How to Read More
Most people who want to read more don't dislike books. They just reach for a phone instead, because it's closer, easier, and engineered to hold attention. If your to-read pile keeps growing while your screen time does too, the problem isn't discipline. It's that reading has to compete with something designed to win.
Why This Is Actually Hard
Books ask for sustained attention in a world that constantly fragments it. A novel can't deliver the instant, variable rewards an app can, so it loses the moment you're tired or bored. Big goals ("read 30 books this year") also backfire, turning a relaxing pastime into a quota you feel guilty about missing.
What Actually Helps
These small shifts make reading the easy default:
Set a tiny daily minimum. Commit to one page, or two minutes. A target this small is almost impossible to fail, which keeps the streak alive on hard days. Most nights you'll read more, but the floor is so low that "I didn't have time" stops being an excuse.
Replace a scroll with a page. Notice the moments you reach for your phone out of habit (waking up, waiting in line, winding down) and put a book or e-reader in that exact slot. You're not adding time to your day, just swapping one default for another.
Design your environment. Keep a book within arm's reach of where you actually sit: the nightstand, the couch, your bag. Charge your phone in another room at night. Friction decides more than motivation does, so make the book easier to grab than the screen.
Notice what pulls you in. Pay attention to which books you race through and which you slog. Permission to abandon a boring book is part of reading more, not a failure. Following genuine interest keeps the habit alive far better than forcing the "right" titles.
When You Reset
If a busy stretch breaks your streak and the book sits untouched, that's data, not failure. Notice what shifted: a change in routine, a book that stopped gripping you, your phone creeping back into the evening. Each gap quietly tells you which cue or swap needs resetting.
When to Seek Support
If reading feels impossible because words swim, focus collapses after a sentence, or concentration is a struggle everywhere in your life, it's worth talking with a doctor or specialist. Persistent attention difficulties can have addressable causes, and you don't have to white-knuckle through them alone.
Try Unlooped
Unlooped is a private-first habit tracker that keeps your data in your private iCloud, never on our servers. Use BUILD mode to log a daily reading habit, build a streak from a tiny minimum, and hit milestones that treat a missed night as data, not shame. It's free forever with no account required. Premium ($1.99/month or $9.99/year) adds on-device AI coaching via Apple Intelligence, Face ID protection for private habits, and deeper insights.
Download Unlooped on the App Store