You want to read more. Reading X number of stories even made it on your resolution list in January. So, why can’t you keep up with your goals? More books gather on your shelves, and your Goodreads list is long enough to reach the sun. How do you turn your to-read list into your have-read collection? If you don’t have enough hours in the day, and you just can’t find the time to read, these tips may be just what you need.
Don’t Worry About Binge Reading
We all know the meme: you pick up a book just after dinner and suddenly you’re on the last few pages as the birds start singing outside. Binge reading gets you through a book quickly, and it makes you feel like a passionate student in La Boheme, but it isn’t for everyone, it isn’t always sustainable, and it certainly isn’t the only way to read. If you find yourself looking at the pile of books on your nightstand and realize you can never stay up enough nights to binge them all, it’s time to rethink how you read.
Take It a Page at a Time
Sometimes less is more. Don’t worry if you don’t have hours of free time in clean, book-shaped blocks. Just work with what you have. The book won’t care. Reading a chapter at a time, or a page at a time, or even a paragraph at a time still counts as reading, and reading in short bites will still move you to the end of the book.
You’d be surprised how quickly you actually read. Say you read 200 words per minute. That’s:
- One paragraph in about 15 seconds
- One page in less than two minutes
- This article in around three minutes
Read while the kettle boils. Grab a paragraph during commercial breaks. Try reading books writing the grocery list. Even toilet reading works. The moral of this little story is this: don’t wait for an ideal time to read. 
Plug in Your Phone Across the Room
Late at night, when you’re supposed to be sleeping, Pinterest, Youtube, Netflix, and your ex’s text messages all call to you. Put them across the room where they belong and grab a book instead. The time when you’re ready for bed but not sleep has always been the hour of monsters under the bed and elaborate fantasies.
Surrender that time to a good novel. As your weary mind relaxes, you may find visuals feel clearer, you might taste the food characters consume, and every thrill will set its hooks into your bones. You’ll start the next day with a sense of accomplishment at the very least. Refusing to share your bed with a smartphone has other benefits, of course, and if you have to get up to turn off your alarm, you’ll be much less likely to hit snooze. More time for reading, right?
Keep a Book with You
Whenever you get bored, you could be reading. Waiting in line at the DMV, staring at a blank wall in the breakroom, even the moment you realize your oil change will not make the 15-minute promise become windows of opportunity if you have a book on hand. Some books just don’t travel well. War and Peace can change your life, but that shouldn’t be by sending you to the chiropractor’s office.
Slim paperbacks, smaller e-readers, and even reading apps on your phone dominate this scene. If you don’t have one of those in your bag or pocket, you should. Delays become less irritating when you have something to do.
Listen to Audiobooks
Audiobooks aren’t for everyone, and that’s okay, but they deserve a shot. Subscription services offer free trials so you can determine if the format suits your tastes, and most local libraries partner with free e-book services, too. You have nothing to lose, and if you like audiobooks, then you’ll race through your reading list.
Just think of how many activities hands-free listening turns into book time:
- Driving
- Gardening
- Walking the dog
- Working out
- Cooking
- Cleaning
- Doing the dishes
You may find yourself reading books writing out your weekly schedule. You don’t have to find spare time when you don’t have to stop what you’re doing for story time.
Get Rid of One Streaming Service
Don’t give up your favorite shows, but ask yourself if spending an hour trolling through your three streaming services for something worth watching is a good use of your time. Frankly, you could be reading. Scrolling through Netflix has become another meme. Don’t be the meme. Once you’ve seen what you want, cancel the subscription until it adds something attention-grabbing again. In the meantime, you can do justice to the stack of beauties on your nightstand.
Vincent Salera
Founder @ World's Best Story™ amplifier of creativity & fun!
