It’s Cool to Give Yourself Permission to Stop

I stopped picking up the books. I wanted to. But the desire wasn’t there.

Reading has been an important activity for me over the past 2 years. Building that habit took time after not reading for years. To do that–I had to learn how to make it work for me.

I learned that you didn’t have to read a book cover to cover because you opened it.

I learned to read multiple books at a time. Doing this kept me in the habit. If I wasn’t feeling one book–I could hop to another. Or I’d find a connection between different ideas.

Saying that 2020 has been different is an understatement.

A whole global pandemic. Lockdowns. Job industries crushed. Off the charts unemployment. Sports bubbles. “Can you see my screen?” aka the rise of Zoom.

As 2020 comes to a close, it’s safe to say we’re all trying to survive. A lot of people have been burnt out.

I gave myself permission to stop reading to help me survive.

I was listening to an episode of Seeking Wisdom with David Cancel recently. The topic was about reading every day. David is an avid reader and talks about the importance of reading. But he recognizes how 2020 is different.

“It’s important for us now more than ever to give ourselves leeway and permission to not have to be so intense with your reading.”

Now after starting a new job and gaining back normalcy over the past 3 months…

I opened a book and started reading.