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- [00:00]
Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen, I have always loved water slides. And at Great Wolf Lodge, you can take your whole family on an unforgettable adventure with lots of water slides.
- [00:12]
Elizabeth Craft
They've also got high flying ropes courses, miniature golf, climbing walls, mini bowling, virtual reality rooms, and a massive arcade. That's just some of the things that everybody in the whole family can do. So bring your pack together and wolf out. Learn more@greatwolf.com greatwolf.com book now and strengthen your pack at Great Wolf Lodge. The weather is warming up and it is time for picnics.
- [00:39]
Gretchen Rubin
At Whole Foods Market, you can save every day. Look for the yellow low price signs that help you save money without compromising the quality you expect from Whole Foods Market. Find them with their responsibly farmed Atlantic salmon, no antibiotics ever, ground beef and boneless skin, endless chicken breasts, plus more throughout the store. Yellow really means savings at Whole Foods Market because their sale signs are also yellow. So basically, wherever you see yellow, you know you're saving money. Save on the best of spring with great everyday prices at Whole Foods Market. Lemonade.
- [01:26]
Elizabeth Craft
Hello, we're here for more Happy a podcast where we get more of the happier podcast. Today, we are revisiting a very special episode on all things reading.
- [01:38]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes, Gretchen, this is perfect for our read 25 and 25 challenge.
- [01:44]
Listener
Yes, absolutely.
- [01:45]
Elizabeth Craft
Well, we first did reading as an annual challenge in 2021. It was so popular that we brought it back for read2525. And back then we loved hearing and gathering tips and tricks for all things reading. How to get more reading done, how to get more read reading recommendations. All this and in this episode we share some of our very favorite hacks and tips.
- [02:06]
Listener
So more reading for all.
- [02:08]
Gretchen Rubin
And note, this episode was recorded in 2021.
- [02:14]
Listener
First, an update. Elizabeth, you have an exciting update.
- [02:17]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes, Gretchen, I got the first dose of the Pfizer vaccine for COVID 19. So yeah, I volunteered for a day at one of the big megapods where they're handing out vaccine in la. And as a volunteer at lunch, I got the vaccine.
- [02:38]
Listener
Wow.
- [02:39]
Gretchen Rubin
So that was so exciting. There was cheering and clapping and everyone was very excited about getting the vaccine. So in three weeks I'll get the second dose and then I will be good to go.
- [02:52]
Listener
Oh, that is so exciting.
- [02:53]
Gretchen Rubin
And our parents have gotten it and your parents in law. So it is happening.
- [02:58]
Listener
It is happening. Oh my gosh. Biggest happiness boost imaginable. Now let's jump into the very special episode of Reading. Now, in episode 305, we announced our challenge for 2021. You may have joined us for walk 20 in 20. Walk 20 in 20. And the challenge for 21 is to read for 21 minutes every day in 2021. And Elizabeth, we have been blown away by how enthusiastically people have greeted this challenge.
- [03:31]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. I think it's like people want a excuse to read. They want license to spend time reading, and we have given it to them.
- [03:39]
Listener
Yes. Many people have said, okay, now that we're doing this, I'm able to sit down and read in a way that I haven't been, even though I've wanted to for so many years now. Even if you haven't joined yet, remember now is always the right time to start. You can join anytime if you want a PDF that will let you do a Don't Break the Chain where you can cross stuff every day. If you go to GretchenRubin.com resources, there's one there especially for read 21 and 21, because a lot of people do find Don't Break the Chain to be helpful. So that can be a useful hack for some people.
- [04:11]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. And Gretchen, before we get to all of our readers suggestions and insights, I wanted to mention that on Happier in Hollywood at episode 193, I gave a bonus hack about reading which I thought people might find useful, which is that after a long day of zooming, when you feel like your eyes are sort of rolling around in your head and there's like a buzzing in your brain that won't stop, I have found that doing my 21 minutes right after a long day of zooming really resets sort of my constitution and I feel better. So I think that is a great thing to do. I don't think it seems obvious that after zooming you'd want to read, but it has helped me so much because.
- [04:56]
Listener
Now that you're really underway with Fantasy Island, I bet you just have solid.
- [05:01]
Gretchen Rubin
Zoom for back to back all day long. And I, at the end of the day, I don't even feel human. But then I read and I feel like myself again.
- [05:11]
Listener
But you're right, it's not obvious. So that's a great. That's a great hack. Also, we wanted to let people know that for read 21 and 21, at the end of the show, we're always gonna say what we're reading, in case you're curious. People seem to be. I'm always interested to hear what other people are reading. So that'll be with the resources and the demerit and gold star. So we wanted to let people know if you Wanna hear that? It's at the end of the show.
- [05:32]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. And then, Gretchen, we also wanna revisit, speaking of reading our Try this at home that we did in episode 302. Think of a book that you read in high school that you still think about and reread it. We promised we would do this and we did.
- [05:50]
Listener
Yes, we did. So, Elisabeth, you read Shinoah Acheve's masterpiece, Things Fall Apart. When you read it, did you remember it? Like, did you remember why you remembered it? What was your experience like?
- [06:01]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. It is such an amazing book. It came back to me of why I thought it was so brilliant. It's really about the start of missionaries in Africa and how that just started to change life. And it was just. It's really fascinating on like 15 different levels. And so it came back to me as to why it had resonated so much. When I read it, it was sort of a window into a totally different world. When I read it, I knew nothing about, and I think that's why it stuck with me so much.
- [06:32]
Listener
Well, it's interesting, I would say exactly the same thing about the book I reread, which was the Pillow Book by Sei Shunigun. Both of these books are kind of like towering masterpieces of world literature. So I guess maybe it's no surprise that they're memorable because they've been around for decades and in my case, hundreds of years. And the Pillow Book, I remember it was clear to me exactly why it caught my fancy and stuck in my memory because it has this very interesting loose structure. It's nature descriptions, diary entries, character sketches, little anecdotes. And then there are also these lists where Sei Shanagan writes these lists of, like, things, like elegant things, unsuitable things, splendid things, things that have lost their power. And I love lists and I love this way of capturing ideas, and it's so beautiful. And then there's this really interesting thing in the book, and I think this is something added later where the sections are titled according to how she opens the section, which ends up being super poetic. So, like, one section is called Once During a Long Spell of Rainy Weather. And it was just. Even reading the section titles was very poetic. So I was really happy to revisit it. And, you know, I'm writing a book about the five senses, and she writes so beautifully about the five senses. It really had a lot of resonance for me. So this turned out to be a really useful exercise for both of us.
- [07:51]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. And we heard from so many listeners who were excited to Reread a book that resonated with them too.
- [07:57]
Listener
Yeah. Again, I think it's sort of like somebody just telling you, like, oh, go do this. You're like, yes, I've been meaning to do that for years now. We have tons of hacks and suggestions from listeners. But, Elizabeth, I know you have a couple hacks and I have a couple hacks. So what's one of your hacks?
- [08:09]
Gretchen Rubin
One of mine is to create a stack of books that you want to go through. I did this. I sent you a picture of it.
- [08:16]
Listener
Yes, you did.
- [08:17]
Gretchen Rubin
And it's like, that is my stack of books. And I am just. As soon as I'm done with one, I'm just going to the stack and getting another. And it's just helpful to have them all in one place.
- [08:27]
Listener
Right. I would also say that sometimes people have decision fatigue from deciding what to read next. And a way you can, if that's an issue for you, you can make a stack and then just decide, I'm just gonna read whatever is next in the stack. I'm not gonna poke around and pick what I feel like at the moment. I like to read that way. But a lot of people just read what's next as a way to just get started on the next book. You put it in the stack. So at some level you wanna read it. Just get going. I have two hacks. One is, when you're reading, put your phone out of reach. That is great advice, because if it's right there and you're in the habit, as we all are, of checking your phone, you might just get distracted by having it there. Whereas if it's in the other room, if you're anything like me, once I'm down on the sofa, I'm like, it's hard to get me up. I want people to wait on me hand and foot so I don't have to get up. Again, put your phone out of reach and also read what you want. Sometimes people, they're like, I shouldn't be reading only mysteries. Or like, I love children's literature and young adults literature, but some people are like, oh, I should be reading something else. Read what you want.
- [09:31]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [09:31]
Listener
Because you just read so much more when you're reading what you want.
- [09:34]
Gretchen Rubin
Reading leads to reading.
- [09:36]
Listener
Reading leads to reading. The more you read, the more you want to read. That is the truest rule of all. Okay. Listener hacks and suggestions for getting more reading done. I love this one from Katherine because she mentions Nora Ephron and Elizabeth. You and I are both huge fans of Nora Ephron.
- [09:51]
Gretchen Rubin
We sure are.
- [09:52]
Listener
Katherine says. For my yearly list, I always like to do at least one reading related item. For 2020, I read the collected works of Nora Ephron and it was fantastic. And this year I had the idea to do 12 books from 12 loved ones. I'm asking 12 loved ones, some family, some friends, a variety of ages to recommend one of their favorite books. And I'm going to read one every month. I'm thinking of it as a way to read books I wouldn't normally read. Like my favorite uncle reads science fiction all the time. I never do connect with the people I love and maybe learn something about them. I think this is a great idea.
- [10:23]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. And it reminds me, Gretchen, of the try this at Home we had in episode 309 to heed a suggestion. If someone suggests a book, read the book.
- [10:33]
Listener
Yeah, I think this is great because it's gonna make you closer to them and get and also expose you to books you wouldn't otherwise read. I think that's a great idea.
- [10:39]
Gretchen Rubin
Diana noted how much she loves to read in the same room as other people.
- [10:44]
Listener
There is just a special joy of silently reading in a room full of people who are also reading. I absolutely agree with that. Several people noted that they had reconfigured their homes and apartments to make a more inviting space for reading. You know, it doesn't have to be big if you have like a cozy chair and a good light. And a lot of people said that how much satisfaction they got from sort of reclaiming an overlooked or neglected place and turning it into this really pleasant place to read. So if you have an overlooked place, think about creating a book nook, as we called them in grade school.
- [11:18]
Gretchen Rubin
And Gretchen, we also got a lot of suggestions for podcasts related to reading. Some have interviews with authors or reviewers. Others are discussions about a particular book. So we just wanted to mention some of these. There's backlisted.
- [11:35]
Listener
I love backlisted. I just discovered it and I'm obsessed.
- [11:38]
Gretchen Rubin
Moms don't have time to read, which is a hilarious title.
- [11:42]
Listener
This is a friend of mine's podcast, Slightly Foxed. Okay. I have been recommending the publication of Slightly Foxed for years. It's great for people who love to read and they have a podcast too.
- [11:54]
Gretchen Rubin
There's in our time culture.
- [11:56]
Listener
Yes. So there's in our time culture, in our time history, in our time science, and in our time culture there's books like Jane Eyre or Beowulf. So those are really great. I also recommend currently reading I just on that did an episode there. Another friend of mine has an excellent podcast called but that's Another Story where he talks to authors and about the books they love. What Should I Read Next With Anne Bogle, the Book Review that is hosted by the New York Times Book Review editor Pamela Paul, who's also a friend of mine. Wow, I didn't realize I had so many friends who have book podcasts. I guess that's not a surprise. And then New Yorker fiction. Yes, in the show notes I'll include even more. We can't even go through all the ones that those are some of the ones that we heard about most from listeners, so. And I will also post a link to an article in the Guardian called the 10 best book podcasts. If you want to read about yet another list where they're all described, I'll put a link to that in the show notes.
- [12:51]
Gretchen Rubin
And then Gretchen, Stephanie wrote in about a great reading challenge. She said, I wanted to let you know about the Black lit challenge, which can be found on Twitter and YouTube by someone named the Artisan Geek. Great name. It is taking place from February 1st to 28th and aims to increase awareness of work by black authors, which I think is something you're interested interested in. There are five challenges over the month as listed below. 1. Read a book outside your comfort zone by a black author. Something that you usually wouldn't pick up. Maybe you never read mysteries or sci fi or novels. 2. Read a book with a black person on the COVID 3. Read a book written before the 21st century by a black author. 4. Read a book by a black author from outside the US or the uk. And five Read a book recommended by Ina.
- [13:41]
Listener
Okay, that last one is a little mysterious. This is an interactive video recommendation. It's really cool. So I will post a link in YouTube both to the whole challenge and then also to this Recommended by Ina. Ina asks you a series of questions and then recommends a book for you. And the funny thing is I did it and the recommendation I got was a book that I just bought a few weeks ago. I haven't yet read it, but I already own it. Witchmark by CL Polk. So I figure it's a pretty it must be pretty good since I had in fact decided that I wanted to read it. So this is fun. I think a lot of listeners really enjoy challenges and so this is like a really creative way that Artisan geek put a lot of challenges out there. That's really fun.
- [14:20]
Gretchen Rubin
And Gretchen, this is a suggestion from someone named Gretchen, not you she says, you've mentioned different kinds of book clubs and I wanted to share the two that I am in. A friend from high school and I both love reading and discussing books, but we live in Chico, California and Nashville, Tennessee. So a few years ago we started a long distance book club for just the two of us. A couple of times a year one of us will send a box with a couple of books we have read with a sealed letter with our notes about each one for the other to read. When they finish, that reader then writes their thoughts about the books and answers any questions from the giver's notes and adds it to the next book box they send. The other book club I'm in is also just two people. When everything shut down due to Covid, I wanted some kind of intentional fun thing to look forward to, so I asked my husband to start a book club with me. We both love mystery novels so we call it Gretch and Mike's Murder Mystery Book Club. When we have both finished the book, we meet in our library, a reading nook in our family room with fun drinks and have our discussion. It has become such a fun thing for us to share and enjoy together.
- [15:28]
Elizabeth Craft
Well, I love that these ideas made.
- [15:29]
Listener
Me think of you because you're a big fan of the two person book club.
- [15:32]
Gretchen Rubin
I am. I think it's a great idea.
- [15:35]
Listener
I like this idea of mailing the back and forth and I think some people would not want to write the letters, but I think you could just send the books.
- [15:41]
Gretchen Rubin
Yeah.
- [15:42]
Listener
And talk and talk about it.
- [15:44]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [15:44]
Listener
These are great ideas. Wonderful ideas.
- [15:46]
Gretchen Rubin
All right Gretchen. Coming up, we have some suggestions of tools and apps to help you read more. But first, this book break. Do you want to set your child up for success? Is your child asking questions on their homework you don't feel equipped to answer? IXL Learning is an online learning program for kids. It covers math, language arts, science and social studies. IXL is designed to help them really understand and master topics in a fun way with positive feedback. Gretch One of my favorite kids, Violet, uses IXL for middle school math and let me tell you, her mom is very happy that she does well.
- [16:34]
Elizabeth Craft
The program will improve your kids grades. Backed by research, kids using IXL are.
- [16:39]
Listener
Scoring higher on tests.
- [16:40]
Elizabeth Craft
It will work for any of your kids. One in four students in the US are learning with IXL. IXL is used in 96 of the top 100 school districts in the US make an impact on your child's learning. Get IXL now and happier with Gretchen Rubin. Listeners can get an exclusive 20% off IXL membership when they sign up today at ixl.com happier visit ixl.com happier to get the most effective learning program out there at the best price.
- [17:09]
Gretchen Rubin
Vacation season is nearly upon us this year I'm treating myself to the luxe upgrades I deserve with Quince's high quality travel essentials at fair prices. Gretch, you know I love Quint. My latest love from Quint is the Transit Quilted Small Cross Body Tote. I always feel like when I travel I want a fresh tote to mark the occasion.
- [17:34]
Elizabeth Craft
Yes, and the best part is that all Quint Items are priced 50 to 80% less than similar brands. By partnering directly with top factories, Quint cuts out the cost of the middleman and passes the savings on to us. For your next trip, treat yourself to the luxe upgrades you deserve from quince. Go to quince.com Gretchen for 365 day returns plus free shipping on your order. That's Q-U-I-N-C-E.com Gretchen to get free shipping and 365 day returns. Quince.com Gretchen okay, Gretch, we're back talking.
- [18:11]
Gretchen Rubin
About reading all Things Reading today and we have some great suggestions for reading tools, starting with one that you found.
- [18:19]
Listener
Yes, someone, a listener had recommended this to me. I don't remember who. I'm sorry, I can't give you credit. But anyway, so I often will turn out my light earlier and then Jamie will read in bed next to me and he was using a book clip, but somebody was like, no, I have a much better system. It's called The LEDgel rechargeable LED book light neck Reading lamp, hands free, adjustable brightness. I will put a link to it. It's hard to describe. It's like wearing a snake around your neck and at the tail and the head are lights that you can adjust and it's very bendable and so you wear it around your neck. And Jamie much prefers it. He says it's much, much easier to use. And I have to say for me, I see less light from this way than I did when he had the book clip. And it's also something like if you knit or you're working on a puzzle or like you're doing a home repair where you're trying to get light. It would work very well for that as well because it just shines the light wherever you want it to go. So I don't use it because I just go to sleep earlier. But Jamie gives it a big thumbs up. So I will put a link in the show notes if you want to have a reading light that's very focused like that.
- [19:24]
Gretchen Rubin
Yeah. I'm going to order one for Adam for Valentine's Day.
- [19:27]
Listener
Oh, good. Nice.
- [19:29]
Gretchen Rubin
Okay, here's a suggestion from Amniot. When my Kindle broke, I realized I preferred the phone. Much less likely to misplace and easy to read with one hand. Anywhere you can check for texts, you can read a book. Waiting in line, taking a walk. That's interesting, Gretch. Sarah, my writing partner, loves reading books on her phone. She does exactly what's described the one handed scroll of the book. I cannot stand it. Maybe it's because my eyes aren't good enough, but oh my gosh, I do not like reading books on my phone.
- [20:01]
Listener
This is a great example where there's really so many different preferences. Some people want audio, some people want a physical book, some people want a Kindle, some people want their phone. There's so many different ways. And I would never read a book on myself. Never, never, never, never. But some people, that's their preferred way. And so maybe it's worth experimenting with it. I remember a long time ago, a listener said that she deleted a soul sucking app and replaced it with an E reading thing. And so every time she was automatically going to the soul sucking app, her book popped up. So that was good.
- [20:33]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes, I remember that too.
- [20:35]
Listener
Amanda said, I find two apps helpful. One is called Strides and you can set it up to ask you at a certain time of the day if you hit your goal or habit. And it can be anything. Elizabeth, that reminds me about how you and Amanda check in with each other during the day to say, where are you with your steps?
- [20:49]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [20:50]
Listener
So you get reminded. Like, get on it. Don't forget about this. The other one I like is time clock to help clock in for my 21 minutes. I find having this app open keeps me more mindful of how much time I've spent reading, especially on days when I feel I'm easily distracted. So those are two apps.
- [21:05]
Gretchen Rubin
Joanna says, One of my big goals for 2021 is to run the year, meaning run 2021 miles during the calendar year. Wow. I love listening to audiobooks and podcasts while I run, but I hate running with earbuds in because it can be disorienting and dangerous. So I've just been running with my phone playing out loud, which is the worst. It's often hard to hear. It's awkward to figure out where to put my phone. And I'm sure it annoys other people. I knew what would solve my problem. Wireless headphones that sit outside your ears and use bone conduction so you can hear what's around you as well as your media. But the pair I wanted was $150, and as a major underbuyer, I just couldn't make myself do it until read 21 in 2021, I decided that if I'm going to run 2021 miles, I could pair that with racking up as many audiobooks as I could to satisfy this challenge. The thought of limping through 50 audiobooks with my current sad setup was too much. So I finally bought the damn headphones. I get so excited every time I think about them. I don't think I could have made this purchase if read 21 and 21 wasn't a thing. So thank you for giving me the official excuse I needed to make my life happier in this small but meaningful way.
- [22:23]
Listener
Well, good tools make any activity a joy here's another thing related to earphones which I did not know about Juliet. She was mentioning a suggestion that we discussed in episode 303 about using the sleep timer on your phone so your podcast or audiobook automatically shuts off, she said. My additional hack is to use sleep phones. These are flat earphones in a headband so that it's more comfortable to lie on your pillow with them. They also don't fall out like traditional earbuds. Some versions come as an IMS too. I believe some people wear them for running, working out, and yoga. And I looked at this. I'd never heard of this. It's more like a wide headband. I could also imagine this would work like if you were sick in bed and they were coming out or you wanted to lie on them. So I'll post a link to those because I had never seen anything like this, so I think for the right person this could be a real find.
- [23:11]
Gretchen Rubin
Gretchen, many people talked about this app and we have talked about it before, but it's worth mentioning again. The Libby app. Yes, if you want to use your public library, you can check out books like on this app.
- [23:25]
Listener
Yep.
- [23:26]
Gretchen Rubin
And my gosh, what a game changer. It can completely change your ability to read books without paying anything.
- [23:34]
Listener
Yeah, many, many people mention Olivia. Roxanne had an interesting use of the strategy of pairing, which of course is One of the 21 strategies that I write about in Better than Before, she writes. I often fall into the trap of waiting until I have free time to read, but your upcoming challenge inspired me to take a different approach. A goal that I have for myself is to increase the frequency of sheet pan and crock pot meals throughout my week, AKA meals that don't require a constant supervision. I feel very obligated to spend time making healthy meals from scratch, but I know that I could make it more efficient. My plan is to pair these two things together, and so while dinner is cooking all on its own with no real supervision necessary, I can sit down and enjoy my reading without feeling guilty that I'm not being productive. So this is a very a brilliant way to kill two birds with one stone.
- [24:18]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes, Shauna says. Super delightful challenge. I'm going to go a step further and read 21 minutes of fiction and 21 minutes of nonfiction. So she's going to read 42 minutes a day.
- [24:32]
Listener
Excellent.
- [24:33]
Gretchen Rubin
Okay, Gretch, Coming up, we're going to share a great Icelandic custom about reading. But first, this break. Meet JLab headphones as versatile as you workout, jam out, or tune out, find the perfect fit with JLab. JLab's diverse collection of headphones has something for everyone and every moment. Think headphones in a million different colors and styles with features you actually want for working out, chilling out, or jamming out.
- [25:11]
Elizabeth Craft
Okay, Elizabeth, you know I listen to podcasts all the time. I want to have my earbuds with me at all times, and I am loving my JBuds mini. They are the same tiniest little case. They can fit on a keychain, they're smaller than a coin, and they're perfect for small ears. I have very small ears. These feel great in my ears and it's so easy to carry them around.
- [25:33]
Listener
I love them.
- [25:34]
Elizabeth Craft
Look for the blue box at retailers everywhere or shop jlab.com and use code happier for 15% off your order. Today the weather is warming up and it is time for picnics. In the past, we used to go on family picnics in Central park all.
- [25:52]
Listener
The time and I really want to.
- [25:54]
Elizabeth Craft
Bring back this tradition this spring. And fortunately for me, I live right near a Whole Foods Market where they have great everyday prices on everything that will make my picnics delicious.
- [26:05]
Gretchen Rubin
At Whole Foods Market you can save every day. Look for the yellow low price signs that help you save money without compromising the quality you expect from Whole Foods Market. Find them with their responsibly farmed Atlantic salmon, no antibiotics ever, ground beef and boneless skinless chicken breast, plus more throughout the store. Yellow really means savings at Whole Foods Market because their sale signs are also yellow. So basically, wherever you see yellow, you know you're saving money. You can find these great prices in store and online. Save on the best of Spring with great everyday prices at Whole Foods Market.
- [26:46]
Listener
This is a terrific idea. I cannot believe that I have not heard of this customer. It turns out that in Iceland they have a tradition called Jola bokaflod, which translates roughly to Christmas Book flood. And this is a custom where people give presents, often books, on the night of Christmas Eve, and then people spend the rest of the night reading. So Katie writes. Several years ago, I learned about the Icelandic Christmas Eve tradition of Javokle flod. I convinced my family, husband, kids, parents, siblings and siblings in law to adopt it. We're Jewish, but we're always in non pandemic times together. At Christmas time, we go out together to buy books. We choose our own. Two years ago, I decided that that day would be a great way to start a habit of daily reading. So my streak started on Yaboka Flow 2018. Okay, well, let's look forward to that, Gretch.
- [27:37]
Gretchen Rubin
I see this in your Future.
- [27:39]
Listener
Yaboka Flow 2021. Excellent.
- [27:42]
Gretchen Rubin
Sandra says. So I'm going to walk 20 minutes for 2021 and read 21 minutes for 2021. Get it? It's going to be 2021. How did we not think of this?
- [27:55]
Listener
Love it.
- [27:55]
Elizabeth Craft
2021.
- [27:57]
Listener
Walking and reading. The perfect combo. Emily said. I just wanted to tell you how much I love reading 21 and 21. Only one week in and I'm more than halfway done of my first book of the year. I'll be finished in a few days and on to my second one. I really can't believe how many pages I can read in 21 minutes a day. I love to read and I often felt like I just didn't have enough time. But through this challenge, I realized how a little time consistently can go a long way. Now I am so excited to think about how many books I'm going to get through this year. Reading 21 minutes a day. This is exactly what we were saying. Reading leads to more reading. And when you read consistently, you can get a lot of reading done.
- [28:33]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. Now, Gretchen, we need to talk about some big reading debates.
- [28:39]
Listener
We've been debating these.
- [28:40]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [28:41]
Listener
Ourselves. Okay, first question up for debate. Do you read multiple books at once? Elizabeth, what do you do?
- [28:47]
Gretchen Rubin
I do not. I read one book at a time. I hate reading multiple books. How about you?
- [28:52]
Listener
I always read multiple books at once. Jamie converted me to this. He reads multiple books and now I read multiple books. Yes. Different moods. I have them in different places in the apartment. Yes.
- [29:01]
Gretchen Rubin
Gretch, next question. Do you use bookmarks?
- [29:05]
Listener
I rarely use a bookmark. Do you use a bookmark?
- [29:08]
Gretchen Rubin
Not very often. I have some great ones that are like, pictures of Jack laminated, but of course, I never know where they are. So I always end up either using the flap if it's a hardcover, or dog earring if it's paperback, which some people think is sacrilege.
- [29:22]
Listener
Well, I just, like, rip off a piece of scrap paper and use it. But that leads me to the next question up for debate. Do you mark up books or dog ear books? Yeah. So you. Dog ear books, Elizabeth. Do you mark them up?
- [29:33]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes. I don't usually mark them up. Rarely.
- [29:36]
Listener
I mark them up like crazy if I own them.
- [29:39]
Gretchen Rubin
Yeah. That is your signature.
- [29:41]
Listener
Yes. And here's a great debate. We talked about this before, but we have to include it because there is such a raging debate. Do you put down a book if you don't like it?
- [29:52]
Gretchen Rubin
Oh, it's hard for me to put down a book. It really is. I'm trying to do it more often because I know you think it's important, but it's hard.
- [30:01]
Listener
I just think you get more reading done that you enjoy.
- [30:04]
Gretchen Rubin
But it is true that I suffer, and I know a lot of people do, from. If I don't like a book, I don't want to say, okay, I'm not going to read it, but then I don't want to read it, so I can go weeks without reading anything. See, this is the downside.
- [30:15]
Listener
That is the downside. Yeah. Okay. So on from debates. Here's a know yourself better question, Elizabeth, because I'm dying to hear your answer to this. What was the first book you remember reading that made you cry?
- [30:27]
Gretchen Rubin
Okay, I remember this very specifically, Gretch. It was a children's book called Sylvester and the Magic Pebble. Yes. And I think he was a donkey who accidentally wished himself to become a big rock. And he was trapped in this rock, and his parents were walking by and missing him, and he could hear everybody, but he couldn't get out of the rock. And I just sobbed.
- [30:52]
Listener
You did. I remember that. All the way back to our childhood. And, in fact, Elizabeth, I don't know if you remember this, but you hid the book. You were so terrified that someone would try to read it to you again that you, like, hid it under the cushions of a sofa. And I remember later I was talking to a professor who was a professor of children's literature, and I mentioned to her this episode, and she said, I don't think people should read that book to children because they always worry that their wishes will come true. And in the book, a wish does come true. So it's a terrifying idea.
- [31:20]
Gretchen Rubin
Yeah, well, it had me sobbing. What about you?
- [31:24]
Listener
Oh, Charlotte's Web by E.B. white. I still remember it. I cried for like three days straight. Of course, I still. Every time I read the book, I sob. Yes, yes. So, listeners, we would be very interested to hear. What was the book? Was it Little Women perhaps? That's very sad. I would be so curious to hear.
- [31:40]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [31:40]
Listener
Now, let's talk about the four tendencies briefly, because this is a place where you can harness the energy of your tendency to help yourself stay on track. So I've talked about the four tendencies so much, I will put links in the show notes if you want to go back and listen to a description of what they are. I will also put a link to the quiz, which is@quiz.gretchenrubin.com, where you can take the free quick quiz to find out are you an upholder, a question or obliged a rebel and what that means generally. But because a lot of people already know about the tendencies, we'll just race through quickly how each of the tendencies might use the strengths of their tendency to follow through on read 21 and 21.
- [32:18]
Gretchen Rubin
So, Gretch, how would an upholder harness their tendency?
- [32:22]
Listener
So upholders tend to do pretty well with this kind of thing. It might be useful to put it on the calendar, like for upholders, if it's on the calendar, it's very, very it's gonna get done. So maybe pick at the same time every day if you could do that, or at least slot it in so that like you see it appearing on your calendar.
- [32:38]
Gretchen Rubin
And how about questioners?
- [32:40]
Listener
So questioners always need to know why and they love to customize. So you really wanna think about why do I wanna do this? Why do I think this is the best use of this? 21 minutes. How can I and customize this to work the best for me. I can imagine questioners being like, I'm going to read whatever 21 times 7 is in one day or I'm going to read every other day for twice as long. They love to customize. And so for questioners, it's really figuring out how to make this customized and most efficient and that makes the most rational sense for you.
- [33:12]
Gretchen Rubin
And then Gretchen, how about my group, the obligers? There's a lot to do to help an obliger.
- [33:18]
Listener
Read more.
- [33:19]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [33:19]
Listener
So Obligers need Outer accountability. And there's. And I think for a lot of people, the fact that we're doing this itself creates outer accountability. And if you want us to be your accountability partners, email us and we will give you your gold stars and encourage you to join. Post regularly on read2121 because then you'll have this feeling like people are expecting you to check in. And there's social proof. The more people are doing it, the more other people will feel like they should be doing it too. So you're helping other people while you're helping yourself. Remember, the motto of the Obliger is you can count on me. And I'm counting on you to count on me. You could also join a book group. You could tell your children you're going to read the books they're reading for school so that everybody can discuss it. You could tell your children that while they're doing their homework, you're going to be doing your reading work. And if you're not doing your reading, they don't have to do their homework and they will police you. You can think of setting an example for other people. Habits are very catching. If you're reading, other people are likely to pick up a book if that's something you would like other people to do. Social media is a great way. The better app is a great way. You just want to think about creating that outer accountability.
- [34:20]
Gretchen Rubin
Okay? And finally, rebels.
- [34:23]
Listener
So rebels, think about your identity and your pleasure and what you want. So you could say, well, this is who I am. I'm a reader. I've always been a reader. Or I love poetry. Of course I'm going to read poetry. It's your identity. And then it's also like, this is what I like to do. Of course I'm going to read because this is what I like to do. This is what I choose to do. 21 minutes. I don't need 21 minutes. I'm gonna do it as long as I want. And I will say that for some rebels, it can be helpful to do something when they feel like they're breaking the rules a little bit. So, like, I was talking to one rebel who did it during her workday. Cause she's like, it felt a little bit illicit.
- [34:59]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [34:59]
Listener
But you know, she's working from home. Like, who's to say? But it was kind of like, ooh, it's a lot more fun to read. You know, at 11:00am when everybody else is like going through their email, I kicking back with a novel, I'm like, that sounds Great.
- [35:12]
Gretchen Rubin
Yes.
- [35:13]
Listener
Yeah. So remember, whenever it is and wherever you are, there's always a book waiting for you. If you want to read a post where we talk a lot about this challenge with FAQs and all kinds of other resources and links, I'll post a link to that in the Show Notes. Again, we talked about this for the first time in episode 305. Elizabeth. I think this is just a delightful challenge. We need delight in our lives in 2021. Yes. So let us know if you do try this at home and how read 2001 and 21 is going for you. And if you have any additional hacks or suggestions, we will be checking in throughout the year. More reading for all. Let us know on Instagram, Twitter, Facebook. Email us@podcastretchenrubin.com as always, you can go to the Show Notes. This is episode 310. Very special episode for everything we talked about.
- [36:02]
Gretchen Rubin
More reading for everybody.
- [36:03]
Listener
Yes.
- [36:11]
Elizabeth Craft
Well, we hope you're feeling happier after this episode. We love revisiting these tips and hacks for reading as we do read 25 and 25. Remember, the best time to start a happiness project is 20 years ago. The second best time is now.
- [36:40]
Gretchen Rubin
For public library card holders. Library card. Sorry, The Libby app, which is available. Which is available for public library card holders. I saying library card. Wrong. The Libby app, which is available for public library card holders.
- [37:00]
Listener
I think you have public wrong. Oh, if you said like if you want to go to like if you want to use your public library.
- [37:07]
Gretchen Rubin
Yeah. And then there's the Libby app, if you want to use your public library. Let me say it again because it I. Okay.
- [37:26]
Listener
From the onward project.