How to Read When You Don't Feel Like Reading

We know that we should be reading more. It's always a New Year's goal of mine! Even my husband, who spends each vacation day reading for at least 8 hours, wants to be reading more. But how do you get yourself to read when you really don't feel like it (which is often the case for me, despite the book lists from 2021 and 2022 of what I did finish reading)? I hope to offer some tips and useful advice, for myself first and then you, readers, in this post.

How to Read More

My mother was a reading specialist before she retired. She especially enjoyed working with kids with dyslexia, or those for whom English was not their first language. Whomever she was working with, she realized that the powerful benefits of reading lie in a combination of the quantity and quality of what one reads.

So, one ingredient of the more-reading recipe is quantity: reading more begets more reading. It takes time and sustained, repeated effort to form a habit, and a reading-habit is no different in this respect from any other habit. For me, the first month is the hardest, but then it becomes second nature.

Also, the momentum I developed from just writing down and numbering the titles I had read for the last few years is a huge confidence booster. Before I took that step, I read maybe 5-10 books per year, outside of work. As someone who grew up reading constantly, I wanted to continue that as an adult but let it slide for too many years.

Related to the book lists, the other part of the quantity side, for me, was setting an ambitious but achievable goal. Because I wanted to increase my reading but actually achieve it, I chose 20 as the target number of books because it translated to (1) much more than what I had been completing and (2) along the lines of 1-2 books per month, which I felt I could certainly do.

What about quality? I think this ingredient is equally important because what we put into our minds will eventually make its way out in thoughts, words, and actions, for better or for worse. For my 2021 and 2022 goals, this meant that I was choosing nonfiction before fiction, higher before lower reading level, and consistent versus inconsistent with my moral values.

Many people may think of nonfiction as "boring" - but what could be more interesting than some aspect of real life, well told and expressively written? Plus, nonfiction fills the mind with what is real, and the way in which it is written and the motives behind its authorship can have a distinct influence on the reader's thought process. I'm not talking about just history or textbooks here, but expanding my mental conception of "nonfiction" to include things like poetry about the design of tree branches and snowflakes, ideas for outdoor time (like 1000 Hours Outside), and the varied styles of the biblical canon.

Reading level can be tricky. Most of the U. S. population reads at a 7th or 8th grade level. Some examples of books written at this level, as 2022, are The Hobbit, Little Women, most novels by Jules Verne, and The Secret Garden. (I had a hard time finding nonfiction written at this level...perhaps more on that in a future post.)

The reading-muscle rises to the challenge of a higher level when that level is just above where you're at now. This also depends on the subject matter you're engaging with. My interests include physical therapy, nature, and education. Give me something at a very high grade reading level in those areas, and I can handle it easily. Something like modal logic or knitting patterns? Not so much.

As for the last criterion, values/ethics, that is something I could talk about for a much longer series of posts. My husband might, too, if I can get him to guest contribute at some point. My very brief thought on this, however, is that everyone has a value system, even if they don't think they do. Figure out what yours is, and the implications of those values (which can be a long process sometimes), and choose reading material in line with that.

Why You Might Not Enjoy Reading (Why You Might Struggle to Read)

Short answer: it's hard!

Longer answer: what I mean by "hard" is "harder than other things I could be doing." Some distractions I think many of us can identify with include our phones, our children, our news feeds, and our jobs. I am blessed to have grown up in and currently live in a setting where reading is valued . . . but it's still hard. To make the habit of reading a little easier to resume, I found this the concept of dopamine fasting helpful.

How You Can Grow to Enjoy Reading More (Again)

These are five things that have helped me to get back into a pleasurable reading habit:

• Decide that reading is worth it!
• Keep a stack of varied books-in-progress on my TV table on my side of the sofa.
• Write down the books I finish (even if I don't really enjoy them) to keep myself accountable.
• Maintain friendships with reading folks like Beth.
• Put the TV in the basement, keep the phone on silent and in my pocket.

What are your other tips? Feel free to put them in the comments below.