Reading – It Can Change Your Life Positively

Reading is an activity many believed and proved can change your life positively and unexpectedly. You might not be knowing about something existing or even not be looking for changes but books bring miraculous changes that too surprisingly.

“Learning gives creativity – Creativity leads to thinking

Thinking provides knowledge – Knowledge makes you great.”

― A.P.J. Abdul Kalam

My Story

Let me start this article with my example, I never read books apart from related to my studies till I was 30. I started slow but gradually built up the habit. One day in November 2020 I got my hands on 5 AM CLUB by Robin Sharma. That book changed my life. I never got up in the morning before 8 and after reading this book I mostly get up at 5 am and when I am not so well I automatically get up by 6 am. 

Imagine I gained 3 hours daily by this simple habit installation. 

Such is the power of books.

I gained a lot and now with this blog post, I want to inspire you and even more important want to tell you my hacks on how to continue and sustain this wonderful habit. 

“That’s the thing about books. They let you travel without moving your feet.”

– Jhumpa Lahiri

Why do people Read- Different people have different reasons

• some enjoyed most were learning, gaining knowledge, and discovering information.
• some cited the pleasures of escaping reality, becoming immersed in another world, and the enjoyment they got from using their imaginations.
• few people liked the entertainment value of reading, the drama of good stories, the suspense of watching a good plot unfold.
• others enjoy relaxing while reading and having quiet time.
• some like the variety of topics they could access via reading and how they could find books that particularly interested them.
• people enjoy finding spiritual enrichment through reading and expanding their worldview.
• few even liked the physical properties of books – their feel and smell – as a primary pleasure.

“A book is a version of the world. If you do not like it, ignore it; or offer your own version in return.”

– Salman Rushdie

Why you should start Reading Books: Benefits

• Mental Stimulation
• Stress Reduction
• Knowledge
• Vocabulary Expansion
• Memory Improvement
• Stronger Analytical Thinking Skills
• Improved Focus and Concentration
• Better Writing Skills
• Free Entertainment
• People who read books live longer
• Boosts Your Sleep
• Reading dares you to grow.
• Reading means you don’t have to be alone.

The list of benefits is extensive and unending. Different people experience different benefits even at times all of them. But for all Reading can change your life positively and unexpectedly.

“Books may well be the only true magic.”

– Alice Hoffman

How to build and sustain Reading Habit 

You may read once a month but that won’t give the same benefits as that of a daily reading habit. Let me give some easy and doable activities with which you can read daily without fail.

Once the habit is installed you will soon start reaping its benefits and after a time it will be uncomfortable for you to spend a day without reading the book.

• Connect with like-minded: Form a group of 10 book member readers. Partnerships are the most successful ventures. Just buy 1 or 2 books and keep exchanging between group members, you don’t need to buy a book for a year or at least 6 months.

• Post your daily learning: You can post your daily learning on a WhatsApp book group or even better on Facebook posts and Instagram posts. This will create a habit and your social aura. 

The best way is to make a blog site and post there in the future you can monetize that too.

• Post your favorite quote as an Insta story: Share your learning with your loved one and society as it spread positivity and also this will create the digital dairy of your favorite quotes. You can revisit them to get recharged or on a low day.

• Find someone who is busy but wants to learn: Narrate your learnings, to that person. This will increase your level of learning and also they will gain from you.

• Fix a time: It can be morning, evening or night depends totally on your schedule but fix a time. Fixing time will make it a habit. I read 15-30 minutes before sleeping and on vacations (this is not a habit 😉 )

• Set up your reading corner and associate it with an activity: Your environment is the second important factor in setting up your any habit and next is linking it to another important daily activity.

When you get up you brush your teeth, likewise. I do it before sleeping and I have my bedside table where I keep my book in front of my sight. 

You can have your morning tea or evening coffee along with your reading session. And set up a beautiful corner in a room dedicated to reading.

This step also raises your efficiency of reading.

• Fix a minimum page target to be read: Again this varies from person to person, you can start with a page daily and extend as much you find comfortable.

“Reading is important. If you know how to read, then the whole world opens up to you.”

– Barack Obama

Benefits of Reading to children 

Reading books to children has even more positive and life shaping effects. As they are wet clay ready to be moulded and reading books can shape their attitude and perception towards life positively.

3 Benefits of Adults Rereading Books to Kids

Repeating, Reviewing, and Remembering

The more we engage with a story, the more we take away from it. That is often why, as adults, we choose to reread those classics we were assigned to read as students in school. 

Developing a Thirst for Books

Letting kids pick books they want to be read aloud is important for helping to develop a thirst for books. Book choice is powerful. 

Bonding as a Family

Reading any book together can help your family bond. In fact, many of us look forward to those bedtime reading rituals. Chances are you remember a book that your family read-aloud numerous times growing up.  

3 Benefits of Kids Rereading Books They Enjoy

Getting to Know a Friend

The more time we spend with someone, the better we get to know that person. Books are the same way. The more time a child spends rereading a section, a favorite quote, or the entire book, the more connected the child feels to the story. 

Rereading Fills the Gap

Sometimes it can be tough for kids to find books they enjoy. So, rereading past favorites keeps kids reading while they find their next book match.

Building Fluency

Newly independent readers need lots of practice to get past the word-by-word choppy reading into fluent reading. When a child chooses to read a favorite book over and over again, he is getting lots of practice to build fluency.

Choose carefully what you read…

You should not be selective give everything a try to every genre but in the journey, you will realize what do you resonate most with. What you read matters because it shapes your mental state, and in long term also affects your behavior and actions. If you are reading motivational books you will feel pumped up and positive most of the time. In the same manner, if you keep on reading criminal and murder stories it will be very difficult for you to believe strangers. 

Remember, you are what you focus on and you focus on what you consume. What you read, watch and listen to has a big effect on you.

“Be as careful of the books you read, as of the company you keep; for your habits and character will be as much influenced by the former as the latter.”

There are different mediums nowadays. The Digital revolution has introduced us to E-Books and Audible books along with our old-time favorite printed books. Check out the detailed discussion here.

We hope you’ve found this article useful and you are one step closer to your building and sustaining reading habits! You can only learn from it and discover new things about yourself.

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