Stop buying new books and read the ones you currently own...

...is the advice I should give myself.

Does that resonate with you too?

Sometimes, we can get stuck down the seemingly endless information rabbit hole of aspirational self-development books, enlightening documentaries and inspirational podcasts.

This can result in an individual falling victim to an overwhelming overload of ideas, without taking any actionable steps to incorporate any newly discovered strategies or activities into their life.

With various strands of media all competing for our attention, reading physical or e-books may not be the pastime it once was.

And yet, people still love reading.

Also, authors are still selling books for readers to read.

So, if you're not a reader, become one.

Just start.

Start with five minutes a day.

I have realised that I have not read enough books all the way through to completion.

Why?

I am not entirely sure.

Last year, I read Noughts & Crosses by Malorie Blackman for pleasure. I didn't just start it but I completed the whole book. All 479 pages. Trust me, that felt like a real achievement for me because, truth be told, I have always struggled with confidence when it comes to reading.

There are a couple of instances from my youth when I can remember reading 'publicly' (within the classroom and at home) and I was playfully ridiculed after making some very basic fumbles.

Even now, all these years later, if I make a mistake while reading to young children, I always say, "Sorry!" before continuing. All these years later, I am still somewhat haunted by my youthful fumbles while reading.

Over the years, I always envied other people's reading habits. How they would devour books during a holiday or talk about 'getting lost in a good book'.

Nevertheless, the invent and now widespread availability of audiobooks has offered me a real lifeline in recent years, and I have ‘read’ more in the last few years than I did in the previous decade.

Reading can seem daunting if you constantly preoccupy yourself with the amount of progress you're making, so why not let go of the idea of 'a chapter before bed'.

Instead, read for five minutes or read a page if that's all you feel like you can manage.

True story: earlier today I listened to the first chapter of a book on Spotify, WHILE following along with the physical book in my hand.

Why?

I am not entirely sure.

BUT I followed along with the reader, I re-read sections for myself and I retained the ideas.

I am making progress as a reader and I hope you are too!