People often tell me they want to read more, but they don’t have the time—or they’re too distracted, or they can’t focus long enough to get into it. They love the idea of reading, but carving out space to sit down and give a book their full attention can feel like too much effort. Other things seem more pressing. And maybe there are.
In a frenetic world of constant task switching and scrolling, our minds are more scattered than ever. If we’ve conditioned ourselves to fill every quiet moment with social media or checking email, then getting lost in a book becomes a real challenge. Reading demands attention, and that’s in short supply nowadays.
Wanting to read more just because you feel like you “should” won’t sustain a long term reading practice. Reading has to offer something of value: insights into a problem you’re trying to solve, a catalyst for personal growth, a richer vocabulary, the joy of a good story, or the pleasure of learning something new.
In this post, I’ll share some practical strategies that have made reading a consistent and meaningful part of my life. Reading has changed my perspectives time and time again — I truly cannot imagine a world without books. Books are pals, comforts, and mentors that help me make sense of the big existential and ontological questions, bringing more purpose to my days.
Some tips are borrowed, some my own. As always, take what resonates and leave the rest.
Reading is a gift, not a should or a must
Approaching reading as something you “should” do makes it feel like a chore. Our intentions really matter when it comes to sustainable motivation. If your motivation is guilt-driven you’re less likely to stick with, and actually enjoy reading when you do it. You may find yourself counting down the minutes with a wandering mind, unable to retain anything.
Reading becomes a gift when you read with presence.
If you want to read more, you need to reframe how you think about reading.
Choose books that meet a current need: healing from a breakup, growing spiritually, wanting to invest but unsure where to start, getting inspired creatively. Many artists, thinkers, and everyday people have experienced the same struggles as you and documented their journeys — their books might just illuminate yours.
Reading should enhance your life in some way, which is why it should be an intentional practice. If you’re being pulled in too many directions to sit down with a physical book or learn better another way—try audiobooks, podcasts, or YouTube videos. There’s an abundance of different formats out there, with no one-size-fits-all approach.
Sometimes it only takes one life-changing book to transform reading from a “should” into a gift. But that’s yours to discover.
Build your reading endurance (slowly)
If you’re not used to reading much, it’s going to be tough at first. Your attention span is like a muscle and needs to be trained. Start with five minutes, then ten, then twenty. Akin to building our physical endurance, our cardio is going to be shit in the beginning. You’ll likely be slogging along, gasping for air. It’s going to feel hard and that’s normal.
I don’t suggest setting large time blocks right away for reading. You need the early wins to keep going. If you read for ten, and decide to read longer, by all means, keep going, but be careful with aggressive targets at first—it can discourage you from even starting.
Rekindle your childlike sense of curiosity
“Being exposed to ideas in the wide world, you will tend to develop a hunger for more and more knowledge; you will find it harder to remain satisfied in any narrow corner, which is precisely the point.”— Robert Greene
As a kid, I had an insatiable curiosity; a thirst to explore and understand.
I was inquisitive about the most trivial matters, asking hard hitting questions like: how do you make tools without tools? Where does ATM money come from? I imagined a line-up of Hot Wheels transporting cash through a robust tunnelling system to bank machines. When answers were lacking, I got creative in making my own fictionalized truth.
I possessed an inner drive to explore, to get in the trenches and get my hands dirty–just like the advice ol’ miss Frizzle preached in the Magic School Bus. I was present in whatever I did. There was no pressure to prove anything—just play, explore, and wonder. The joy of performance anxiety was served hot at a later age.
Somewhere along the way, our curiosity and hunger for exploration was lost, and was replaced with pragmatism and the illusion that knowledge acquisition should always serve a purpose. We stopped being curious about the many mysteries of the world and instead, just got wrapped up in minute details of our everyday lives.
Reading helps us reclaim that childlike wonder.
The paradox of learning is that the more you read, the more you realize you don’t know—and the more you want to continue exploring the great mysteries of life. No matter the age, we can all rekindle that beautiful human quality. Curiosity will not only help you pick up your next read, but stay engaged, and continue coming back. Curiosity is a skill we all have, it just needs to be honed.
Create a cozy reading ritual
To get into a reading ~flow, I’ve built several reading rituals. Habits are automatic, whereas rituals share the repetitive aspect of habit, but imbue the activity with more symbolic expression. In short, rituals make a task more meaningful.
My best periods of focus are first thing in the morning so that’s when I prioritize my reading. My ritual begins with taking my little pup out, making coffee, lighting a eucalyptus candle, and meditating for 20-minutes. The coffee wakes my brain up and the meditation helps me practice presence — a necessity for concentration. I’ll then ease into my reading and read for 45 minutes to an hour. Sometimes I’ll read more later in the afternoon or evening, sometimes I don’t—but my morning ritual is a sacred time for just me.
We often strive to create habits, but habits are automatic actions, and don’t necessarily mean we’re going to get the most out of it. A ritual, on the other hand, feels more purposeful. Maybe yours starts with tea and a blanket on a rainy day. Or maybe it begins when you turn your phone on airplane mode the moment you get into bed, then reach for your book. You could create a little reading nook with string lights, a cozy chair, and a candle. Some prefer to go to a coffee shop, plug in lo-fi beats, and get immersed.
Craft a ritual that’s personal and meaningful to you. It doesn’t have to be perfect. It just needs to invite you in.
Take notes to stay engaged
I’ve been a proponent of active reading for years. To stay engaged, I study the book’s contents, highlight important passages, make note of something I want to look up later or jot down quotes. I mark-up my thoughts or ideas in the margins (called marginalia).
When I’m actively reading, not only do I retain more of what I read, but I feel like I’m having a conversation with the author. I read something, and think, yes I agree, or hmm not so sure about that, or thank you for this great idea, now I have a piece of practical advice I can apply to my own life.
If you haven’t tried active reading, give it a go. Don’t be afraid to “ruin” your books. They aren’t meant to be in pristine condition. Books are meant to be engaged with, not just consumed passively.
Sometimes, don’t take notes
I’m contradicting myself immediately: sometimes you shouldn’t take notes. There’s instances where passive reading makes more sense.
I don’t always feel like studying books. Sometimes I just want to read for pleasure, immersing myself in a story and relaxing. While I try to take notes for the most part when reading non-fiction, with fiction, I rarely, if at all take any notes. Sometimes, I just want to read for the pure enjoyment of the practice, which means ditching the sticky notes from time-to-time.
Keep a commonplace book
After we’re done marking up our books, where do we store this newly acquired information? Even folks with the best memory will likely forget what they read over time. Unless, of course, we store it somewhere special. For me, that’s my commonplace book—a curated collection of ideas, quotes, and insights gathered over the course of your lifetime.
The contents should contain wisdom that’s important to you—things you want to remember and revert back to. Whether you decide to keep an analog or digital version, a commonplace is somewhere you can return for inspiration, clarity, and a reminder of what truly matters. I’m not always consistent with my entries, but when I need it, I’m glad it’s there.
Build an antilibrary so you always have something to read next
Not knowing what to read next creates friction. Not only do we have to muster up the motivation to sit down and read, but also figure out what to read next. We experience enough decision fatigue already.
To combat the plague of indecision, create what Nassim Taleb calls an “antilibrary.” He describes it this way:
The library should contain as much of what you do not know as your financial means … allow you to put there. You will accumulate more knowledge and more books as you grow older, and the growing number of unread books on the shelves will look at you menacingly. Indeed, the more you know, the larger the rows of unread books.
Tsundoku (積ん読) is a Japense term that means collecting books with the full the intent of reading them, but perhaps never getting around to it. If you build a robust enough antilibrary you very well may never get around to reading them all, but that’s okay. It’s never a waste to accumulate these treasures. You have options at your finger tips—there’s always something new to discover and explore. It’s like wanting to travel to every place in the world, but knowing that realistically you’re only going to scratch the surface of your travel list. Just knowing there’s new places to explore next is exciting.
How does one build an antilibrary? What books do you choose? A helpful practice is to carve out 20-30 minutes each month dedicated to discovering new books. I like to add at least 2-3 new books to my collection each month.
I find my next reads from a variety of different sources: podcasts, blogs, YouTube videos, ChatGPT has some solid recommendations, Amazon suggestions (but try buying independent if you can), choose a book by an author your current book references, go into an independent book store and ask the people that work there what they recommend based on the genres you love. Some of the best books I’ve read were recommended to me by the folks at my favourite independent book store, Pulp Fiction in Vancouver.
Ask a friend who’s really into reading what they recommend. If you have the financial means, start stockpiling. You can find some real gems at a used book store for the fraction of a price buying new. If you don’t have the financial means, create your own digital antilibrary in a notes app. I like to do both.
The point of an antilibrary isn’t to have an ostentatious display of books to show off to people that swing by, but rather to build up your own little world book itinerary.
I’ve had some books for years that I want to get to eventually when the time is right. It’s exhilarating knowing that I always have new knowledge to gain, new worlds to explore, and new sources of wealth to uncover.
Quit bad books
“In order to read the good it is a condition that we do not read the bad; for life is short, and our time and powers are limited” – Schopenhauer
Life is too short to read bad books and I of all people need to do a better job at this. We’re so used to being told to persevere, to never give up, to finish what we start. Ignore this.
My own personal rule is that if I’m not engaged or enjoying the book after the first chapter, then I ditch it. I return it, pass it along to a friend who may be interested, or donate it.
If a book doesn’t resonate for you, that doesn’t mean it won’t for someone else. Don’t be afraid to quit a book early if it’s not your cup of tea. Forcing yourself to read something you don’t like will only tarnish your relationship with reading. And if you want to read more, you certainly don’t want that.
Read widely
If we only read a certain genre we’re looking at life from a single vantage point, and can miss out on a number of enriching perspectives. I often stick to non-fiction because I feel like I need to get something out of my reading, but fiction can offer tangible benefits too.
Many people think of fiction as just pleasure reads, but fiction can teach us so much about the human condition. Some recent research has shown that fiction can make us more compassionate, empathetic, and open minded people. If you’re used to reading one kind of book, try picking up something completely different and see where it takes you. It may become your new favourite genre.
Your best teacher will never be found in any books, but in lived experience
“Book learning should serve as an ornament, not as a foundation” – Michel de Montaigne
While reading can inspire us to live better lives, the best wisdom comes from our own lived experience. Being out in the real world, interacting with a variety of different personalities, going through heartbreaks, failing, succeeding, experiencing challenges and hardships—those are the best teachers.
So realize that books can be a great guide, but they should never be taken as gospel — our lives are far too complicated and messy for that. Instead, gather wisdom from the many sources of everyday life. Read, but live too. Take breaks from the world of books and instead, pay attention to your everyday experiences. Let the world be your teacher.
There should be no rules of reading
I’ve written “rules of reading” posts, but in reality, there are no rules. Your relationship with reading will change over time. I started reading for self-improvement. Then to improve my writing. Then to challenge myself and explore new domains. I used to think of reading as just another goal to accomplish, hitting my monthly book targets. But now I slow down and focus on quality over quantity. Now I read because it truly enriches my life; grounding me and providing more spiritual depth to my being.
Building my reading endurance has also helped me engage in deeper work — the king that feels meaningful and satisfying at the end of the day. Listening to audiobooks on my runs sparks new ideas all the time. I’ve lost count of how many times I’ve stopped mid-run to jot something down. Your reading practice should stay fluid. Let it evolve as you do. Over time, you’ll discover for yourself just how transformative books can be.
Final Thoughts
Whether you’re an avid reader, just getting into the practice, or returning after a long hiatus, there’s always a way to read better—not in the productivity-hack sense, but better as in enjoying the practice, connecting more deeply with yourself, and walking away with something concrete you can carry into your real life.
Books have shaped me in ways I never could have predicted. They helped me get sober. Inspired me to set goals I once thought were impossible. They helped me how to build wealth. Helped me navigate breakups, have hard conversations, and love better.
Whatever change you’re trying to make in your own life, you might just be one book away.
So I’ll leave you with this reflection point:
What is one paradigm-shifting book that completely changed your life?