How Can Reading Change Your Life? 6 Amazing Benefits of Reading!

How can reading change your life? I can honestly say reading has shaped my life. I read all the time. When I’m working I’m listening to audio books. Before bed I read on my Kindle Paperwhite till I’m sleepy. I read for work and I read for fun.

Books have always been a huge part of my life. My mother loves reading and my baby sitter used to read books to me all the time. Later on my favorite teacher was the one who read books out loud after lunch. My second job was at the local library. And that baby sitter I mentioned became my best friend and book buddy. My other friends are always giving me great book suggestions too!

What about you? Are you a big reader?

Whether you already read a lot, wish you read more, or have never liked reading you may be surprised when you learn the benefits of reading. So how can reading change you life?

Let’s find out!

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Is Reading a Dying Form?

In this world of smart phones, YouTube vlogs, video tutorials, movies and TV it is almost entirely possible to avoid reading anything besides the most basic signs and labels.

Does that mean that reading is dying out?

Of course not! Even if you don’t like to read you are probably reading something daily. The internet is full of written information in the forms of news articles and blogs. At work you probably have to read instructions, emails, and more.

Taking information in through the written word is far from dying out with more people publishing original content than ever before.

You will never stop reading and the benefits of reading are undeniable so you might as well get good at it!

How Can Reading Change Your Life and Help You Succeed?

I remember when I was a little girl my mother emphasized that the most important thing I could learn at school was how to read.

It’s true. If you can learn to read you can learn anything and everything else. As long as you struggle to read you will face roadblocks in every part of your life.

Reading well helps you take in information quickly. It helps you succeed in school and work. It will also help you continue learning new things as they come up for the rest of your life.

If you struggle with reading work to improve by trying to read more and more each day. If your kids don’t like to read find ways to make it more interesting by showing them the movies based on books, reading aloud to them, and enjoying books yourself.

Reading Can Improve Your Vocabulary

So beyond the basics of reading what you have to read, how can reading change your life?

Reading improves your vocabulary. A lot of great words in the English language are dying a slow death because people aren’t using them in every day life. And I’m not talking about weird, fancy or archaic words either.

A lot of my volunteer work revolves around reading small paragraphs with people and discussing them. Many young people don’t know words that I take for granted and use often. The only reason for this I can think of is that they don’t read a lot.

When you read you naturally learn new words and understand them through the context. This not only helps you speak clearly but also helps you understand what people are saying to you. Having a good vocabulary isn’t just about impressing others. The value of a good vocabulary lies in your ability to understand anything written or spoken which of course is inextricably linked with your ability to learn.

Having a good vocabulary from reading often also helps you spell better which makes you look more professional when you have to write any kind of message.

Reading Makes You More Empathetic

Can reading change your life in any other ways? Absolutely! It can change the way you think and even the way you feel about things.

I never really thought about it before but when I learned this fact I wasn’t surprised. Many studies show that one of the benefits of reading is that it makes you more empathetic.

What does it mean to be empathetic? It means that you can imagine how someone else might feel in a certain situation and you can feel for them.

It just makes sense that one of the benefits of reading fiction is that it makes you more empathetic. After all when you read a book you are often inside the mind of a person who is very different from yourself and that person is going through unique situations you may or may not ever experience. The entire journey is about understanding how that person might feel and why they do the things they do.

So if one of the benefits of reading books is that it makes you more empathetic what are the benefits of being empathetic? Put plainly, it means that you will be a more understanding, reasonable and kind person. You will care more about people who aren’t the same as you and you will take time to listen to their viewpoints. It’s clear to see how much this world could benefit from more empathy.

Reading Opens Your World

Along those lines one of the benefits of reading books is that it will open your world. I like reading books because it allows me to travel the world and all time periods on a budget. I am never truly stuck at home when I have a book to read because I could be in India, Africa, England, or even space. I could be in the past or the future.

When you read books you give yourself a chance to see what life might be like for different people, in different places, with different cultures at different times.

Can reading change your life? Well it can certainly change your point of view and how you feel about things.

Horrible things like racism, hatred and oppression are the result of people viewing those that are different from themselves as “other”.

Reading is the antidote. When you read about someone from a different religion or culture you come to realize that we are very much alike. We have the same desires, fears and sorrows. We all want a good life with people we love.

Reading opens up your world because it takes you to new places in your mind and heart but who knows? You might just be inspired to travel to some of the places you have read about it real life!

Reading Relieves Stress

Another one of the benefits of reading books is that it relieves stress.

I like to read books because when I read before bed it keeps me from staring at the blue light of my iPhone right before I try to sleep. Instead, I read on my Kindle Paperwhite which helps me wind down and get sleepy.

I also like to listen to books while I work because it keeps my mind busy during the boring work of cleaning houses and it also helps me focus on a good story instead of whatever I could be worrying about.

If you have a stressful life, want better sleep or just need to get your mind on something else reading is a great way to relieve stress. One 2009 study by University of Sussex found that reading can reduce stress by up to 68% and does so in just 6 minutes, faster than other relaxation techniques like listening to music or having a cup of tea. So if you, like me, are trying to find ways of unwinding anxiety maybe you just need to read more.

Readers are Lifelong Learners

How can reading change your life? Well you’ve seen many of the benefits of reading already but here’s one more. Readers are always learning.

Whether you read non-fiction, fiction or a mix of both you are going to learn something with every book you read.

I would credit most of my knowledge of World War I and World War II to the Maisie Dobbs Series by Jaqueline Winspear. I learned a lot about Egyptology from the Amelia Peabody Series by Elizabeth Peters. I also enjoyed learning from The Secret Life of Trees by Peter Wohlleben and a lot about animals from Animal Dialogues by Craig Childs. I also often listen to self-help and productivity books to enhance my knowledge for this blog.

What do you want to learn about? Are there any things you would like to improve in your life? Would you like to understand a different country and it’s culture? Do you have some misconceptions about a certain religion or group of people?

One of the benefits of reading fiction books is that they are a great way to learn about places and people from inside their experiences. Nonfiction books are good at explaining the details.

If you learn how to build a reading habit you will be learning new things for the rest of your life! And as an added benefit an active brain that continues to learn new things ages much slower than one that doesn’t.

Best Books to Start a Reading Habit

So what can you do if you aren’t already a big reader or don’t read as much as you would like to? Want to know how to make a habit of reading?

Well, first of all pick some great books! What are the best books to start a reading habit? Well I will give you a list of my favorites below but the BEST books to start a reading habit are the ones you enjoy.

What kind of books might you enjoy? Think about it. What kind of TV shows and movies do you enjoy? If you like sci-fi you might enjoy those kinds of books. Are you into period dramas? Find the books a lot of those movies are based on. Do you enjoy crime dramas, mysteries, thrillers or rom-coms? You can find books that fit those categories too!

Here are some of my favorites:

• Amelia Peabody Series by Elizabeth Peters
• Maisie Dobbs Series by Jacqueline Winspear
• The Baby Ganesh Detective Agency Series by Vaseem Khan
• The Lunar Chronicles by Marissa Meyer
• The System Divine Series by Jessica Brody
• The Sisterhood of the Traveling Pants Series by Ann Brashares
• Project Hail Mary by Andy Weir
• Pride and Prejudice, Emma, Sense and Sensibility etc. by Jane Austen
• The #1 Ladies Detective Agency by Alexander McCall Smith
• Happiness for Beginners, What You Wish For and more by Katheryn Center
• The Lake House, The Secret Keeper and more by Kate Morton
• The Guernsey Literary & Potatoe Peel Pie Society by Mary Ann Shaffer & Annie Barrows

Oh boy…the list could go on and on and this doesn’t even include some of my favorite Non-fiction books like everything by Meik Wiking, Courtney Carver, and Joshua Becker.

The point is, start reading and you will find out what types of books you love to read! The best books to start a reading habit are the ones that keep you coming back for more!

Ways to Read More

So we have talked about all the benefits of reading books and we have talked about how to find books you might enjoy but how will you find the time? What will make your goal of reading more finally happen this year?

If you want to know how to build a reading habit here are some basic suggestions that may work help you get on a roll.

First of all don’t be a book snob. If you love the classics and deep meaningful literature go all out but if you want to read a cozy mystery or a rom-com enjoy it and don’t feel guilty! Reading should be fun and you get to pick what you like!

Second, don’t worry about finishing a chapter. I used to do this and it slowed me down big time. When you feel like you have to read a whole chapter or not read at all you often avoid picking up the book in the first place. You might also be able to read half a chapter extra before you sleep but you don’t because you are afraid you won’t finish. Don’t worry about it! Read till you stop and you will read more often.

Third make a habit of reading by going to bed with your book at least half an hour early. When reading is part of your routine you will be able to relax and enjoy your book every single day.

Fourth, find a series! If you get involved in a series for a month or more you will definitely build the habit of reading while you enjoy the same characters and their world for awhile. Reading series is a great way to avoid a gap where you are wondering what to read next.

Also, touching base with your reader friends for suggestions will help you keep reading one book after another.

Last but not least find the type of reading that works for you. I enjoy reading but as I read books before bed I don’t get through them really fast. What has helped me read more books more quickly is listening to them but that only works cause I can listen to books while I work and I clean houses for about 12 hours a week so I can get through a lot of books that way.

What is the best way for you to read? Play around with it until you find your groove!

You Don’t Have to Go to The Library to Read More!

One thing that slowed down my reading for a long time was the fact that I either had to buy a book or go to the library and my busy schedule kept me from doing either. Not to mention I couldn’t afford to buy or store books.

So what can you do if you want to read more but you don’t want to run to the library or buy a book every two seconds?

I highly recommend you get the Libby app and connect it to your library card! When you do that you can enjoy all the e-books and audiobooks your library has to offer. If you live in a smaller town and your selection is limited some big city libraries also have the option to pay once a year for access to their selection!

Of course if you like to own books Audible and Kindle subscriptions have all the books you could ever want!

It’s worth noting too that most Classics are free on your Apple books app as well.

How Can Reading Change Your Life Unless You Try It?

You may have started this article thinking that reading isn’t that important. Or maybe you felt like the reading you already do was a “waste of time” because you enjoy reading fiction books. Believe it or not I have heard many say this.

But now that you see all the benefits of reading books I hope you will make reading a habit. Give it a try and see your vocabulary and knowledge increase. Learn more about other types of people and cultures and improve your empathy. And get the stress relief you so deserve! That’s right, reading is a form of self care so you don’t want to skip it.

You may find at first that it is difficult to pay attention because our phones and social media have made our attention span so short but you will find that in time you will be able to focus for longer periods of time.

Whatever you do I hope you can figure out how to build a reading habit you enjoy. You will never regret adding a reading habit to your happy simple life but how can reading change your life unless you give it a try?

To all my readers out there, please feel free to leave me suggestions in the comments below!