Reading at this age is a necessity for anyone who is serious about developing his mind, and anyone willing to get the most out of life. Not because of anything, but because of the benefits of reading, which cut across every area of life. It has been said that most successful people in any area of life read, not just for fun but also for personal and mind development.
Anytime we hear people like Warrant Buffet saying he read at least 500 pages per day, which is almost the volume of two books, we get to marvel at such statement because we are still struggling with a 100-page book for two weeks. The reading does not just go down well with us, how on earth can someone read more than 500 pages a day, with all other activities lined up for each day? But the fact that some people are doing it means it’s possible.
So the question has always been “HOW CAN I FIND MORE TIME TO READ?” or “WHAT IS THE SECRET OF FINDING MORE TIME TO READ?”
The truth is that reading is time-consuming, and the problem is many of us don’t have time to commit to reading. “I don’t have time to read” “I’m a busy person” are always the excuse.
Look at people like Warren Buffet, Elton Musk, Bill Gate, Oprah, Steve Jobs and other successful people, upon their busy lives, they still find time to read.
Warren Buffet: “I read more than 5 hours every day”
Bill Gates: “I read at least one book per week”
Mark Cuban: “I read at least 3 hours a day”
Oprah Winfrey: “I’m just obsessed with book”
These people have the same 24hours all of us have in a day, but they make sure a day never passed without reading them. The best reason for this is that they prioritize their tasks.
Read also: Benefits of Reading
FINDING MORE TIME TO READ
The following outlines will help you to develop a good approach to finding more time to read.
1. Reading is a Choice:
A choice is a decision you make to select from two or more opportunities available based on their merit or their impact on your life. Reading for you should be a choice, it should be a decision you make not under any pressure, but because you know its benefit to you.
2. Priority:
It is true, one may choose a lot of activities to execute for the day; washing dishes, cooking, reading, watching the TV programs, daily exercise and lots more, obviously these are time-consuming, and all may be important, but not all are necessary. You have to prioritize your choices based on their significance. This means knowing which one to let go for another.
3. The significance of each activity:
In addition to the first point, for you to be able to prioritize your daily activities, you have to know the significance of each activity in your life. What impact will it have in your life if you decide to carry out or not carry out a particular activity, positive or negative? An answer to this will determine which one you are to let go for another one.
4. Make it a Habit:
Habit is an established custom. Charles Dihigg in his book “The Power of Habit” defined habit as “the choice that we deliberately make at some point, and then stop thinking about but continue doing often every day”. Check out this article to read about how to cultivate good reading habits.
Read also: Cultivating Good Reading Habits
5. Identify your Distractions:
You might have chosen to make reading your priority because of its benefit to your life. But most times a lot of things get on your way, lots of things tend to distract you from reading. You have to identify these things and know how to deal with them. Such distraction includes:
• TV programs, such as soap opera, sports, News etc.
• Attending to phone calls or replying email messages
• Updates notifications from social media, e.g. Facebook messenger, twitter, radiators, Whatsapp, Instagram etc.
• Friend visits
• And lots more
These activities are also good on their own, but we must not allow them to hinder or distract us from reading. So, identify them and know how to deal with them.
6. Create a book queue:
Just the same way we always have a line-up of movies to watch, same can be done to increase your level of commitment to reading books. Creating a book lineup will help you know the book you are to read next and save you the time of looking for what’s next to read after finishing one.
7. Read what you have a passion for:
Reading in line with your passion will propel you to be eager to read more. If you have a passion for leadership, look for relevant materials on leadership. It will be difficult for you to commit your time to read anything outside what you have a passion for.
Click HERE for book recommendation on your area of Passion
8. Planning:
As you plan for the day, always remember to include reading in your to-do list. If you are the type that is disciplined and can keep to your list, this will help you to switch to reading when the allotted time is up. If you allocate two hours for reading every day, stick to it, do not trade it for other activities.
9. Buy books:
When you spend your money to buy books, it will give you a sense of commitment. As a human, we always pay more attention and value to whatever cost us a fortune.
NOTE: To achieve the best out of any book, “do not speed read”. Always remember that you are not in competition with anyone. Read to understand, read to know, and read to grow.
