Most people wish they read more.� It is an activity that is both fun and enlightening.� It can help us be more knowledgeable and successful.� However, it is an activity that many people don't engage in very much.� According to the 1999 National Household Education Survey, 50% of the U.S. population aged 25 and over read a newspaper at least once a week, read one or more magazines regularly, and had read a book in the past 6 months.� What does this mean?� It means that 50% of the population hasn't read a book in the last six months!�

Looking at the other end of the spectrum, research shows that if you read ten books a year, you are in the top few percent of all people as readers.� Simply stated, it doesn't take much to be well read, but we do need to know how to get started.� The following are ten suggestions to help you strengthen your reading habit - ways to find and make more time for reading.

1.�Always have a book around.� Don't go anywhere without reading material.� Keep magazines or short stories in your bathroom.� Always have something in your briefcase to read.� Keep a book(s) by your bed.� Having things available makes it easier for you to steal otherwise lost moments.

2.�Set a reading goal.� Determine how much time you want to spend reading, or how many books you want to read over time.� Your goal might be a book a month, one per week, or it might be to read 30 minutes a day.� Start out with something attainable but still a stretch. As your habit builds, you might set higher goals. Setting a goal is the first step towards reading more.�

3.�Keep a log.� Keep a list of the books you have read, or keep track of how much time you read each day.� You might keep these lists in your journal or your day planner.� My son's log is on our refrigerator.� My list and log are kept on my computer.� It doesn't matter where you keep it, just do it.

4.�Keep a list.� Make a list of things you want to read in the future.� Ask your friends and colleagues what they are reading.� Watch for recommendations in the newspaper and magazines.� Once you start looking for good books, you'll find them everywhere. This is a great way to keep your enthusiasm up.� By knowing what great stuff you want to read, you will reinforce your reading habit.

5.�Turn off the television.� Many people say they just don't have enough time.� Television is one of our major time consumers.� Make your television watching more conscious and less habitual.� There is nothing wrong with watching television shows you really enjoy.� Where the time gets lost is turning it on, and scanning to find "something to watch."� Those are the times to turn it off and pick up your book!

6.�Listen when you can't read.� Use your commute and other time spent in the car to listen!� There are great audio versions of all sorts of books.� Whether you want to "read" fiction, the latest self-help or diet book, it is probably available on tape. Don't get locked into the idea that you have to read it - listening to the book still gives you the experience, ideas, and imagination that reading a book can.

7.�Join a reading group or book club.� Reading groups typically meet once a month to discuss a book they have all decided to read.� Committing to the group provides a bit more impetus to finish the book, and gives you a great forum for discussion and socialization around the book's themes.

8.�Visit the library or bookstore often.� You have your list, right?� So you'll have some ideas of what you are looking for when you walk in.� But there is more to be gained by walking through places where books reside than just to make a transaction.� Take time to browse!� Let your eyes find things of interest.� Let serendipity happen.� Browsing will feed your mental need to read, and give you plenty of new things to read.

9.�Build your own strategy.� Decide when reading fits your schedule.� Some people read first thing in the morning, some before bed.� Some decide to read as they eat their lunch.� And there is more to your strategy than just timing.� Make your own decisions about reading. It is ok to be reading more than one book at once.� It is ok to stop reading something before you finish if it isn't holding your interest.� It is ok to skim the book, getting what you want or need, without reading every page.� Determine what works best for you, develop your own beliefs and ideas-then make them work for you.

10.�Drop Everything and Read.� My son's fourth grade class has DEAR (Drop Everything and Read) time.� When the teacher calls for it, that's just what they do.� They read now.� That is my last piece of advice for you.� Do it.� Just get started.� Make it DEAR time.� Now.

�2002, All Rights Reserved, Kevin Eikenberry.� Kevin publishes Unleash Your Potential, a free weekly ezine designed to provide ideas, tools, techniques and

inspiration to enhance your professional skills.� Go to http://www.kevineikenberry.com/uypw/current.asp to read the current issue and subscribe.� Kevin is also President of The Kevin Eikenberry Group, a learning consulting company that helps Clients reach their potential through a variety of training, consulting and speaking services.� You may contact Kevin at toll free 888.LEARNER.

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