I was a HUGE reader as a child all the way till the end of high school, to the point that I used to bring books to family gatherings. I was just so obsessed with books and learning.
I am still super obsessed with learning, but since the advent of the computer and being given a phone by my parents (end of high school for me), I have hardly managed to finish a book. I am now in my early 30s.
In college, I was addicted to social media, so all thoughts of finishing a book went out the window. I have now gotten my social media addiction under control but I am dealing with crippling FOMO.
Because there are JUST SO MANY books to read and, with everything so easily accessible with our phone now, there’s JUST SO MUCH to learn.
I can’t stick to a book anymore because once I start reading, I’ll think of something I want to read up on and immediately open my internet browser and spend a good amount of time down a rabbit hole until my curiosity has been satisfied.
Except my curiosity is never satisfied. When I do decide to settle on one book, Amazon recommends something else that I find more interesting. I keep buying books but hardly ever start, let alone finish, them.
The thing is I WANT SO BAD to get to reading once again. Sometimes I curse the day that they invented the phone. I still have good focus and concentration because I can concentrate on one thing for hours, but I am having struggle coping with the FOMO.
Have you guys dealt with that? How did you overcome it?
I still have a huge love for books. I absolutely love visiting libraries and smelling books and running my fingers through pages. I get so excited at the idea of sitting down and relishing all the books I have. All the books I have are far from boring but I move on way too easily to the next exciting thing and then never finish anything.
Please help me.
by AcademicPreference54
10 Comments
I don’t have this issue, but the only advice I can think to give is to power off your phone or leave it in another room when you want to read. Keep a notepad with you and you can jot down all the things you want to look up later. That way, you can finish your reading session and still be able to google whatever it is you thought of.
Also, start a book that others find highly addicting. Or at least a fast, fun read. When I had to get back into reading I had to read less dense material and build back up to it.
You can start by not buying any more books for a while. Make up a simple rule like “I can only keep 10 unread books at a time” or “I can only buy one new book for every two that I read” and stick to it.
I have the same issue, always itching to move on to the next book even if I’m enjoying what I’m reading. Doesn’t help that having a family and working two jobs, I don’t get to read often to begin with.
Leave your phone on silent in another room while you’re reading, make some tea or coffee, get all cozy with a blanket, and read. Set a goal like “I can’t do anything else until I’ve read x amount of chapters/pages”. That’s what helped me!
Also start easy, I used to just speed through books like crazy, and when I got back into reading I was a bit disappointed with how slowly I read. I tried starting again with a Jane Austen book which was a very bad call (Jane Austen is now one of my favourite authors, it was just too challenging at the time). Reading takes some skill and you’re out of practice! Find easy, short and addictive books to start with (for me that was a lot of Ali McNamara!) and you’ll be back to reading in no time💖
Seconding the advice of leaving your phone in other room. If you’re reading *on* your phone, I’d recommend switching to hard books or getting a dedicated e-reader which should be cheap as hell for Black Friday/holiday sales. Pair it with a library account and it pays for itself in a month.
If you think of something you want to research, maybe write it down on a notepad to look up later.
You have to make some rules and have the will power to follow them.
Some of mine are I don’t have my phone in the room with me while I’m reading to avoid the temptation of using it. I only have a set number of books I haven’t read, and I don’t buy more if it will put me over that limit. I don’t read more than one book at a time, so I must finish it before I’m able to start another.
Try making some specific rules of your own that will help with your specific problems, you seem very self aware of what your issues are. Only you can choose to follow these rules you make for yourself.
I’m a retired Life Coach and what you are experiencing is so common and frustrating. So much of the internet is designed to give you little dopamine hits so you stay engaged and make them money, so it takes great effort to break free. You can actually go through withdrawal.
A few things that I’ve seen to be effective is to:
-Turn off all notifications on your phone and computer. I have set times that I check my email and social media. There are very few people that we need to be on call for at all times.
-Remove apps from your phone. So often we only use the apps because they are at our finger tips. I only log on with my laptop and again only at designated times. Even when I was running my business on social media.
-Consider using a social media management app for your phone and computer/laptop. There are many apps that can block certain websites or have automatic timers, they don’t make it impossible to use the sites, but they do make you click a few extra things and make it less convenient which can be enough to break the habit.
-Use a timer to limit the amount of time you spend on social media or “research”. It is easy to go down a rabbit hole and lose hours of your day looking things up, decide how much time you are willing to give up and set a timer. I have a digital timer next to my computer and my
-Unsubscribe from as many marketing/recommendation emails as you can. You can always resubscribe when you are ready to find more book recommendations.
Once you dramatically reduce your distractions and temptations then I recommend you set times aside and to create a distraction free zone to read. Getting in the habit to read takes time and effort to break the other habits that are interfering with your reading goal. Setting aside time doesn’t have to be regimented, it can be as simple as after dinner before I turn on the TV or log onto social media plan to read for 20 minutes or more. Put your phone on do not disturb and leave it in another room. I suggest starting with smaller periods of time and increase until you are reading as much as you’d like.
If you find you struggle to quiet your mind and really settle into the book, you might want to do a short meditation before you start. You may also want to keep a note pad and pen near your reading spot so as things come up you can write them down. Too often something pops up in our mind and we worry we’ll forget to do it if we don’t do it in the moment, but writing it down allows us to know the task is there when we finish and won’t be forgotten.
I hope this helps.
>I can’t stick to a book anymore because once I start reading, I’ll think of something I want to read up on and immediately open my internet browser and spend a good amount of time down a rabbit hole until my curiosity has been satisfied.
It doesn’t look bad. I spent A LOT of time adding books to my “to read” list (from 0 to 1k+!) and don’t regret it (actually it felt great to explore new genres, authors, etc).
Don’t buy everything you see, add it your wishlist/”to read”. Register on thestorygraph, they have recommendations/filters based on your *mood.* So, when you fill up your “to read” pile, choose something you’re in the mood for. And you can’t miss anything because it’s already saved in your list.
I think you just need some self-discipline when it comes to focus and removing distractions. Take a chair and your book outside to read. Leave anything that runs on electricity inside.
STAY OFF OF AMAZON UNLESS YOU NEED TO BUY SOMETHING. Don’t browse it because you are bored. Get rid of the marketing emails.
Pick a genre to nerd out on.