Why You Shouldn’t Feel Bad About “Not Reading Enough.”

There are so many great books and not enough time to read them. Even if we try our best, we cannot finish them all. As unfortunate as that is, we readers strive to get through as many books as we can.

Reading Trackers

Several websites like Goodreads and Storygraph track our reading habits and let other people see what we want to read, what we’re currently reading, and what we’ve already read. Goodreads possesses a feature on their website called a yearly reading goal. At the beginning of the year, you set a goal of how many books you want to read this year. These goals can range from one to even two hundred books.

There’s a point in time where we focus on reaching that goal, and it overshadows the joy that comes with reading. I remember setting my goal as one-hundred books and feeling the pressure to not only meet but surpass that goal by December. For the first half of this year, I decided to set my reading goal as one, to relieve myself of that pressure and enjoy what I’m reading.

Since doing that, I’ve felt more relaxed when I read. For me, that’s the whole point. Transporting myself to another world to escape from the current one.

It lets my mind wander, and I let go of whatever problems I’m dealing with. Reading shouldn’t be stressful.

Falling Behind

I see numerous posts on Instagram and Twitter of others feeling horrible for “falling behind” on their reading goals. I usually encourage setting goals for yourself, but ones that harm your mental and emotional well-being are more detrimental than good. There’s no such thing as “falling behind.” Everyone reads at their own pace and also has busy lives outside of their reading.

I realize that in pharmacy school, I cannot read at the pace I want. It took me time to feel content with that. Life is hectic and at this point, getting through school is my top priority. So my solution was to let go of this goal for the first half of the year and set a new one that I don’t take too seriously.

Be Encouraging

Each story that one finishes is an accomplishment and should be celebrated. For some, polishing off a 400-page novel is easy. For others, it takes small spurts of reading over weeks. No matter the pace of your reading, please encourage your friends that they’re doing the best they can and that you’re proud of them.

On Twitter, I love to boost my mutuals when they finish a book. I want them to tell me about it and give me their opinion. Talking about books with others makes the whole experience even more comforting.

Other Options

I also encourage readers to pick shorter books if they feel like a 600-pager is too ambitious. This also includes graphic novels because those are quick to get through. Audiobooks are a great source to get your reading in because you can listen while doing other things.

You all are doing a great job, and I’m proud of you! Keep enjoying your reading experiences!