Recently updated on: October 21, 2023
“Reading is not for me.”
I find it funny and nostalgic that I laughed at the idea of reading books for pleasure at some point in my life. Even reading for knowledge was unattractive aside from exam weeks.
In high school, I was addicted to computer games, particularly Ragnarok — the predecessor to online role-playing games.
The only book I would spend time with was the Ragnarok Guide Book I borrowed from my classmate during that time. I read that book cover-to-cover more times than any of my books in high school.
I somewhat began to read Bob Ong’s books in college, but they did not last long, mainly because I was too focused on playing DOTA and other computer games. Soon, the distance between myself and literature grew further.
“I find no reason to read other than textbooks during exams, and it will not be needed when I become an engineer, anyway,” the defeatist in me said.
The Beginning of My Reading Journey
I was 23 when I stumbled upon the habit of reading - not out of necessity but due to sheer boredom. I was already working but was not given any tasks, so I had plenty of time.
So after I finished all the nothing I wanted to do, I remembered a book that my sister enthusiastically had been recommending to me since college. The title of the book was To Kill A Mockingbird by the late Harper Lee.
I was amazed at reading. It was like watching a movie, not with my eyes and ears, but with my mind.
That was the beginning of my journey through reading. I soon got hooked on legal thriller novels by John Grisham and have soon expanded to a wider variety of genres and authors.
From mystery to history, from children’s books to poetry, from self-help to psychology, from philosophy to spirituality, from business to fitness, and many more.
My goodreads account shows I read about 139 books. 135 of them were in the last five years.
To add, I also consumed blogs and websites about different topics. Unfortunately, I can’t add them to my Goodreads statistics.
As time passed and I read more, my desire to write grew. Reading and writing are like breathing. You inhale by reading, and you exhale through writing. And that’s what happened two years ago when I decided to start this blog.
In this time and age of information and disinformation, we are always reading, whether we like it or not. So, it is sad if your only source of information is social media.
You need to read books. Not just books, but good books, even great books that will improve character.
Remember GIGO. Garbage in, garbage out.
A Simple Way To Start Your Reading Habit
You can get the habit if you are interested in what you're reading. So, the first thing that you need to do is to read books that you find interesting. It doesn't matter what book genre it could be.
For beginners who are just picking up the habit, it is best to start with printed books because it gives the feeling and satisfaction of making progress as you flip through the pages.
And lastly, take your time. You don't have to force yourself to read for an hour when you're just starting. Remember that 10 minutes of reading is better than nothing.
Final Thought:
We need to understand that what we read greatly shapes how we think. I do hope we avoid consuming senseless information and wasting our time.
I hope everyone will soon discover the amazing and magical world of books. Read, not only for the mind but, most importantly, for the heart.
Happy reading!