National Reading Week Is Here: Do You Have That Forever Unfinished Book on Your Shelf?
Let me confess something first: I have three books on my shelf that have been there for three years without a single page turned.
These three books are:
- “One Hundred Years of Solitude” — bought it thinking I would be cultured, put it down after 10 pages
- “Sapiens” — the most common decorative item on my shelf
- An investment and finance book — buying it felt like learning it
Do you have the same type of books? If so, comment “1”.
National Reading Week Is a Great Opportunity
April 20-26 is National Reading Week. This timing is perfect—right before May Day holiday, so we can use these days before the vacation to flip through those dusty books.
I know you will say “no time”.
But I researched and found a compelling statistic: If we read 30 minutes daily, we can finish one ~200-page book in a week.
One week. One book. Dusty books. Think about how worthwhile that is.
Several Methods to “Force” Yourself to Read
I have tried a few methods that work well for tackling unfinished books:
1. Place it in an obvious spot
Put the book you want to read next to the sofa, on the coffee table, by your pillow. Wherever you definitely see it every day, not buried deep in a bookshelf.
2. Read the table of contents and prologue first
Many books prologues tell you who this book is for and what the core ideas are. After reading these, decide whether to dive in.
3. Set a minimum reading amount
Just 10 pages a day. This goal is so small it is impossible to fail, but accumulated over the week, that is 70 pages.
My Bookshelf Organization Plan
This week I plan to:
- Pick out books on my shelf that have not been touched in over a year
- Choose 1 as this week completion goal
- Not buy new books until I finish it
What about you? Any books you want to finish this week?