As busy professionals, a lot of us feel as though we ought to read more, yet time never seems to be on our side. There just aren’t enough hours in the day. This renders a lot of common advice, like joining reading challenges or book clubs, unhelpful. What can one do if there is simply no time? Here are a few simple ideas that will help you fit more reading into your life, no matter how packed your schedule.
Start Small
We know reading can make us smarter, more well-rounded people. It’s not a problem of motivation. Or is it? Clearly, we have some time. We always find time to take a peek at social media each day. If there is a sudden emergency, we find the time to fix it.
It’s not that we have no time. It’s that we don’t have the long uninterrupted stretch we think we need to read. But we don’t really need it. That’s why a great piece of advice is to start small, but to be consistent. One Stanford University scientist suggests starting by reading just two sentences per day.
Read what you love
Whether it’s Woman’s Day Magazine or Dostoevsky, just read what appeals to you while you build your habit and find ways to fit it into your day.
If it’s been a while since you read anything longer than an email, reading any prose will help you gain back your reading speed.
Always Bring a Book
The best way to find out where reading naturally fits into your day is to naturally fit reading into your day.
Now that you’ve gotten used to the idea that even a tiny amount is better than nothing, and you no longer need a long stretch of quiet time to read, get into the habit of carrying some reading material with you wherever you go.
When you find yourself on your lunch break, waiting in line, or any other time you’d usually reach for your phone, grab your book and read a few sentences.
Always Leave a Book
If carrying a book around everywhere just isn’t practical, then leave books in places you frequently visit. That could be in a desk drawer at the office, or in your car. You could even use both strategies together, both for a bit of variety and in case you forget to carry a book with you.
Be a Quitter
When getting through a book becomes a slog, especially if it’s a so-called “classic,” it is all too easy for our brain to think we are the problem rather than the book. This often leads to people giving up reading altogether.
The smarter move is to just bail on that book. If it’s not for you, just set it down and move on to something else. You can always come back to it later, and in the meantime, you might gain the knowledge or experiences you need to better appreciate it.
Try audiobooks
They’ve never been more widely available, and there’s something about listening which just feels much easier than reading. At the end of the day, they’re the same words no matter how they’re delivered.