Whether it’s an upcoming holiday or a much-needed break from work, reading is one of the best ways to spend a relaxing afternoon. Reading fills us with ideas, joy and occasionally passion. Books are one of the most underrated but oldest forms of mental stimulation. No matter what you read, you’ll gain more knowledge and as an added bonus, it’s a brilliant way to reduce your stress levels. You’ll learn more words to use in your everyday life, it will improve your brain function and can even give you stronger analytical skills.
There are many different advantages of reading more in your life, but you’d be surprised at just how easy it is to do a bit more reading in order to gain those benefits. To help you out, we’ve put together a list of honest tips that will greatly enhance your capacity for reading.
Make Good Use of Technology
You’d be surprised at just how helpful technology is when it comes to reading more. From using your smartphone and downloading reading apps or getting yourself an e-reader, there are plenty of fantastic ways to read more using technology. There are even some apps that give you very detailed summaries of entire stories, and you can read more at this article: Blinkist Review – What Is It and Is It Worth It?. It’s a fantastic way to read books that you’re really interested in but don’t have time to read. Many books have lots of filler content that aren’t necessarily vital to the main story or message. These apps aim to help you read more by getting you to the juicy interesting bits as soon as possible, making it a fantastic way to ease yourself into reading. If you find that the summary is interesting, then nothing stops you from getting a full copy of the book later. Even there are apps that can give you book recommendations based on your topic of interest or your favorite author.
You can also supplement your reading with audiobooks. Sometimes we want to continue a story while we’re on public transport but don’t want to take out a physical book, or maybe we want to relax in bed, close our eyes and have someone read to use. This is where you can rely on audiobooks to help you. Of course, listening to an audiobook is a little different to actually reading, but it’s a fantastic way to ease yourself into reading or continue a story. Tablets and e-readers can be found much cheaper than they were a few years ago, and purchasing digital copies of books can often be much cheaper thanks to the lack of printing and ink required.
Sign Up For Your Local Library
Your local library will have plenty of great advantages when it comes to reading. Here are just some of the major advantages that you can expect:
- Join a book club – Book clubs usually meet up at libraries and they often have advertisements up to tell people about meeting times and dates. A book club is a great way to get more recommendations for books to read and make friends that also have a passion for reading. Whether it’s just discussing books or having a group reading session, book clubs are a brilliant way to indulge in reading as more of a hobby.
- Rent books instead of paying for them – If you’re worried about storage space or just don’t want to pay for books, then getting yourself a library card and renting them out is a much more economical solution. You can browse a huge selection of books, read a little at the library to see if it’s for you then take it home and bring it back in the future. You could also read at the library itself if you want a peaceful environment to relax in while you indulge in a good book.
- Meet people with similar interests – Another fantastic advantage of joining a library club is that you’ll meet lots of people with similar interest to you. You can talk about your favourite books, share recommendations and make new friends that you can connect with and convince you to read more often.
Libraries are fantastic meeting spots and places to get more reading done. Don’t underestimate just how much enjoyment you can get with your reading hobby thanks to your local library!
Get on the Internet More Often
Yes, you read that right! The internet is a place that is dominated by content. Whether it’s reading news articles, blog posts or light stories written by up and coming authors and hobbyists, there’s plenty of reading to be done on the internet and you shouldn’t assume it’s any less or worse than what you could read from a book. Make sure you browse around and ask for suggestions on where you can read. Look at reading communities or try and find a network of bloggers that offer similar content.
Even social media can be a fantastic place to read and gain insight into other cultures and subjects. You’d be surprised at just how much enjoyment and knowledge you can gain from browsing the internet and just searching around for something interesting to read. Your phone or a tablet is also a fantastic device to do more reading on the go and you can always keep up with the latest happenings in your work industry, communities you’re a part of or even update your knowledge on world politics and news.
Some Final Words
Reading is an excellent pastime with many great advantages. However, it’s important to try and read as often as possible in order to get these benefits. People do more reading than they think in a single day and once you realize just how easy it is to fit more reading in your life, you’ll find it simple to empower yourself with new knowledge and ideas. You don’t need to be passionate about authors or stories to be a great reader–you just need to know how to enjoy it!
I live in a small Georgia town that you most likely have never heard of and I LOVE it! My house is more than full as I am a single mother of four & caregiver to my aging mother and uncle. Lover of all things Outlander. Goes to the beat of her own drum woman.
Melissa Storms says
I really enjoy reading and if I have a day at home alone I will squeeze some in. Before the internet I read several books a week and took full advantage of our local library. I still read every night with my ereader, I often have to go back and reread what i read the night before though lol. I am in NY, upstate and our county library system has a lot of books but sometimes there would be a gap in a series. I recently found out any NY state resident can apply online and get a free library card for to the NYPL and just received mine. It is AWESOME as they have more e and audio books than my local system,
Ashley says
I definitely need to take more time for myself and read! I don’t do it enough!
Ann says
I finished up school some years ago, and there’s a few reasons why I need to put in a bit of extra effort in order to get my reading done. (After all, there are no more assigned readings anymore– especially no reading for pleasure!) I used to seek out “light reading” in order to balance the heavier stuff that I was reading in grad school. Now, I don’t have that particular motivation. Also, I’m simply not in an environment where people are reading all the time!
I’d love to find an in-person book club to join, and I’m going to check out the resources/links you mentioned. Thank you for this post!