Right before New Year, I posted that I had completed my Goodreads goal of the year and had read over 120 books. There were congratulations on hitting my goal, some general queries on how I read that quickly and a lot of comments along the lines that people being “jealous” that I found so much time to read.
No jealousy needed!
I assure you, other non-mothers out there (because all time turns upside down when you have kids, right?) can definitely fit in as much reading as I did. I work a day job, blog this space, have been training as a doula, and rehearse a show at the York Theatre Royal. And I still found time to read.
Admittedly, I am a bookworm and a speed-reader. (Once on a plane, a flight attendant came up to me and said that she noticed how quickly I was reading. She said she’d rarely seen real speed-readers in real life and the only other one that she’d ever seen on a flight was Bill Clinton. So that’s my claim to fame, guys.)
Here are my biggest tips on reading so much.
Always have a book with you.
You never know when the opportunity to read might come up. Friend late to lunch? Extra reading time. Long bus journey? Extra reading time. If I’m waiting in a really long queue, I’ve even been known to pull out a book and read for a few minutes.
Read something that you enjoy.
If you feel ambivalent about what you’re reading, you’ll be less likely to prioritise reading. Life’s too short to read books you don’t like. If you don’t like it, put it down and move on to something else. (Unless it’s for work or school.)
Turn the telly off
This sounds like a no-brainer, but spend some time in the evening reading instead of watching telly. I love mindless, brain-numbing tv as much as the next person, but I also like spending at least an hour a day solidly reading without interruption. It’s great for Sam because we don’t have the same taste in tv so if he wants to watch some in depth police documentary, I pull out a book.
Stop endlessly scrolling
In any work breaks/lunch breaks, I could easily find myself sucked into scrolling through social media the whole time. So I now might spend the first few minutes responding to blog comments or reading a post or two, but then I put my phone down and pick up a book.
Read on your commute (unless you drive)
When we lived in London I had an hour and a half commute each way to work, so that was 3 hours of guaranteed reading time a day. Since moving to York, my commute is much shorter; ie, I walk usually. I have about a 45 minute walk to work and when the weather’s nice sometimes I read whilst I walk. Very Belle circa “Beauty and the Beast” of me, I know.
I know these all sound very simple, but they are my best recommendations for squeezing more reading into your daily life.
Do you make time to read?
You can find me on Goodreads here.
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