“Reading is to the mind what exercise is to the body and prayer is to the soul. We become what we read.”
-Matthew Kelly
It is a well-known fact that an every successful person reads every day. If you ask the masters in any field about reading, then they will tell you that reading is one of their habits. Reading is one of the most immediate methods of acquiring knowledge, ideas, and strategies. However, for most people, reading doesn’t come naturally or they think that it isn’t their type of activity. They will find excuses for not reading, those excuses will be of all kinds. Let’s look at few of them first,
- I want to read but I don’t have enough time, I am too busy.
- Reading is just not meant for me.
- I hate reading; I stopped doing it once I left college.
- I would rather watch Netflix or just surf the internet than spending time on reading.
- Reading is stressful, it gives a headache.
If you happen to have any of the excuses above, then this blog is right for you. Let’s get straight into it.
1. Understand that you don’t have to read all day
“No matter how busy you may think you are, you must find time for reading, or surrender yourself to self-chosen ignorance.”
-Confucius
The most important thing is to realize that you don’t have to sit there for a whole day and read constantly. You just need to read at least 10 pages a day. If you do some math on how much you can read with that rate, then you will find out that you can read 3,560 pages in a year. How many books does it equal to? It is about 18 books of 200 pages. That sounds great, right? Just think about how much you can read just by putting in 10-15 minutes of reading time or maybe 15-30 minutes of reading for slow readers. But hey, isn’t it amazing to finish up 18 books in a year? Won’t you be more knowledgeable, wiser, and confident after reading so much? If you read what interests you, then for sure it won’t give you a headache.
2. What you read is essential for your growth and development
“The more that you read, the more things you will know. The more that you learn, the more places you’ll go.”
-Dr. Seuss
You should be aware of the fact that reading could transform you into the person you want to become. You can decide what you want to read. If you’d like to become rich, then there are tons of books written on that subject, some of them are written by the wealthy persons themselves. There are books on every single topic you can imagine. You don’t have to reinvent the wheel to improve yourself, but you just need to find out what you should read.
You only have limited time in a day, only 24 hours. If you find yourself spending too much time on Netflix or any other entertainment platform, then you should always ask a simple question to yourself- “is it going to make me a better person by watching this television show?” An answer to this question will help you make a better choice next time.
3. Make it a habit
“The habit of reading is the only enjoyment in which there is no alloy; it lasts when all other pleasures fade.”
-Anthony Trollope
Sure everyone reads daily, they scan through emails, texts, websites, the news, etc. But how many are actually committed to reading a book 30 minutes or more a day? Not many we would assume. It is because it isn’t a habit for everyone. What is a habit? It is defined as the intersection of knowledge, skill, and desire in the book The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change written by Steven Covey. He explains that knowledge is the theoretical paradigm, what to do and why, skill is the how to do, desire is the motivation. To make something a habit in our lives, we have to have all three. If you apply it to reading, then you will notice that everyone already has a reading skill, and if they know what to read, then all they lack is the motivation to read.
Motivation is what gets you started. Habit is what keeps you going
– Jim Rohn
Most people will agree that once something becomes a habit, then it comes as second nature to them. They will spend time doing it without even realizing that they are doing it. The habit of reading will work like a charm on your well-being or on any area you want to improve upon. For those who feel like reading is not for them should definitely consider forcing themselves to read 20-30 minutes every day and turn it into a habit. It shouldn’t be too hard if you pick up an excellent book on the topic that you are most interested in.
“Successful people aren’t born that way. They become successful by establishing the habit of doing things unsuccessful people don’t like to do. The successful people don’t always like doing these things themselves; they just get on and do them”
-Don Morquis
Final thoughts
We think that these 3 tips should inspire you to read more and if you actually start reading, then leave a comment here to let us know :). However, if you are already reading and you would like reading more, then you can head over to this blog – How to read more to find ways to read even more.
Happy reading!
The Good Giver 