This year I’m creating a system of habits that helps me read more. There were two primary actions to beginning this new system that will help you establish the habit too!
You’ve probably picked up my love of reading if you’ve been following my content for very long. I even made an entire video about my favorite books and note-taking.
The first was to remove distracting apps from my phone. Going over my screen time reports it’s easy to see that I (and probably you) have at least 30 minutes a day going to social media that could be spent reading.
Reading is the perfect way to fill in the time you’re used to spending on social media or other distracting apps. It’s immersive, interesting, and engages your mind and creativity in a way that apps can’t hope to do.
The second kickoff action was to carry a book with me at all (or most) times. For example: a couple months ago my brother Mark recommended the The Way of Kings to me. I hadn’t read a fantasy book in quite a while, but when I like one it’s really easy to read a lot.
Book one The Way of Kings is close to 1000 pages and not much for the back pocket. So I got it on Kindle and carried it everywhere I went.
- Morning coffee? Yep.
- On the bus? Check.
- Waiting for a haircut? Of course.
- Feeding an infant? Definitely.
- Going to bed? You know it!
Like anything, the best way to improve as a reader is to simply read more. You may not think of reading as a simple activity, you may even think of it as boring. Allow me to throw a slight wrench into that thought…
You should read more interesting books (or comics, or journalism, or novels, or whatever). Really whatever topic or style you do find interesting.
Most of the time when I talk to people who “don’t like reading” it’s connected to books they were forced to read in school or feeling like they have to read certain books to stay in the loop now. To me, that’s silly.
Read whatever you want as long as you’re reading.
If you establish a habit and love of reading – no matter the content material – it will help you read more books that you might find interesting later. For example I don’t love reading books on SQL programming, but since I’ve strengthened my reading muscles over the years I can get through it.
A quick note on phone reading… since I wasn’t checking my phone as much (all the distracting apps were deleted), I normally had the Kindle in my pocket instead of my phone. But when I did have my phone I could use the Kindle app to keep reading Way of Kings or any number of books.
Laura Vanderkam’s post on reading in 10 minute increments on her Kindle app helped me stop whinging about my lack of time and just start reading more.
Simple Two Step System for Reading
- Read books you like
- Always have a book with you
If you only do these two things you’ll read more. If you read more you’ll (most likely) be smarter and more creative. You don’t have to delete a bunch of apps to read more, but I can tell you it’s helped me immensely.
The last reading idea I want to cover is the access and acquisition of books. There’s a semi-trending idea amongst people I follow online that an under-utilized life hack is to buy any book that interests you.
I grew up with plenty of access to books but not a lot of access to money, so I have conflicting feelings about this. All of these thoughts go through my head…
- I should really want it to buy it.
- I don’t want to waste money.
- What if I don’t like the book?
- What if I don’t read it?
The over-riding sentiment from the “buy it anyway” crowd is the benefit from having and reading, or reading part of, or even potentially reading a number of books outweighs all of the risks I mentioned. I really like Ryan Holiday’s point on the purpose of reading the experiences of others:
Human beings have been recording their knowledge in book form for more than 5,000 years. Whatever you’re working on right now, whatever problem you’re struggling with, is probably addressed in some book somewhere by someone a lot smarter than you. Save yourself the trouble of learning from trial and error – find that point. Benefit from that perspective.
Ryan Holiday
Back to the financial reason then. I have promised myself to try out the “buy it anyway” practice sometime this year. Once you can safely cover primary expenses I do think books are a wonderful thing to spend money on, for all the reasons mentioned above.
Quick side note: several years ago my Dad started buying any book that interested him, and perhaps not coincidently it corresponded with more professional success. Definitely some confirmation bias happening and many other factors at play, but it does line up.
Has he read them all? No. Are they all over his office? Yes. Does he keep buying books? Of course.
If you’re not ready to start impulse buying any book, that’s ok. You’re still not off the hook for reading more. There are still many ways to gain access to books at little or no cost.
The library is an obvious answer. Free books for the public is still one of our most wonderful civic programs. Here in Nashville I’ve been really impressed with the selection of books, many that I’ve wanted to read in the past 6 months have been found at the library.
I don’t think many people realize many libraries have digital collections now. So if you have an e-reader or just the app on your phone, you can “check out” books for 2-3 weeks. Nashville and hundreds of other cities offer books through Overdrive, click here to check your city!
Another option are used bookstores. Every city I’ve lived in since college has incredible used bookstores, including Chamblin Bookmine, Mr. K’s, Rhino, and McKay’s. Impulse buys are easier there since the prices are so much lower. There’s an added benefit of trading in old books for credit, further lowering the price.
A few extra tips on making reading more enjoyable and habitual:
- Skimming is ok (just my opinion)
- Read with a pencil (I too have been loving Blackwings)
- Physical vs Ebooks
If you’ve wanted to read more or simply begin the habit, I would love to know if these tips and ideas work for you. Just comment and let me know, or try me on Twitter. I’m not able to respond to everything, but I do read each one and greatly appreciate your thoughts and feedback!
Have a great week,
Matt
Photo by Eliott Reyna on Unsplash