Evaluating Tips for Reading More

In a recent post, I wrote about wanting to read more and some of the psychology behind facilitating this goal. Some positive feedback on the piece was accompanied by a link to an article in the Guardian: "How to put your phone down and get back into the habit of reading books" (Phillips, 2024). I was asked for my thoughts on the tips presented in the article and if I could elaborate on them any further. Given the positive feedback I received on my own piece, I thought sharing my responses here might be a useful activity.

The first tip, which is vital, recommended keeping your phone as far away as possible. Your phone is a distraction. You likely have enough distractions in your life already, keeping you from your goal of reading more. Why embrace another when it’s as simple as leaving it in another room? Sure, you might have great willpower and not pick it up when it dings. But then, when it does ding, where does your attention go? Even if you don’t pick it up, you wonder who it might be, and it pulls you from being immersed in what you were reading.

Perhaps your lifestyle makes you need your phone near you a majority of the time. Fair enough; if that’s the case, designate a specific time for reading when you can be without your phone. For me, I choose to read in bed before I go to sleep (because if I didn’t, I’d probably be looking at my phone; and the lighting from that, just before going to sleep, isn’t the best for a good rest).

The second tip, reading physical books and taking notes, is accompanied by a discussion of the pleasure enjoyed by some in doing so. I agree. I would much rather read a physical copy of a book. But beyond preference, this tip rings true for the same rationale as the first tip: If you’re reading an ebook on a connected device, you’re going to be distracted by notifications or the other apps available to you.

The physical copy also provides a more concrete representation of completeness. Sure, a bar on a tablet might indicate how much I’ve read, but there’s no greater motivator for me than feeling the heavy chunk in my left hand of the two-thirds of the book I’ve completed. It motivates me to keep going when I feel my attention start to fade. Moreover, if you’re reading before bed on a device with dodgy lighting, akin to my comment above, that’s not great either.

The third tip, retrain your brain, suggests that "reading is a marathon, not a sprint," which is an important concept to keep in mind. This isn’t a short or a reel on social media. You’re not likely to finish a book in a sitting, so don’t feel like you need to rush or be discouraged by "how little progress" you’re making. In the article, 10 pages per sitting is recommended. That’s a good goal for someone getting back into reading.

What Phillips doesn't elaborate on, though, is the core reason why this is important to understand. Reading should be pleasurable. If you enjoy a good book, you don’t want it to end. Take your time and savour it. Smartphones have adversely primed us to seek instant satisfaction with the way we search for information. Books aren’t like that. They purposefully force you to immerse yourself into the world of the story. Embrace it; and if you can’t, then ask yourself if book reading is really something you want to pursue as a hobby.

In order to "retrain your brain," you actually need to reframe your approach to reading. As cliché as it sounds, reading for pleasure is about the journey as much as it is the destination (i.e., end of the book). In my previous post, I discussed ideas around whether or not you’re enjoying a book and when you might just put that one down for another. It’s much easier getting into the routine of reading if you’re engaging books that keep you interested and entertained.

The fourth tip recommends finding an optimum time/place to read. This is personal. Everyone is different. Evaluate your own schedule. But don’t do it arbitrarily, as if you’re going to read for an hour after dinner every night. You'll need to consider what you normally do after dinner. Lie down? Play with your kids? Go to work? For me, I have a 9-5, which I drive to and from. I also have two kids. My time to read is before bed. But maybe, if you take the train/bus to school/work, you can allocate that time to reading? The point is, the time/place you choose should be mindfully selected because reading is the best conceivable use of your time at that moment. Don’t sacrifice another activity or necessary task for it, because you will only grow to resent your reading. If you really want to get into reading, you will either find time or make time.

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Perhaps you have a list of books you think you should read. Maybe you have a list of books others have recommended to you. If you’re only getting (back) into reading, forget those lists. They come with an implicit sentiment that you must read them. You might start one and, after 50 pages, find that you’re not really into it and then quit. There’s nothing wrong with that (even if you might feel guilty about it) but if it becomes a habit, it might put you off reading. Instead, search out books in genres you like, with a narrative style you like, set in contexts you find interesting or relatable. Forget about should and focus on what you want. When you read out of obligation, it’s very easy for it to start feeling like a chore, which the fifth tip recommends avoiding.

The sixth and final tip is one I actually disagree with: Don’t forget audiobooks and good TV. Don’t get me wrong; I like audiobooks and TV. They’re great ways of engaging with narratives. However, they are distinct experiences from reading. I’d argue that reading, in itself, is an art form. It involves the special way we mentally represent a character or event (distinct from TV), the way we can simply stop reading for a moment and think about a line or even go back a line and re-read (i.e. without having to mess with sliding a button backwards to the exact time-stamp), and the way we actively engage with the text, as opposed to passively accepting the words from spoken audio. In reality, enjoying audiobooks and TV doesn’t really enhance the likelihood of getting back into reading; rather, it just increases your chances of racking up audiobooks or TV shows.