I own a lot of books.
Maybe it's the legacy of being the daughter of a librarian father or child of a mother who always had a nose in a book with a pile in waiting or both. Either way, I find it hard to walk past bookstores, I look at libraries longingly if we drive past them and I rarely leave an op shop without at least one new (to me) book in my hand.
Since moving in with my love nearly four years ago and suddenly realising I'd finally be in one place long enough to collect as many books as I wanted, I started collecting them like my life depended on it.
Now the bookcase in my office is full 😂
But I haven't read most of them.
My current plan, which is very slow, sees me reading a book over breakfast each morning. But since I only read a few pages at a time (of these mostly non-fiction books) it takes me weeks to get through one book.
You'd think that since I love reading so much I'd just let myself sit on the couch or by the pool and read several chapters at once. And though I have the time, it seems too decedent somehow, so I settle for the few pages each morning. On the plus side, it gives me time to ponder and integrate what I'm learning.
Now, this is a great plan really, even if it's a slow plan. But there's a problem with this plan in that I've realised sometimes I'm reading a book just because I own it rather than because I really want to.
Let me explain. Several years ago I threw out the old rule I'd learned that, "Once you start a book you have to finish it."
I decided that if I didn't enjoy reading a book it was a waste of my time (read: precious life) to read that thing. So a great new rule came into play:
If I don't like the book I'm reading I'm allowed to stop at any point in the book (first page, halfway through, final chapter, it doesn't matter) and give the book away to someone else who might like it.
Great rule! It's been serving me well for about 20 years or so already.
But this week I realised I need another rule. This one is what to do when I'm reading a book I'm enjoying reading, a really well written book, that's interesting but reading it is not the best use of my time.
This is the book I was reading that triggered this realisation I needed another new rule for my book reading. 👇
Let's be clear: this is a very good book! It's well written. It's well-researched. It's engaging. It's easy to follow along. It's useful...
It's just not relevant for what I most want and need to learn right now.
And, now more than ever, I really, really value how I spend my time. I have a business to run that does important things in the lives of others and I want to it grow and grow and serve many more people.
And bigger than that, I have this one precious life (as this Caroline woman) that I want to fill with things that are genuinely aligned for me and my path, that bring me joy, that make me feel amazing.
So my new rule when reading books is that it not only has to be good great (i.e. well written and engaging) it also has to be relevant to whatever problems I'm trying to solve right now (if I'm reading non-fiction that is, which is what I'm reading most of the time anyway).
So I'm giving the great but not relevant book on branding to the op shop and I'm going to start reading this book instead. 👇
While it is dated (the late author wrote this back when I was in school!) the topic is one that I'm very interested in. I already know rather a lot about the process of turning ideas into reality (aka 'manifesting') but I'm looking for where I have gaps in my knowledge so I can do this process even better in my own life and in my supporting clients.
I expect that it will be well written because the only other book I've read by Dr. Wayne Dyer is literally one of the most life-changing books I've ever read. And when I was lucky enough to see him on stage in Sydney 10 years ago I was genuinely impressed by his grounded, kind, wise way of being.
So tomorrow I'll begin that book and see how it goes. And of course, if for any reason I don't enjoy reading it or it somehow doesn't seem relevant after all, it too will be put down and/or given away.
How good to you feel like you are at spending your time on the right things?
Whether it's the books you read or the content you're consuming elsewhere, or the content you're creating here on Hive and perhaps other places, do you think you're doing well at spending your time wisely?
Let me know in the comments. Do you do this well? And if you do, what has helped you to get better at it?
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Not needing to finish a book is good advice!
Like you, I’m a reader, and grew up in a house with lots of books.
The way I choose a non fiction book is simple; if it’s an author I haven’t read before, I’ll open a random page and start reading the left hand page. If it grips me enough to continue to the right hand side and then turn the page, it’s written well enough for me to enjoy reading it.
Non fiction is a different ball game though, and I too have a stack (ok, more like several stacks) of unread or partially read books. Most of which contain information that will benefit me in multiple areas of my life. So I pick one based on what I feel I will enjoy working on at that time, and then attack it with a stack of post it notes. This makes it easier to pick up where I left off. I HAVE to do at least a chapter or more at a time for NF books.
There’s productive reading, and then there’s reading for the pure joy of it. Both have their own rewards, but for me they seldom mix.
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Oooh. Clever! I like it.
*Borrows Malachy's great idea. 😉
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Thanks, there have been many books rejected by this method, and several new authors added to the (never ending) reading list 😂
Awesome! !LOL
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You've got a lot of books indeed and the new rule you have set makes sense. Time is a precious and valuable commodity and we really need to use it wisely. I used to read a lot before but life happens and then I discovered audiobooks which not only make me do other things while listening, I can hit the replay whenever I feel like it.
As to how I spend my time, sometimes I do waste a lot and it doesn't make me feel good so I always try to just do what really makes me feel accomplished at the end of the day.
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I lovvvvvvve audiobooks. And one day I'll allow myself to jump back onto the "reading by listening" bandwagon. Though my fear is that when I go back there I might never pick up a physical book again. !LOL
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Maybe not :) I still pick up a book and read one or two pages on them, hehe!
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Good to know! !LADY
Years ago on Hive I co ran a challenge where everyone shared what was on their bookshelves, and there were so many entries! We learnt a lot about each other.
The first half of this could have been written by me ... I barely get time to read, and when I do it's a few pages. I used to make myself read, now if I don't like it, I give up. I don't hoard books and I barely buy them, and I've gone the minimalist route. Books have to be bloody great for me to like them. And me a literature lover!
In Tassie I read three books and enjoyed them. I didn't have reception alot so I wasn't distracted by the internet.
This year I'm going to try to read more.
Love it. Ah, the blessings of being out of internet range. 😉
I think I might have to go camping with @new.things after all. 😅
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Pftt! Man!! I bought some books last December. Books affiliated with the problems I'm currently facing. Haven't finished Book one! I feel I can still use my time better but I'm just trying to figure out how. I love reading, most especially, I love reading books that have a lot to do with my passion. The one book that changed my life and altered the State of my mind was, The Power Of Your Subconscious. So practical that I practiced every night and day and I'm not kidding you when I say, things came to life. I felt like the ultimate magician.
But I really need to get my time in order. That and a lot of other things.
I wonder what's the smallest step you can break this 'reading' goal down into?
What if it was okay to just read one page a day?
It's actually cool. But I have increased from one chapter to two a day. Trying to really cover something here. 😅
🙌
I think it's a good thing to consider yourself first be it in relating with people or even the books you read.
I was given a book to read by a friend, while the book is creative and nice, it wasn't in line with my current theme. I told her and simply went for another.
It's not just about reading a book, but reading a book that'd push us into getting desired results. Some days I read for fun but mostly because of the book's impart on me. It's easier to dump a book based on the former.
Soon, I'll create my own library just as you've done and it isn't about finishing everything at once like you've said. Books are meant to be savoured like sweet flavours and not rushed except one is reading for an exam😅
!LOL I'm remembering how different reading felt when I was at university. It was a chore. I used to look forward to the holidays when I could read anything I chose.
I've recently started doing this with my brother too. He sends me videos (rather than books, but same same) that he thinks will stretch me in the direction he thinks I need to go but I know they're not where my focus needs to be. So I've started declining the suggestion to watch them and educating him as to the areas I'm most interested in learning about instead.
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Thank you @consciouscat 🤗
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It truly was a chore😂
People honestly want to help us genuinely but we know ourselves better than anyone else would.
Glad you're educating on what you need so his good efforts won't go wide.
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Looking at those books and I'm almost salivating. As an ardent book lover, I really just want to delve inside and completely submerge myself in these books. And funnily enough, I still have this love for payback even though ebooks are practically everywhere. Thanks for sharing with us.🥰
Hmmm, thanks for your comment, @jhymi. You've helped me better appreciate the library that I have collected already. 🙏
I also have a lot of ebooks and things I can read on a screen but I love physical books far more too. Nice to have something to hold in my hands and great to have a break from the screen!
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I think you are given an excellent rule!
I also love to read and I have so many books, actually I've read most of them eh eh!
however, it has been a while since I started buying and reading only books that I consider useful and that I need to grow or to solve problems and learn new things.
Unfortunately time is never enough so you have to optimize it and I think this is a way to do it and in any case not to give up the passion of reading.
🙏😍😁