52 books in 2022
In 2022 I read more than fifty books about personal development. One per week in fact, which was completely imaginable for me who tended to read 1 or 2 books per year over the last decade…
Here are some of my tips and learnings about reading:
I stay with the paper version. The physical book has the advantage of being easily flipped through, transported, but above all visible as a reminder to read it.
Still on the reminder, I’ve always one book ahead. Before I even start a book, the next one is on its way or already here. This encourage me to read my current book before I can discover the next one. Thanks to this, the next book is just there in the corner of my desk so I don’t forget that the next book look great.
So I also started a ritual that consists in ordering my next book every Friday, and sharing on social networks, no matter where I am in the progress of my current book.
With that also came a rule that I stopped following after a few months but that was to never start the next book until I finished the previous one.
I have a bookmark that is nothing more or less than a postcard that I also use as a guide to read through the pages to facilitate my reading.
With the bookmark I always have colored mini post it notes when I read. I don’t use a color code and I just put post-its when a passage speaks to me, when it’s an important point, or simply when I want to be able to find it back easily. It’s really an investment in time because months later I can easily find the essence of a book in a few minutes by rereading my post-its.
I use amazon recommendations and top sellers by category to feed my “wish lists” and always have plenty of books ready to order.
While at first I was careful when ordering about my ability to read the book within a week so as not to “break” my current streak, but when I felt I was really involved and wanted to read more and more, I allowed myself to read larger books of over 400 pages, and sometimes books of over 400 pages in English. I spent several weeks on some books without putting any pressure on myself because sometimes I was able to read an entire book within 48 hours.
One of the recurring frustrations of reading a lot is having little opportunity to share it with those around you. It’s not like the latest Netflix series that everyone is talking about. So I offer a lot of books to my friends and family this year, and try to get them started on reading too.
Conclusion
Don’t hesitate to get started, one book a month is already quite a challenge! I sincerely hope that this article will help you if you want to start too.
