Reading is the process of comprehending written information.

One thing is sure though; most people would rather listen to an audio version of a book, watch the movie, or even just watch a YouTuber talk about the book than read it in person.

The problem with this is that by trying to substitute reading with all these we miss out on its many benefits, the benefits of actual in-depth reading.

We live in a time where most people are so visual and social media seems to take up much of almost everyone’s day. For most people, all they read is Instagram captions, Facebook posts, WhatsApp or text messages, movie captions, and nothing in-depth.

If you are this kind of person you are missing out so much on the benefits of actual in-depth reading!

Albert Einstein a famous physicist and genius said,” Somebody who only reads newspapers and at best books of contemporary authors looks to me like an extremely near-sighted person who scorns eyeglasses. He is completely dependent on the prejudices and fashions of his times since he never gets to see or hear anything else.”

Just imagine what he would have to say about a person who doesn’t read anything in-depth at all.

If you are that kind of person, allow me to let you in on some of the benefits of reading more often and inspire you to make it one of your daily habits and I promise that’s a journey you’ll never regret.

From the reading of ‘good books’ there comes a richness of life that can be obtained in no other way.

-Gordon B. Hinckley

There are numerous benefits we get from reading any material be it books, magazines, newspapers, articles, and the like but that doesn’t make it any easier to read them, especially if you are not a ‘born reader’.

But do not let not being a ‘born reader’, stop you from learning to read, because you are missing out on the beauty of reading- how intimate words can be, how captivating, how much you could learn and so much more.

And this could be hindering your success in more ways than one.

And one more thing, readers are made, not born. All it takes is the right attitude to get you started and you’ll be well on your way to a super successful life.

Benefits of reading more often

1.Reading helps to improve focus.

For one to understand whatever it it they are trying to read, concentration is needed. And the longer one can concentrate on a particular thing, the more their ability to focus is improved.

It may start with something small like being able to read an article, or concentrate on one book for 20 minutes, and so on but the magic lies in doing it often. Once you learn to focus on one thing at a time, this focus also spreads across to other parts of your life and you find that you can easily concentrate on whatever it is you are working on, finish it and move on to the next.

Focusing is a great way to beat procrastination, and once you learn to beat procrastination, you will be well on your way to a successful life.

2. Reading is absolutely the way to gain valuable and specialized knowledge.

Napoleon hill in his book, Think and grow rich said,” Successful people, in all callings, never stop acquiring specialized knowledge related to their major purpose, business or profession. Those who aren’t successful make the mistake of believing that the knowledge-acquiring period ends when they finish school. The truth is that schooling does little more than point one in the direction of how to acquire practical knowledge.”

If you desire to be successful in any undertaking, be ready to read a lot of information and do a lot of research on whatever it is you want to be successful at.

The amount of information you can learn by reading a book written on the subject doesn’t in any way compare to what you will learn by listening to an audiobook, which proves that reading is top tier.

The beauty is there are numerous books on whichever subject we can imagine.

Abraham Lincoln put it this way, “Books serve to show a man that those original thoughts of his aren’t new after all.”

So grab one and get started on your journey. Learn from those who have already been where you want to go.

I couldn’t have put it better than Socrates did,

Employ your time in improving yourself by other men’s writings so that you shall come easily by what others have labored hard for.

Socrates

Whatever it is you want to learn, say for example how to develop self-esteem, how to stop worrying, how to make it in life, how to overcome the fear of failure, how to attain a fulfilling life, how to get more out of life, just mention it, whatever it is, reading books is the way to learn all these and more.

Many as they are thou, books never seem to be enough. As a reader, we shall always crave to read one book after another.

John Steinbeck put it this way,” I guess there are never enough books.”

3.It is a great way to become a better communicator and definitely a better leader.

Today a reader, tomorrow a leader.

– Margaret Fuller

As a reader especially of stories, you get to step into different characters and see things from behind the scenes. This helps you to understand why those characters made the decisions they made no matter how bad, stupid, or less thought they may look to the outsider.

This improves your empathy, teaches you to consider and understand other people’s feelings, and learn to respect their decisions.

Furthermore, you learn to look at things from the other person’s point of view and this makes you a great communicator as you don’t just listen to reply but to understand whatever is being said.

Malorie Blackman said it best, her words went, “Reading is an exercise of empathy; an exercise in walking in someone’s shoes for a while.”

4.Reading helps improve our writing skills and vocabulary

The material we read greatly influences our vocabulary and writing style too, just like having a role model inspires us, maybe because of their lifestyle, their work, or their achievements.

If we encounter a man of rare intellect, we should ask him what books he reads.

-Ralph Waldo Emerson

Research shows that when we read something we consider beautiful, we unconsciously take in its cadence, writing style, and vocabulary and this will be reflected in our writing too.

5. Reading improves your memory.

It does this by exercising the brain cells and keeping them activated.

Just like our muscles, our brain has a use it or lose it policy- the more you use it, the better it gets, and the less you use it, the more dormant it becomes. Lack of information to process reduces and inhibits the information-processing parts of our brain. And this affects our ability to solve problems, think, remember things, and focus too.

So if you are looking to develop your cognitive skills, reading is the way to go.

6. Reading improves our overall mental health.

This is achieved by easing tension in the body, lowering the heart rate, and hence helping one to relax.

And once one is able to relax, stress is reduced hence improving overall mental health.

Libraries will get you through times of no money better than money will get you through times of no libraries.

– Anne Herbert

7. Reading gives one a sense of belonging

When going through some tough times, reading about people who have been in similar situations, biographies, and autobiographies of different people can help one feel less alone and gain the strength to keep going.

It serves to teach us that we aren’t the first to go through such difficult times and they too, shall pass.

I love the words of Emma Thompson that go, “I think books are like people, in the sense that they’ll turn up in your life when you most need them.”

I remember a time in my life when my world seemed to turn upside down. At this point, I was so sad that I almost fell into depression. One book saved my life, “Tough times never last but tough people do” by Robert H. Schuller. I have read it countless times since then and every time I look at it on my bookshelf, I smile, close my eyes, and thank it for saving my life when I needed it the most.

“Books are good company, in sad times and happy times for books are people – people who have managed to stay alive by hiding between the covers of a book.” – E. B White

I agree with Descartes when he said, “The reading of all good books is like conversation with the finest (people) of the past centuries.

8. Reading is a productive form of entertainment

No entertainment is so cheap as reading, nor any pleasure as lasting.

~ Mary Wortley Montagu

One of my favorite quotes on reading is one by American comedian, writer, and actor, Groucho Marx, who says ” I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go to the other room and read a book.”

I love reading so much, I am a polygamist reader and I wonder how people who don’t read manage to get through their days sane. Diving into the pages of a good book is my best way to pass time and get away from the noise of the world or better yet fuel my soul for a long day ahead.

I agree with Jorge Luis Borges when he said, “I have always imagined paradise will be kind of a library.”

As a voracious reader, there are some books you come across that are so captivating, relatable, or exciting that you just can’t put the book down. You just want to carry the book with you to the tub, toilet, dining and everywhere you go.

A captivating book is so magical, and the way it has the ability to keep a reader on their feet is just amazing.

If you haven’t found this type of book, consider finding out what your genre is. Everyone has a different genre just like they have different tastes in food and clothes. You too need to find those genres that fit you just right.

It could be biographies, classics, adventures, thrillers, fiction, fantasy or romance novels, self-help books, politics, medical, or even business books that stand out the most for you. Whatever it is, it will help you get your reading journey started.

Thou don’t stop at reading just that, read broad, that’s the way to get the most out of books.

In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through but rather how many can get through to you.

-Mortimer J. Alder

It isn’t so much about how many books we read but more about how many have impacted our lives.

Closing note

To continue growing in life, we need to continue learning, and to continue learning, we need to continue reading relevant books.

One who reads a lot will survive so many challenges and obstacles, some of which they never knew they have.

We hope we made you excited about starting your reading journey or maybe even resuming it. And we left you this little collection of quotes that will inspire you further to take your reading to the next level.

Some reading quotes just for you

Learning is the treasure that will follow its owner everywhere.

–Chinese saying

I wouldn’t be a songwriter if it wasn’t for books that I loved as a kid. I think that when you can escape into a book it trains your imagination to think big and to think that more can exist than what you see.

Taylor Swift

It is what you read when you don’t have to that determines what you will be when you can’t help it.

Oscar Wilde

Those who don’t read are no better off than those who cannot.

–Chinese saying

When I think of all the books still left to read, I am certain of further happiness.

Jules Renard

I do believe something very magical can happen when you read a good book.

– J, K Rowling

A man may die, nations may rise and fall but an idea lives on.

– John .F. Kennedy

Salvation is certainly among the reasons I read. Reading and writing have always pulled me out of the darkest experiences in my life. Stories have given me a place in which to lose myself. They have allowed me to forget. They have allowed me to imagine different endings and better possible worlds.

Roxane Gay

My alma matter was books, a good library…..I could spend the rest of my life reading, just satisfying my curiosity.

– Malcolm X

Show me a family of readers and I will show you the people who move the world.

–Napoleon Bonaparte

Enjoy the ride!