Reading for Reading’s Sake
Balancing schoolwork with personal reading goals isn’t easy, but focus is like a muscle, it grows with practice. Small strategies and steady effort turn reading from an obligation into a lifelong skill that shapes how we think and connect with the world.
As a newly minted college semester has started I have been reminded of the absolute mountain of reading that is required by many majors that have such an emphasis on text-based knowledge rather than math or computational problems. As a student at the University of Texas, I have found that I need to fit more time into my schedule just to make sure that I can complete all of the required readings for my classes. But with this comes a dilemma: balancing work and leisure.
I have set out a goal for myself to read the top 100 best books of all time. (A series that I will be sharing on this platform soon after I finish the first book from the list.) In order for me to be able to accomplish this goal I need to be able to balance the time spent reading for work and reading for play. I do want to add a caveat here: all of the reading I do is both for work and leisure. I currently study geography and music and the concepts that I am learning about in class are just as enjoyable to read as reading 1984, Brave New World, My Year of Rest and Relaxation or any other book that piques my interest. I believe that if you don’t have that sort of fervent passion for your field then you should probably pick a different field. (But that's a topic for another article.) It’s just that one is for a letter grade and one is just on my own time. Which can be bad because it’s already easy enough to procrastinate on the work that I need to do, which can make it even easier to stall on the reading I want to do.
Reading (and better put, focus) is a muscle and in order for me or any of us to get better at it, it takes practice. My brain-rotted attention span needs small breaks after reading a few pages in order to process what I just read. I have to annotate and re-read at times. This may just be a me problem, but I am willing and okay with sharing these thoughts in order for others to find some sort of solace or maybe motivation to continue with reading or whatever else causes them brain tension. And these kinds of tactics are ones that I apply even to my leisure reading. Currently, I am reading through 1984 at a very slow pace of only a few chapters a week. In order to aid my retention, after each chapter I go and watch a recap video on that chapter like I was in high school English class. This allows me to maintain interest in the story as it can be easy for me, with my lack of focus, to miss certain details. Acts like this help train my brain in order to be able to read more, faster, and with better understanding.
Reading is one of the most important skills, and it's one of the reasons I co-founded this newsletter and website over a year ago: to create articles and think pieces on topics that resonate with audiences and move them to action. Just like great literature can.
If you have been a fan of our work, please consider becoming a paid member of The Art Newsletter. Your support helps us maintain the quality of our writing, expand the voices we feature, and continue building a space for young artists, college students, and thinkers to share their ideas.
