Reading makes me sleepy, how can I improve my reading skills?
Hello everyone! This week I’m trying to tweak things a bit. I recently started writing on Quora in the self-development space. In this blog you will find my top answers from there. Let me know what you think of it. Happy reading! To subscribe to this newsletter click here.
Top answers from Quora this week
Reading makes me sleepy, how can I improve my reading skills?
BLUF: Use it as your strength.
I didn’t read a lot the first 20 years of my life because I didn’t see the value reading can bring to a person’s life. In 2020, when Covid-19 hit the world I came across this book called: How to Read Better and Faster by Norman Lewis. At the end the book challenged me to read a 100-page book in one sitting. I took on the challenge and finished the book then took on the next book and kept on challenging myself. I mostly went through self-help books because I found the English there was easy to follow compared to fiction.
Gradually as Covid-19 restrictions were eased and the days got busier again I found it hard to create time for reading. I shifted to reading books before bed. And contrary to popular belief I read multiple self-help before lying down to sleep. It is said that reading self-help books before the night’s sleep is not effective because we are not very conscious. I beg to differ. If you know what drives you to read you can read any time of the day. My drive was the knowledge these books bestowed upon me. Atomic Habits completely changed my game, I studied less but aced my classes, did workout, learned a musical instrument first time in my life, a ukulele. Never Eat Alone changed the way how I interacted with people. The list is endless.
Also, reading at night benefitted me in a way. My sleep quality increased. Jumping into bed directly and waiting for sleep to come to me did not work well. I have spent multiple nights when sleep just didn’t come to me. But the habit of reading changed the status quo. As I read a book at night, there came a point where I just couldn’t read more because doziness kicked in. At that moment I kept my iPad (having Kindle app) aside and dozed off.
To summarize, the three ways to enhance your reading skill:
Read How to Read Better and Faster by Norman Lewis
Find out what drives you to read? Is it entertainment or craving for knowledge?
Use your sleepiness as your strength!
More from Quora:
Have you ever asked your crush out? What happened next?
How do I remain frugal in life in 2023?
Watch time 🎥
If you are looking for some book suggestions here is Ali Abdaal for you. I have discovered many great books through his videos and I’m sure you’ll find some gems too:
Quote of the week
American comedian, and television star Groucho Marx on reading books:
I find television very educating. Every time somebody turns on the set, I go into the other room and read a book.
Get 1% better ❤
Get a book and sleep on it! (pun intended)
Until next week, ✌
Jainuine