How to Get in Better Reading Shape
(The following text is from Chapter 2 of my free ebook “The Lost Art of Reading.” You can download the full book here.)
Let’s say you haven’t been reading for a while. You do want to read, but you are finding it hard to concentrate and really get into what you’re reading. This is completely normal. You are out of reading shape. Like with any other activity, the longer you go without doing it, the more difficult it is. The more you do it, the easier it becomes and the more you are able to enjoy it.
However, you shouldn’t try forcing your way into more reading. That’s not how you develop a healthy, lifelong habit. So, how do you work your way into better reading shape? The solution is what I call “warm-up reading.” The most basic form of warm up reading would be to pick up anything that you might find interesting and easy to read. Forget about the books that other people say you are “supposed” to read. Your priority should be to start enjoying reading. As Naval Ravikant said,
“Read what you love until you love to read.”
If you like epic fantasy, read an epic fantasy novel. There is no need for you to read that “life-changing” philosophy book or that international bestseller that people say you have to read. Once you get into reading shape, you will start getting outside of your comfort zone. You will start picking up books that are more challenging. Because you love to read, you will be able to read books that are not the most interesting but could be valuable to you.
A more advanced version of warm-up reading would be to have a structured progression towards the books that you want to start reading. You find a less challenging version of the type of books that you eventually want to start reading. And then you slowly progress from there. Allow me to explain through
another personal example.
In the last couple of years, the vast majority of my reading has been dedicated to nonfiction. Once I decided to start reading more fiction, I had a hard time doing so. I tried reading a couple of different novels, but I couldn’t get into them. And it wasn’t that the stories weren’t interesting. I had fallen out of the habit of reading that type of book. So I decided to apply the warm-up reading approach. I started with reading manga (Japanese comics). They felt enjoyable and easy to read. Eventually, I picked up short stories. Slowly but surely, I progressed, and I am once again able to truly enjoy reading novels.
What you will notice is that this advanced version of warm-up reading cannot be applied to every situation. It requires that you have a specific idea of what it is that you eventually want to start reading. From there, you should be able to identify the less challenging version of that type of book. If you don’t have a clear idea of what your reading progression will look like, don’t worry. When I say “advanced version,” I don’t mean “superior.” The first type of warm-up reading will actually be the better one for most people. After all, your goal is to fall in love with reading. And love doesn’t require a clear plan or a structured progression.
If you find this piece of advice valuable and interesting, I recommend checking out “The Lost Art of Reading.” It’s free and I made it for you.
Although you know how much I value consistency and simply putting in the work, I believe there is much more to reading than just volume and “reps.” I tried to explain that through 8 practical and actionable pieces of advice. You can download “The Lost Art of Reading” here.
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