is not a physical book made of paper. As someone who loves reading physical books, I understand the importance of feeling the paper on your fingers, turning pages and taking in the aroma of paper to the whole experience of reading. I still buy and read paperbacks when I feel like taking a break from my Kindle.
Some of the pros of e-readers (Kindle, in this case):
- Has the memory capacity to store hundreds of books
- Comes with an offline dictionary. Long-press a word to get the meaning!
- Highlight favourite quotes, important texts, add comments. And all of your highlights across books get stored as a separate notepad in your kindle. Isn’t it amazing?
- Start a book on your Kindle Reader, continue on your Kindle mobile app, or on your personal computer. Kindle cloud syncs your progress across devices.
Okay, that is enough free marketing for Amazon!
So, you might ask, how will this help me read more. So, firstly, carrying an e-book reader is easier than carrying physical books with you. So, more chances of you to pull it out and read a few pages when you are commuting, or sitting through a boring lecture. Secondly, the ability to just take out your phone and sneak in a few paragraphs of reading is just the kind of practice that is going to help in reading more!
4. Try audio books
If you are a purist, I know you are going “Now, this is stretching it too much. E-books, audio books, what next?!” at this very moment. Well, I was not a big fan of audiobooks until I tried it. The sheer amount of content that you can consume through audiobooks is the only factor that is enough for a reader to try them. And the best part is audiobooks do not cannibalise physical / electronic books. Audiobooks are ideal for listening to when you are commuting, going for a relaxed evening stroll, cooking or doing any activity that is repetitive in nature and does not demand too much of your attention.
So, essentially, all of the content you are consuming through audiobooks are extra reading you are getting done during the time that is not suitable for reading.
Of course, not all books are enjoyable to listen to. Some books are meant to be poured over, with a cup of tea (coffee, wine? Okay, your call) by your side. I, personally, enjoy listening to memoirs, biographies and not-so-content-heavy business books.
5. Make reading a part of your routine
This is probable the most difficult to accomplish, particularly if you are a new reader, but making reading a part of your routine would go a long way in helping you read more. Set some time aside to do nothing but just read. No social media, no instant messages, no distractions but only you and your read. Wow, just typing that was low-key therapeutic!
So, that’s all folks. If you know any other practices that can help in reading more, please share them in the comments.
Happy reading, everyone!
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one.”
― George R.R. Martin, A Dance with Dragons
