I can hype myself up to read a book. I can make my bed, plop down in my bean bag, grab one of the many books I’ve purchased and still need to read—and yet I find myself eyeing my phone and yearning for the chapter to just end, even if I’m enjoying myself.
My current theory is a good screen detox could work, but if anyone has any theories or strategies that you yourselves employ to overcome this issue, I would be more than happy (and grateful) to listen.
by draigonalley
21 Comments
It may possibly be that I’m ADHD because I generally do find it hard to concentrate when I read, but I find that the slower the book pacing is the higher are the odds that I lose focus and want the chapter to just end.
Scrolling on your phone has likely damaged your attention span. Giving up social media (or at least heavily cutting back) should help. In the meantime, keep your phone away from you while you read. Put it in a drawer, leave it in another room, whatever. Having it right next to you will just tempt you to use it more.
as someone who recently got into the habit:
by just doing it. by just sitting your ass down. and doing it.
No need to have your phone by you at bedtime. Get a clock. Put the phone in the kitchen. Set up a DND exception for anyone who might actually call you in an emergency. Voila.
Another method is to develop a disgust for social media, or at least enough self loathing about your own use of it, to overpower your desires for at least an hour a day.
Think of it like running or exercising. It’s harder at first, but once you get the habit going it gets much easier.
I really struggled with reading and having a short attention span. What really helped me was starting out with audiobooks. I’d listen to them while I did chores around the house. Listening to audiobooks somehow fixed some of the issues I was having and made easier for me to transition to regular books. I’m still not a great reader, but I’ve seen a big improvement.
By taking a book with me when I take a bath and not my phone. It’s how I read for at least an hour. I also find it hard to turn off the TV, put phone away, to read anywhere else.
On my days off (Fri & Sat), I dedicate my first few hours to a pot of coffee, breakfast, and reading. At least 1-3 hours and you’d be surprised how quick you can go through novels trying to do something like this on days you don’t have to worry about work, errands, or commitments.
Do reading sprints. Track your process. Go for 10 mins or an hour. See how many pages or percent is your average. Keep a journal. Write down your pages read per day. And so on. Make goals. Like 1 hour a day or something
I’m an oldish dude who’s always read and the distraction shit entered the picture with this stupid smart phone. What works for me but is annoyingly hard: turn off phone or put away. Read in a space without electronic distraction for an hour without doing anything else. This will build reading attention strength, and the longer you read a good book in individual sessions, the stronger your mind will be connected to it and book gravity established.
I mean… I just like reading.
It’s the stopping what I’m currently enjoying (reading) in order to go do actually productive things that’s the issue.
I’ll go against the grain here and say I actually find I do best reading when I give in (briefly!) to the phone urges. If I need to take a second to watch a TikTok or check a notification, and that provides relief, then I will. Then back down it goes and I enjoy the book without the yearning. It’s not fully uninterrupted time, sure, but I usually still get through at least two books a week.
If you find yourself picking up your phone and not putting it back down again, agreed that a social media detox maybe be helpful.
I read every night before I go to sleep. I tend to read classics so there is little chance of me staying up to read another chapter, but to be honest, I’m so programmed by the bedtime ritual that I couldn’t stay awake if I wanted to. This is also a helpful long term tool for if you wake at night and can’t get back to sleep. If I’m lying awake, sleep is only two pages away. Good luck!
Depression helps me👍🏻
Are you loving your books? I only face this issue when I’m really not into the book I’m reading.
4 years ago I gave up social media (other than Reddit, obviously). My attention span has drastically improved since. I could sit for hours and read a book that I’m really into, just like when I was younger (before social media) and would stay up all night just to finish a new page-turner.
Take your book to a café / park / library and leave your phone at home.
I used to be a really heavy reader, then like a lot of people all my “reading” time was devoured by my phone. Sometimes BS like IG and Twitter, but sometimes I could justify it with reading the news.
I made a conscious effort (to use your excellent term) to “screen detox” and now I am back to reading about a book a week. I feel much better.
Get an old fashion alarm clock and charge your phone in another room. Ban it from any space you like to read in.
Having something nearby you to grab for when you found your hand groping about for the phone. I have taken up drinking hot herbal tea at night, in part because it give my hands something to do while reading.
The habit makes the monk. But I prefer having breaks, where I go for a walk or see a video on YouTube after 1 – 1:30 of reading. Just to digest and process the information. The great books are the ones where I don’t feel the need to stop
I take a bath. It’s my sensory deprivation tank because I struggle with distraction big-time at say, a park or a coffee shop, my house with all the things I need to do, or even my bed or couch with my TV right there because really I am quite tired and TV is so much easier.
I have adhd so my ability to hyperfixate is strong, but only if the book I’m reading is interesting to me. If it is I can churn out 1-2 books a day. If it’s not something that can keep my attention for long I either end up reading it in bursts over a few days to see if it gets better or I won’t finish the read.
Put down the phone or only use Kindle app.