Ways I can fit more reading into my day

I tend to ride the bus most days, and occasionally I'll hop on Lyft or Uber. Those are good times to put my phone away, pull out my kindle and get a good 20 minutes of (hopefully) uninterrupted reading.

It's a habit I used to have but I've fallen from. I used to set about 30 minutes before bed as a period with no phone, no computer, no TV, etc. Best I could do would pull out my Kindle or a book/light and read.

Something I love about the Kindle is that you can see how far you are into a book using a percentage. If you read about 15 percent of a book every day, you'll finish in just under a week. Now, 15 percent is an easier rule to apply to some books than it is to others, but it's a good starting point. Especially if you do it for multiple books at a time.

There are folks who like to take notes on what they're reading. I've never really gotten into that, but perhaps it's something that would motivate me to read more. It would certainly make things take more time, but could fuel a more mindful effort.

I'm toying with this idea. Maybe I limit it to something like: General non-fiction before lunch. Biographies between lunch and dinner. And fiction in the evening. And I throw in daily scripture reading whenever it fits best.

I'm single and have no kids. It's pretty easy to find downtime, especially when I don't have to work. So instead of sitting back and consuming entertainment junk food all day, why not read more?

That way, when it comes time to start a new book, I already have something on deck. Helps avoid getting stuck looking at the SFPL website or the Kindle Store for an hour trying to find something.

I've tried a few times to read The Lord of the Rings. It's weird because The Hobbit is one of my favorite books, but I get around halfway through The Fellowship of the Ring and I get bored and tap out. What I've come to realize is that I'm better off reading stuff that appeals to me rather than pushing myself to read something I can't stand.

Instead of binge watching a show or dropping hours into a video game, keep those activities under a certain time limit and fill the extra time with reading.

I don't consider audiobooks to be the same as reading (most people, myself included, are doing other things while listening to audiobooks), but perhaps I can sneak reading into other areas. Waiting in line at a store? Pull out my phone and read a couple pages. Playing a video game online? Read a page before the game starts. That kind of stuff.

Things become a habit when we continue to do it. Setting daily reading goals and doing them for a week is nice, but if I drop it that quickly, what's the point? I need to pick up some of the above ideas and absolutely make sure I'm doing it daily over a prolonged period.