4 Tips For Reading More Books

Tip 1 - Read Several Different Kinds of Book At Once:

​​​Some days I just don't feel like reading the book I'm stuck 1/2 way through reading.  Or I just feel more like watching the latest Zombie genre offering on Netflix.  

​This year I decided to read between 3-5 books at the same time;  books that are all very different to each other!  Reading this way meant that I didn't have to motivate myself to read "that one book". Rather, whatever mood I was in there was something matching my mood to read;  Socio-political history,  warm pastoral help,  classic literature,  zombies,  short essays of historical Christian practices.

​Swap freely between the different genre books as you feel like it.
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Tip 2 - Read Different Books in Different Formats:

I always aim to have different books ready to read in different formats.

KINDLE APP: Kindle books usually tend to be books that are a relatively light read, and ones that I may want to digitally "highlight" selections from to use later.  I also usually choose books for my iPhone kindle app that I can read in short spurts (see tip 3).  They often tend to be more instructional books that have short chapters.

AUDIO BOOK:  I'll choose an audio book for one of two reasons. Either I read an audio book because I only want to get an "overview" depth of understanding.  OR its a book I'm reading as a "treat/motivation" for doing some other activity such as a gym visit (see tip 4).

PAPER: I usually choose paper book if its either a book/author I love,  OR it is a book I want to read slowly and give more considered attention to.

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Tip 3 - Select Different Books for Different Locations

​When I sit down to wait for my coffee at a Cafe I know exactly which book I will spend 5min reading on my iphone Kindle App.  I don't need to decide. I just open it up and read a handful of pages in the few minutes available.

When I have 1hr to read in a relaxing location without many competing demands,  I already have set aside 1-2 printed books which I'm going to be reaching for. 

When I need to clean the house, wash the dishes, or go to the gym,  I'll have an audio book ready that I've been looking forward to dipping into again - this leads into tip 4.

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Tip 4 - Use Audio Books as Motivation for Other Tasks***

I always have one audio book cued  on my phone that I'll ONLY listen to while at the gym. 

At the moment I'm reading the "World War Z" audiobook ONLY when I go to the gym (or need motivation in some other undesirable task). Because I only "get" to read this book at the gym,  it also acts as a motivation to do something I'd otherwise be tempted to avoid.   Of course it can't be a book that requires deep focus. ​

***Warning  -  I have to make extra effort to make sure I ALSO give myself down-time from reading; allowing my mind to wander, and give attention to those thoughts I'd much rather be distracted from! 

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