Reading is a great hobby, and it is one which connects people in a way that no other media of entertainment can.
Reading and finding out what sort of books the people around you enjoy reading gives you a peek into their mindsets, whilst enlarging your own knowledge.
There are numerous benefits of reading. You gain knowledge, improve your command of a language, and even improve communication and self-expression skills. These benefits also mean that it is a very good habit, one that you must try to cultivate.
If you’ve been wanting to get into reading, either because you want to fit into an intellectual circle or because you are looking for a new hobby, look no further as we have 10 assured hacks that will get you hooked to reading!
1. Find Your Reason For Reading
Why do you want to develop this habit in the first place?
Sure you have been told about the benefits numerous times before, and you could have given it a try before. So why now?
Perhaps you need to write an impressive paper that requires expert knowledge. Maybe you have gotten bored with your current routine and are willing to try out new things.
Whatever the reason may be, identify it, specify it, and work towards that goal so that you do not get sidetracked. This goal will serve as your main source of motivation while seeking to develop this new habit of reading.
2. Find Out What Genre You Enjoy
More often than not, people are unsuccessful in developing a reading habit because they do not find a book they can genuinely enjoy. Looking up the most popular books and reading one of those will not guarantee a fruitful search.
Instead, the next time you watch a movie or a show, pay attention to what excites you about it, and find similar genres in books as well.
3. Set A Daily Goal, Start Small
Contrary to the usual monthly or weekly goal, our suggestion for you is to try and read a bit every day. This way, you will not scramble to finish your goal in one go and spoil the fun.
Remember your purpose, you are doing this because you want to, not because you have to.
Set a small goal first, and read for 20 minutes without any interruptions. Once you are able to do this without any difficulties and notice yourself wanting to read more, go for it.
Increase the time to 40 minutes, then 1 hour, until you realize you do not need a timer. You just don’t want to let go of the book until you’ve read it from cover to cover.
4. Keep Distractions Away
When you try to set a new habit it can be difficult to get it right the first few times and this might discourage you.
As an escape, you tend to go back to the old ways or keep yourself busy from noticing how you are handling things.
With reading, the more you welcome these distractions, the less you are actually reading. So, keep your phone away, or just go somewhere where there are fewer distractions.
5. Enjoy The Process Of Learning New Things
While reading you may come across certain words or phrases which are confusing. Instead of rushing to a dictionary to find out its meaning, read on and try to figure it out through context clues. If you do not get the meanings after a few more lines then note the phrase somewhere and look them up later.
Do not feel embarrassed at your lack of knowledge, there is always something new for you to learn and books are your biggest gateway toward this knowledge.
Learning new things gives you more things to talk about with your peers, and this will motivate you to learn even more.
6. Join Book Clubs
Interacting with people who have a similar hobby gives you more reasons and motivation to continue with your endeavor.
Joining a book club will expose you to other people who enjoy different genres.
When so many people read the same book and share their thoughts on it you will notice the impact that your individuality has on your perception of a story.
7. Always Have A Book With You
You are not busy every single minute of your day, instead of scrolling through social media to kill time, carry around a book with you and read some of it.
The change in scenery will give you a different experience whilst reading and you might just learn something different from the same text.
In any case, having a book available to you will keep you from mindlessly scrolling through social media, and divert your attention to a more productive hobby
8. Read More Than One Genre
You will only be able to enjoy all the advantages of reading if you read more than one or two types of literary genres.
Sure you may be passionate about a particular genre like science-fiction, which would make you want to read books centered around space.
However, there is more to the story you are reading than just sci-fi. How will you understand the story fully if you have only learned to enjoy one genre?
Pay close attention to what you are reading and see what else excites you other than the main storyline.
Is there any subplot you like? Or perhaps a fact in the book that made you curious?
Seek those topics and genres in other books and expand your horizons.
9. Do Not Force Yourself To Read
Sometimes you will encounter a story that doesn’t spark any excitement or curiosity in you and bores you to death.
That’s okay!
Everyone has personal preferences.
You should allow yourself to try a book, and if you do not enjoy it then stop reading it. It is better to drop the book than to grow hateful of reading as a whole.
Remember, you are reading as a hobby, you have a goal you want to accomplish. If you hate the journey, the final destination will not soothe the hatred you developed towards it.
10. Write Along
That’s right. You do not need to be a good writer to be a good reader, you just need to appreciate literature.
Reading scientific papers may be a crucial part of your course, and you may even have to write research papers and academic essays. Research published articles and books for reference. Write your essay and get expert essay writers to mentor and guide you through the process.
In any case, attempting to write will naturally develop your habit of reading. You will find out about what writing style you prefer, and what kind of literature interests you while trying to write what you want to read.
Note down what you like and don’t like in each text, this will be a big hint in helping you figure out what you enjoy reading.
Conclusion
There are no fancy tricks to enjoy reading, you just have to read to love to read. Still, we hope these tips will make your reading journey a lot easier.
