Why do you want to read more? Or do you want to read enough?
With every new year, I think most of us tell ourselves that we will read more this year. This will be the year when we become one of those book readers who complete insane reading goals by completing hundreds and hundreds of books by December.
I know when I finish a book in 2 to 3 days, I make sure everyone knows it. ‘Oh yeah, this book was amazing, I read it in 2 days. You should read this because I read it in 2 days', and I will annoyingly repeat. A big part of that is because of the sheer satisfaction and sense of accomplishment you feel when finishing a book quickly. Consequentially, this means that I will move on to the next book sooner than expected. At that moment in time, I feel this superpower - I am The Great Reader. This quickly dissipates when I do pick up the next book, and it takes me forever to finish. Even though I might be loving the book that I picked up, I am disappointed and utterly aggrieved at how slow I am.
Preparing for this year, I started looking for inspiration on how to read more. I started reading tips from people who have read over 300 books a year. I started researching ways I could do better. But, amongst all this, I started to ask myself why I feel like I have failed because I only managed to read about 1-2 books a month.
Why should I be reading more?
I think we all fall into this need to do better or compete with those we see doing more. Instead of looking for ways to read more, maybe we need to look for ways to read enough and read for value.
Quality over quantity.
This blog is written by someone who doesn’t read much i.e. compared to some and maybe even most. I am someone who may not have read enough last year but has fallen in love with reading. Someone who has read some extremely valuable books. Someone who is finding ways to read enough.
Become Polyamorous
There is no room for monogamy when it comes to reading. One of the best ways to stay consistent is by reading books that fit your mood. Having multiple books on the go is the best way. Why commit to a relationship with one book without knowing if it’s for you?
Date your books
Take yourself out with your books, and make it an event. Visiting a new café or a library to allocate some time to read. Cliché but true - give yourself that main character moment. This can even be done at home, make yourself a lovely meal and finish with a hot drink and a cosy read. By making reading feel special, you are avoiding it feeling like a chore.
Replace and substitute
If you add up all the time you spend reading in a day, this includes every type of reading e.g. social media posts, articles, news etc. You may notice a very clear pattern. You aren’t reading enough books.
It might be that even if you are a regular reader, the percentage of book reading to social media reading disproportionately leaning towards mindlessly scrolling on your phone. OK, I’ll correct myself here, I can’t be going around saying words like ‘your phone’ when I am equally if not more guilty of this thoughtless crime.
By downloading local library apps, Kindle or Apple Books, try to substitute and replace social media time with reading. Again, even if it means you do that only once or twice a day, by the end of the day you may have unintentionally read a few more pages than you normally would.
Finger tracking tip by Howard Berg
Howard Berg broke the World record for being the fastest reader in the 90s, reading more than 25,000 words in a minute. In Max Joseph’s video ‘How to read more books in the Golden Age of Content’, Berg recommends following the words on the page with your fingers as fast as you can comprehend the sentence to increase your reading speed by up to 10-20%.
However, beyond this, he also says (despite being an insanely fast reader), that when he reads for pleasure, he reads intentionally. He reads slowly and with the purpose to relax.
Read widely than ‘what should be read’ by Dr Ruth J Simmons
Dr Simmons was the first black president of an Ivy League school in the US. She talks about reading in Max Joseph’s video as forced meditation. To stop and reflect, and read more widely rather than 'what you should be reading'.
Whilst I believe that reading popular books can be a great way to get into reading (they are popular for a reason). I also believe that by reading more widely you can become more explorative.
Last year, I read a lot of books that were incredibly interesting and totally random. For context on who I am, I studied marketing, and books I typically read are on self-development, the human condition, business and some novels. Last year, I picked up books on topics I always thought were interesting but knew little about, topics like astrophysics and space, interior design, colour theory, and philosophy.
Read widely, and read about things you know a lot about but also those you know a little about.
Start small and easy
This refers to both the amount you read in a day and/or even the length of the books you are reading. By reducing the effort required to meet a goal or create a new habit, you are more likely to stick to it. Even if it means starting by reading one page a day, and gradually increasing the number of pages when you feel that it’s right.
I recently watched Jack Edwards’ The best short books you can read in one day’ for some inspiration on small but mighty books to get you out of your reading slump.
Ask yourself ‘why do you want to read’
Coming back to the 'why' is always a great way to motivate yourself. Writing this down can be a physical reminder. Rather than focusing on reading more, think about the ‘enough’.
For me reading enough is about consistency, a little every day. It’s about reading books that make me think, inspire and engage me. It’s about enjoying, relaxing and learning (rather than burning through the pages). Books can be expensive! I want to savour and love, rather than consume erratically.
Good luck with your reading goals! Enjoy it, and fall in love with it. Don’t compare yourself to others. Read enough, not more.
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