Happy Sunday, my friends! For today’s post, I want to give you some tips on how to easily read more books! My friends are always asking me how I’m able to read as much or how I’m able to fit reading into my tight schedule. Therefore, I want to give you some practical advice on how you can fit reading into your everyday routine. Let’s dive in!
1. Audiobooks
I support audiobooks so much! However, in the past, I used to have an attitude and be very pretentious towards them. I used to think that if you listened to an audiobook, you weren’t really “reading.” But then I asked myself this…what exactly is reading? If you think about it, reading is a lot of things. It’s discovering new worlds, it’s following storylines, and it’s learning about characters. Audiobooks are essentially all of the things physical books give you, except the only thing is you don’t have a physical copy of the books in your hands.
Now, when it comes to listening to audiobooks, I have two apps that I use religiously! They are called Hoopla and Libby and let me tell you, they are incredible! You can download either of the two apps and you can access free audiobooks and e-books through a library database. All you need is a library card, which you can easily get free online, and then simply attach that library card to either of those apps, and then you’re able to get audio/e-books for free.
The reason I love audiobooks so much is that they’re easy for on the go. I drive a lot, therefore, I love that I’m able to listen to an audiobook on my way to work, to the grocery store, to my friends’ houses, etc. Not to mention, I can find so much time in my day to listen to an audiobook, not just when I’m driving. Sometimes with a physical book, you have to be in the right setting/mood to want to read an actual book. However, with an audiobook, you can listen to it when you’re cleaning, doing laundry, walking your dog, etc. You would honestly not imagine how much time you have in your day that can be spent productively listening to a book!
Related Post: “5 Productive Things Successful Women Do On Their Commute”
2. Don’t read books that are not interesting to you
Gosh, this is a big tip and one I struggled with for a while. Don’t read books that you think you have to read because it will “make you a better person” or “make you smarter,” read books that are interesting to you and only you. Books that you think will be captivating. Additionally, if you start to get bored while reading a book, it’s OKAY to stop. I’ve had to remind myself of this again and again.
Now obviously, there are those few great books where the first 100 pages or so start off slow or the setup is a little boring and then it gets really good afterward. If that’s the case, totally work through those types of books but if you’re reading something that absolutely doesn’t interest you or makes it feel like a chore to read it, then don’t finish it. Throw it aside and start something different! Don’t read something you know you’re not going to like just because you feel like you “should” be reading it!
3. Goodreads
The Goodreads app/website is fantastic because it helps keep you accountable and it allows you to set a yearly reading goal. For example, my 2021 reading goal is to read 40 books. I set that on Goodreads and now there’s a little percentage bar that goes up/gets filled in every time I finish a book. That helps keep me on track with my goal and inspired since I can see my reading goal get closer to becoming accomplished after every book.
Goodreads also helps me find new books that I’m interested in reading. For instance, I might see that a person I’m following just gave their latest read a 5-star review and if I’m interested in reading that same book, I can add it to my want to read list. Or, say there is a book that I saw at a book store that I’m thinking about purchasing, I can go onto Goodreads and read reviews about it to see if it’s worth buying. If you don’t have the app, I 100% recommended downloading it!
4. Make time for reading
Now I this one may sound annoying and obvious, however, it’s probably my biggest time out of these four. If reading is important to you, you need to make it a priority in your life. For example, you want to read one book a week, then you need to find time in your day to finish one book a week. If it’s important to you to read more, then you need to find the time to read more. For me, I incorporate reading into my daily routine. Every day on my way to and from work (a 40-minute drive both ways) I listen to an audiobook.
Additionally, every morning when I am walking my dogs, I like to listen to an audiobook. At night, is when I like to make time to sit down and read a physical copy of a book. So typically, I’m reading about two books at once since audiobooks make it so easy for me to fit in an extra book.
All in all, it just helps to set a specific time to schedule in reading, and I find that it especially helps when you have a go-to routine! For example, if you find that you spend 5 hours a night with free time and you spend it on movies, or social media, or writing, or whatever it is, you can always shave off one of those hours and dedicate it to reading instead. Not that I think you should give up anything that you love! It’s just time management for when you’re going to do those things. I still watch Netflix, I still workout in the evenings, I still hang out with friends after work, I still get time to do the things I love, but then I also block out a time for reading each day. Whether that’s only in the morning or evening or when I’m going to or from work. No matter what it is, if something’s important to you, you just have to make time for it.
Those are my 4 tips on how to easily read more books during the course of a week, month, year, etc. Whatever works best for you and your schedule! Let me know in the comments what tip helped you the most! Plus, I would love to hear what book or books your currently reading right now! Or any suggestions on what book I should pick up next!
Have a beautiful day!
xo, Cydney
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