How To Actually Read More Books This Year 30 Actionable Tips

Bonisiwe Shabane

-Nov 1, 2025, 5:17 AM

how to actually read more books this year 30 actionable tips

Want to read more books but can’t find the time? Discover 30 practical, real-life tips to help you read more books—even on the busiest days. I know how it feels—your TBR’s exploding, life’s nonstop, and you can’t remember the last time you finished a book you loved. Over the years, I’ve tried every trick in the book (pun intended!) to carve out reading time, stay motivated, and actually finish what I start. Here are 30 practical reading tips—from tiny habit tweaks to social hacks—that helped me read more books. Let’s dive in!

Block 15–30 minutes on your calendar—just like a meeting. Morning coffee, lunch break, bedtime: pick a sweet spot and stick to it. Stash one in your bag, car, and nightstand. When life pauses—waiting in line, a delayed train—you’re ready to read. I power through chores, commutes, and workouts by listening on Libby or Audible. Suddenly, “busy” becomes “bookish.”

“I want to read more this year” is a common New Year’s resolution, for good reason: Reading, especially fiction, provides steady, reliable escapism ― and a lot of us are looking for just that... Plus, it’s great for your mental and physical health. One 2016 study, led by researchers from Yale University School of Public Health, found that adults who reported reading books for more than 3½ hours per week were 23% less likely to die within... Another study ― this one put out in 2009 by the University of Sussex ― found that reading as little as six minutes at a time can be enough to reduce stress levels by... Want to get in on that action? I, along with some BookTokers I spoke to, come bearing tips on how to read more.

(My credentials? I’m a fairly avid reader, clocking in 51 books this year and 60 last year. That’s not 365-books-a-year numbers ― how did that BuzzFeed reporter do all that? ― but it’s not bad, either! The BookTokers’ credentials? The thousands of people who follow them on TikTok for recommendations.)

Reading isn’t a competition, even if the Pizza Hut Book It! Program had you believing that. Any real book lover will tell you it’s more about what you absorb and take away from each book than how many titles you can cram into a year. In our day of distraction, it can be really difficult to actually read the books that you want to read. We have many of the same distractions that our ancestors had, but on top of those, we also have some brand new ones, like the social media ‘infinite scroll’, which intentionally utilizes principles from... Today, attention is a major commodity.

Millions and millions of dollars are spent on capturing your attention and holding it—the very same attention that you need for achieving your own goals and projects, like reading those books you want or... Now, this post is just a little bit ironic because I too am asking for your attention. However, I don’t want to lure you into an infinite abyss of doom scrolling. Instead, I’m going to introduce you to some of the best tools that I use to direct my attention towards reading and to keep my attention there for as long as I decide. I have a lot of different jobs—I host a philosophy and theology podcast, I’m an accidental notebook czar on YouTube, I write essays here on Substack to help people learn philosophy, I preach at... All of my jobs and projects require me to have read a lot, and to continue reading even more.

In this post I share my best tips for reading and understanding what you read. Todoist makes the world’s #1 task manager to organize your work and life. Tell me more Each January, I think: this is going to be the year I read a lot of books. And each December, I wonder why I didn’t. I’m not alone.

Reading more is one of the most popular New Year's resolutions. And, like so many other resolutions, it often gives way to life’s other demands. Last year, I decided to take a different approach to how I think about reading. In the past, I had it in mind that I should read more because it’s a good habit — I’m a writer, and I wanted to be more like people who read a book... This time around, I focused less on the “should” aspect of reading and more on how to make time for it and how to actually enjoy it. I reconnected with why I most want to read: I learn new things, it improves my writing, it inspires me creatively, it helps me connect with people.

I also wanted to spend less time doomscrolling on social media and news apps, which — opposite from books — leaves me feeling like I’ve overloaded on information without remembering any of it. My strategy paid off. I read 40 books, compared to 12 the year before. This total included several books in French, thanks to my French book club; several novels I read in book clubs, like Homegoing and Rebecca; and one long-time goal-read (and one of my first audio... In between those New Year's Resolutions to eat healthier and exercise more, why not give your brain a bit of a workout too? Regular reading leads to positive impacts on your mental and emotional well-being, including slowing down cognitive decline, bolstering empathy and curiosity, improving your vocabulary and reducing stress.

Reading can also help you get better sleep. Like any habit or skill, you'll benefit from being consistent and prioritizing reading in your life. There’s no magic solution, but there are hacks to help you up your reading time in 2025. Between trying new formats, knowing when to put down the book and the best time to pick a new one up, these seven suggestions will benefit any reader – seasoned or rookie. For tips, I asked Al Woodworth, a senior editor at Amazon Books who reads hundreds of books a year, and Ryan Carr, a book influencer who read almost 70 books in 2024, almost double... Take a moment to reflect on why you want to read more in 2025.

Is it because you want to join in on the BookTok fun? Need to get off your phone more? Is there a subject you want to learn about? If you’re anything like us here at Once Upon a Book Club, you’ve probably wished for more hours in the day for literary joy! But with busy schedules, reading usually takes a back seat. Don’t worry!

Whether you’re a casual reader or tackling an ambitious reading goal, we’ve got you covered with our team’s practical tips and tricks to make more time for books this year. Let’s make 2025 the year you finally read more, even with a packed calendar! Let’s start with the numbers – but don’t panic! This is the kind of math you’ll actually enjoy. For example, if you take about 8 hours to finish a book, ask yourself, how many minutes a day can you reasonably commit to reading? 10 minutes a day?

That’s about 5 hours a month, which adds up to 6-7 books a year. 30 minutes a day? That’s 15 hours a month, or 20 books a year. You overachiever, you! “Reading is a discount ticket to everywhere.” Reading more books is a goal many of us set for ourselves each year, yet studies show that the average person in the US only reads twelve books annually.

With hectic schedules, endless distractions and towering TBR lists, it’s no surprise that reading can be relegated to just another task on a never-ending to-do list. The pressure to meet reading goals – or to keep up with others – can take the joy out of reading. But, what if there were a way to read more books without the stress? In our guide here at What We Reading, we’re going to take you through practical, stress-free strategies to help you read more books this year, no matter how hectic your schedule is. From setting realistic goals to creating a reading routine that works for your schedule, these tips guarantee to help you rediscover the joy of reading and make it an effortless part of your day! Many people set out with the best intentions to read more books, but life so often finds a way of blocking their progress.

Lack of time is one of the biggest barriers—between work, family, and social commitments, carving out even twenty minutes a day can feel impossible. Decision fatigue also plays a role. With thousands of books released yearly, choosing what to read next can be overwhelming, leaving many readers indecisive. There’s also the pressure to meet ambitious reading goals, whether it’s a personal challenge or keeping up with avid reading influencers on social media. This pressure can turn reading from a relaxing escape into a source of stress. You may feel guilty for not finishing books fast enough, abandoning ones you don’t enjoy, or falling short of your goals.

It’s important to remember that you’re not alone in these struggles. Reading more books doesn’t have to mean sacrificing your free time or turning it into a competition. Focusing on small, manageable changes allows you to create a neat reading habit in your life. Each year I try to read 100 books or more. I don’t always make my goal — minor life events like pushing a whole human being out of my own body derailed my 2023 progress, for instance — but for the most part, I’m... So, how am I able to avoid the pitfalls of endless Twitter doomscrolls or getting sucked into a TikTok binge?

It’s not always easy, I’ll tell you that. But if one of your resolutions in 2025 is to read more books, I’ve found that there are a few (relatively simple) ways to help beef up your reading habits that don’t involve swearing... (Then again, Netflix subscriptions are outrageously expensive these days — your wallet is probably better off with that new thriller your got from the library, instead.) A little disclaimer: the following tricks aren’t rocket science, but then again, I wouldn’t necessarily say it’s always easy to consciously prioritize reading in your life if you don’t already. (Presumably that’s also why you’re reading this blog post.) For me, it helps that 1.) I love reading (love it), and 2.) that I’m a pretty fast reader, and always have been. If that doesn’t sound like you, never fear — I’m here to help whether you want to increase how many books you read this year, or if you simply just want to be more...

How To Actually Read More Books This Year 30 Actionable Tips

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