Let’s start with this, I haven’t always been a big reader. I mean, when I was a kid I remember shinning my flash light under the covers and reading the latest Judy B. Jones and Treehouse books, or my dad would read Harry Potter to my brother and I every night. Then there came high school, and you had to read the books for your assignments (well does cliff notes count?) I might have read and actually finished one or two books in my early twenties. I loved buying books, I would always start to read one then put it down and never pick it up.
2018 was a life-changing year for me. I wanted to invest into myself that year and grow in all different ways. I set my goals for the year, and reading was one of them. The first book I read that year, literally changed my life. Just one book was all it took. The miracle morning by Hal Elrod. He gave one little tip in the book, and it was the most simple tip on how to read over 12 books in a year. 10 pages a day is all it takes. I wrote 5 points of why reading just 10 pages a day can change your life, too.
1. Pick a book you’re going to like to read
That may sound silly, but trust me when I say that. How many times have we picked up a book and then found were not interested in it? Probably too many times to count.
- Start Simple, pick an easy read. If you’re just getting back into reading I wouldn’t recommend picking a 500 page book. Just like anything, it gets overwhelming.
- Finish the book. You will feel so accomplished when you finish a book, and you’ll be excited to pick up your next one. You’ll find yourself talking about the book you just finished to those around you and sharing what you learned with them.
- Buy the next book before you finish the one you’re on. It gives you something to look forward too if you’re excited about what you will read in the next one.
- Growth Books. Im not a fiction reader, Im into personal development, leadership, business, motivational books. I want to grow as a human, and one way for me to do that is by reading books on these topics. Learning something new everyday, is so important and this way when I read one of these books its helping me come into the person I want to be.
2. Read 10 pages a day
Yes you read that right, just 10 pages a day and you can read twelve 300 page books. Wow! When you break it down, it makes it seem so simple. Thats one book a month by simply looking at one day at a time. Personally, Im not good at stopping in the middle of a chapter. So I will at least read a chapter a day. Once you start reading and finishing books, you will be hooked and craving more.
3. Pick a time to read
- Consistency. Having a “routine or a schedule” in your life, just makes it flow smoother on the days without unexpected interruptions. Set yourself a time to read every day, and make that your YOU time.
- Morning Time. There’s a lot about a morning routine and the success that follows it. Reading in the mornings is normally one of the things that are on that list of what successful people do. Waking up just 10-15 minutes early and reading will get your day started off on the right foot and mind in the right place for the day.
- Learning something new. Once again, that’s where motivational/educational comes into play. It gets you into that right mindset to begin your day, and how powerful is that to think that you already started your day off by learning something new.
- Night Time. For me, if i read in the evening Im not as consistent with it. But I have a different set of books I read at night. I read more “mindless/ feel good” books. Something just to wind down your mind after a long day.
4. “I don’t have time to read”
You don’t have time to invest into yourself? Thats exactly what you are saying when you say you don’t have time to read. We all have the same 24 hours in a day, but what you choose to do within those hours is 100% up to you. Think about your schedule, how much “wasted time” do we spend? From Netflix, your favorite tv shows, social media? Most of us know by now, that Apple came out with this little new featured called “Screen Time” It shows you how many hours you’ve been on social media, how many texts you sent, down to how many times you’ve picked up your phone that day. If you don’t think you have time, look at that and see how much time we wasted on our phones daily.
Make time for yourself, your future self will thank you for that.
5. Knowledge is powerful
Imagine this, one year from now if you read 12 books. How much knowledge would you have? How much more confidence would you have? The growth that would’ve happened in that year, would most likely make you unrecognizable to some. That is what is going to set you apart from others. Here’s an amazing truth: No matter our circumstances, we all have equal access to the favorite learning medium of Bill Gates, the richest person in the world: books.
Do something today, that your future self will thank you for.