Want to read more books? It can be hard to fit reading into a busy schedule, but these seven tricks can help you squeeze a little more reading in if you’re wondering how to read more!
One of the questions I get asked most frequently is “how do I find time to read more books?”
Sadly, I have no magic wand to give you extra time, and I know EXACTLY what those questioners mean.
With four children, a home, this blog, plus London Littles, it’s definitely become increasingly challenging to fit in my own reading.
It’s easier for me to fit in reading with my children – we read picture books on a daily basis and my littler girls are board book obsessed.
We get through a bunch of audiobooks together in the car and I read aloud to them most nights before bed from our current chapter book.
Reading more books on my own, however, takes significantly more effort, and I’m never reading as MUCH as I wish I were.
But these seven tricks have really helped me fit in more reading than I might otherwise.
1.Keep a couple of options easily accessible.
Even if you are enjoying a book, sometimes you need a change of pace.Some days, you want something light and fluffy, while some evenings you want to settle in with some non-fiction.
I always keep a couple of options (Bart would say that I have no idea what “a couple” means in this case) on my bedside table so no matter my mood, I have a book that fits the bill.
2.Ditch a book you aren’t enjoying.
I know all about that guilt over leaving a book unfinished, but absolutelynothing will kill your reading groove faster than a book you don’t actually want to read.
If your goal is to do more reading, it’s way better to return the book to the library or stick it back on the shelf and pick up something that makes you find time to read (when I’m reading a good book, I can suddenly find LOADS of time to read).
3. Read first thing.
If you’re anything like me, you’ve probably had the experience of thinking, “I’ll just do a couple of quick things and then I’ll get in bed early and read for thirty minutes before I fall asleep.”But then suddenly your watch says eleven and you’ve spent the whole night on your laptop or puttering around the house.
Once I noticed that this was happening BASICALLY EVERY NIGHT, I’ve started trying to readfor at least 15-20 minutes after the girls are in bed before I do anything else. The dishes or laundry can wait ten more minutes, and my email inbox doesn’t need to be answered right this second. And magically, once I’ve engaged with a good book for the evening, it’s much easier to blow through my chores and get back tomy book.
4. Stash your phone in another room.
This trick wasa game changer for my reading life.It generally takes me about 5-10 minutes to get into the reading groove, so if my phone is right next to me, it’s way too easy for me to pick it up after a few pages and then get sucked into things I didn’t meant to spend twenty minutes on.
If my phone is on my desk while I’m reading in bed, I can get into a book much faster and read for longer.Similarly,if we head to the park in the afternoon, I’ll take my book and leave my phone at homethat while my girls are digging holes to Australia in the sand or making elaborate cakes out of leaves and wood chips, I can get through a chapter or two of my book instead of scrolling aimlessly on Instagram.
5. Try Out Audiobooks.
This comes as zero surprise, I know, but audiobooks aremy absolute best secret weapon for squeezing in more reading.I download half a dozen audiobooksfrom my library or pick out a bestseller from Audible, andthen listen when in the car alone or doing laundry or dishes or chopping vegetables for dinner.
And I always recommend listening at 1.5 or 2x speed.You’ll be amazed how many books you can cruise through, plus sometimes you actually WANT to clean the bathroom so you can listen a little bit longer.
6. Keep a book in your bag.
My daily backpack has a pocket that PERFECTLY fits my Kindle, so I always have something to read if I end up at school pick up a few minutes early or even a long line at the grocery store. I also have the Kindle app on my phone, and when I pick up my phone, I try to remind myself to read instead of open social media apps.
7. Get in bed ten minutes earlier.
I find it so hard to get myself to go to bed at a reasonable time because those evening hours with my children in bed and the house quiet are SO precious. But if I get to read in bed before I go to sleep, getting ready for bed feels more like a treat than a chore. Plus, with even ten minutes a day, you can get through a surprisingly large amount of reading.
If you have other tricks for how to read more books as a busy adult, I’d love to hear them!
If you liked this post about how to read more books, you might also like these posts:
- 5 Tips for Fitting in More Audiobooks
- How to Start a Successful Book Club
- 25 Great Book Club picks
