IN BRIEF: Reading is one of the best and the cheapest, and even the wisest ways to acquire knowledge, thinking capacities, and even cultures of the world. In this section we understand why reading is essential for self improvement.
For a lifelong reader like me, it’s a painful experience whenever I hear someone ask, “Why is reading important?”, “How will I benefit from reading?” and many such variations of the same. Reading, I along with most of the people in this world believe, goes hand-in-hand with self-improvement. We all wish to learn and grow, and how better to do this than by reading often and regularly.
Having researched and studied various psychological studies, I have prepared a list of reasons that will convince you to read more than you already do (and if you don’t read at all, this might just make you pick up a book):
1 – Increases Vocabulary
This is the most straightforward and most commonly known benefit of reading. The more and more you read, the more new words you will learn! In fact, in any language course you take, the instructor will ask you to read books or texts based in that language to gain a better grasp of it.
2 – Learn New Things
Through reading, you come across new things, new experiences, new solutions to a single problem and sometimes even gain a new way of thinking. Poetically put, reading makes you live more lives than the one you’re born with (it’s not as Supernatural-esque as it sounds).
3 – Widens Your World View
It helps you understand the world in a better way. By reading a book you may learn something about a country far away from your own, and be able to understand it’s traditions and culture better. It helps you become a more global citizen.
4 – Boosts Imagination
The more you read, the more you increase your creativity. With every additional piece of information that you gain, the more data there is for your brain to spin into an imaginative tail. Think of reading as a way of exercising your imagination.
5 – Focuses Your Brain
When you’re reading – whether it is a story or a book of facts – you are concentrating completely on the text itself. This helps increase your brain’s power of concentration. While reading, you’re completely silent, this helps your brain focus more easily and more deeply. This will help you in all aspects of life.
6 – Learning From Others
When you read a book or an article, you are actually learning from the experiences and lessons learned by the author, because no matter how hard a writer tries, their real life somehow seeps into their writing. Learning from the mistakes of others means you won’t commit that mistake yourself.
7 – Best Form Of Entertainment
Let’s be real for a moment here, there is no better way to spend your free time than by immersing yourself in a grasping novel especially when you consider the benefits you get while getting entertained at the same time.
So next time you find yourself with nothing to do, pick up a book instead of wasting your time binge-watching any TV show. It’ll be a lot more fun and a learning experience too. Oh, and I’d suggest you try a cup of hot coffee or tea to compliment your book.