Struggling to Find More Reading Time? Here Are 5 Tips That Might Help

You have heard a lot of people say that reading is highly beneficial for you. Of course it is! As English poet Joseph Addison said, “Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body.” But finding the time and energy read books can be challenging, especially with our fast-paced lives, continually juggling tasks and rushing to meet deadlines. In case you want to read more, but feel like you just don’t have the time, here are 5 tips that might make you want to reconsider.

1.      The Power of Habit –

Habits are extremely powerful tools, and when you want to inculcate something in your life forever, there is no better way than to make it a habit. You take a bath, have breakfast and sleep every day, almost involuntarily, because of habit. Similarly, if you associate your reading time, however limited, to any these of your existing habits, chances are that you’ll involuntarily reach for a book every time you perform these activities. So set your reading time after breakfast, or before going to bed, or anything that works for you, and let the power of repetition do the magic.

2.      Listen to Audiobooks –

The best thing about audiobooks, apart from being inclusive of the needs of a larger section of people, is that they enable you to multi task. You can listen to an audiobook while driving, cleaning or doing laundry, and save yourself a whole bunch of time for the same experience as reading a physical book. Plus, audiobooks are cheaper as compared to physical books. You get access to unlimited books at subscription prices lower than the prices that will not dig a hole in your pocket.

3.      Find Out a Genre You Enjoy –

Here is s trick. Figure out what genre of movies, or TV shows do you find yourself watching the most. Chances are that you will enjoy books of the same genre. So, instead of giving in to “trending” and hyped books over the internet, which will eventually curb your reading interest, do genre-based research on books that you will actually enjoy. That way, no matter how busy you are, you will always manage to find time for something you actually enjoy.

4.      Find A Community –

Remember that you are not alone. There is a wonderful community of readers out there who would love to share their love for reading with you. You can find multiple book clubs and groups all over social media, filled with people just like you. If you are struggling to read, being around people and engaging in a community of readers might help you get motivated to pick up a book. You can find these book clubs on Facebook, Instagram or you can even join Goodreads, a platform where you can connect with and get recommendations from millions of readers.

5.      A Book Over a Screen –

The next time you find yourself reaching for your phone to check social media, pick up a book instead. A study conducted by CMR, commissioned by handset maker Vivo, showed that an average person spends about 4.9 hours on their smartphone, as of 2019. Admit it or not, end up spending a major fraction of our time staring at screens and scrolling through social media. Slow but steady conversion of screen time to reading time can prove to be helpful in establishing a long-term reading habit. It will give you a break from sneaking into what’s going on in people’s lives, and help in investing more time in personal growth, improving your mental health.

Lastly, don’t be too hard on yourself and take breaks every now and then, whenever you feel like. Remember that developing a reading habit from scratch is a slow and steady process, not something to be achieved overnight. Reading should be freeing, relaxing and enriching, not a burden. So be gentle on yourself and take baby steps towards your goal. Hope this article helped in kick starting your reading journey. Follow the blog for more!

 Happy Reading!