The Problem With Vague Reading Goals
"I want to read more" is not a reading goal. "I want to read 30 books this year" is a goal but not a plan. The most common reading resolution failure is setting a target without building the structure that makes hitting it achievable.
Effective reading goals are specific about number, type, and when you will do the reading. They anticipate obstacles and build in flexibility. And they are calibrated to your actual life rather than your ideal life.
How to Set a Reading Goal That Sticks
A useful reading goal has several components:
- A realistic number: track your current reading for a month before setting an annual goal. Most people overestimate by 40 to 60 percent. A goal that stretches you is fine; a goal that is impossible demoralises.
- A genre or category component: "read 30 books, including five in genres I have not tried before" gives the goal texture beyond just a number
- A time component: "read for 30 minutes every day before checking my phone" is more actionable than any book count
Tracking Without Obsessing
The most useful tracking is simple: a list of what you have read, and a sense of whether you are on pace. The Goodreads annual challenge is one way to do this; a simple spreadsheet is another.
Tracking stops being useful when it becomes the point — when you are abandoning books you love because they are long, or rushing through books to hit your target rather than enjoying them. The goal is more reading, not a higher number. Keep them from diverging.