Despite numerous benefits of reading books, the overall percentage of people who read books is decreasing. The majority comprises of people who don't read books.
This brings us to the essential question, why people don't read books?
Today, I will answer this question and shed light on the behavior of such people as well.
Why people don't read books?
People don't read books because they think that they do not have the time to do so, and they underestimate the benefit of reading and find the books boring.
I will go into the details of all these three reasons below. Before that, however, I will highlight the behavior of an average reader.
How many books does an average person read?
An average person reads four books annually.
However, when you factor in the number of bookworms, the average increases to 12 books a year.
Now that you are aware of how much an average person reads, it is time to understand why many people don't read books.
Three reasons why people don't want to read
There are essentially three reasons why people don't want to read. I will cover them below.
1. Perceived lack of time
The number 1 reason why many people don't read is that they don't think they can do so. An average book can take anywhere from 6 to 12 hours to read.
The problem is that these days people waste a lot of time on social media and other such non-beneficial things. That is why; they often conclude that they seldom have the time to read.
The perceived lack of time is one of the primary reasons why people don't read.
2. Underestimating the benefit
Most readers swear by the benefits of reading books.
If you start reading, you will realize that every book can benefit you in more ways than one. Especially when you stick to reading in your niche or industry, you can benefit immensely as well.
Once people realize the benefits of reading, more and more people will take up reading as a hobby.
The underestimation of benefits is one of the primary reasons why people don't read books.
3. Not that entertaining
These days, people often want to do interesting things. When you ask them to read the book, they find it boring.
The reason for the same is that people often read books superficially. When you read superficially, it can become difficult for you to become engrossed.
Other than reading books, people often find non-beneficial things interesting like:
Social media
Even social media does not benefit people in any way, but they certainly find it entertaining and engrossing. Many people would gladly browse social media rather than reading books.
Streaming
These days, there are endless resources for entertainment. Numerous streaming websites offer entertaining movies and series, but these do not benefit you in any way. People often view these movies and series rather than taking up reading.
Thus, reading is perceived as a boring activity is another reason why so many people do not read.
Is it OK not to read books?
Technically, it is OK not to read books. While you might miss out on benefits but in the shorter term, you will not notice any disadvantage of not reading books.
What happens when you don't read?
However, in the longer term, there are a few things that happen when you do not read books. I will highlight these below.
1. Pauses cognitive growth
The more you read, the more cognitive development you experience. While on a day-to-day basis, you might not notice this benefit, but cognitive development certainly makes you more knowledgeable and increases your memory and concentration power in the longer run.
The lack of reading certainly pauses your cognitive growth after a certain time.
2. Reduces language proficiency
Reading can improve your language skills. It also helps you expand your vocabulary.
The lack of the same reduces your language proficiency. You will not come across new words or even the existing words you might know. In that case, your attention power will decrease, and your language skills will suffer.
3. Impacts communication skills
The more you read, the more words you know. The more words you know, the better you can communicate.
The problem is that when you do not read regularly, your communication skills suffer as well. You cannot effectively explain your point. Not only that, the chances of miscommunication increase manifold.
It is another disadvantage of not reading at all.
4. Reduces the probability of success
Reading helps you expand your knowledge in your industry. When that happens, you can easily form new ideas and execute them.
Not only that, you can improve yourself as well as your organization.
When you do not read at all, the probability of success decreases as well. It is another side effect of not reading.
As you can see, in the longer term, there are quite a few things which you can lose by not reading.
Now, I will highlight some of the benefits of reading to understand why more and more people should read.
Why should people read more books?
There are many reasons why more and more people should read. I will highlight the same below.
1. Faster cognitive development
Reading, of course, enhances your cognitive development. Better cognitive development means that you can think better, memories better, and increase your concentration power. In that case, every sphere of your life improves.
2. Helps you gain new ideas
With the help of reading, you can easily gain new ideas. New ideas can provide you with breakthroughs to existing problems. New ideas can help you in more ways as well. Consequently, it will become easier for you to move ahead in your life by reading more.
3. Improves conversational and writing skills
As we have highlighted above, reading has a profound impact on your communication skills. The more you read, the better will be your communication skills. With better communication skills, you cannot only improve your personal life but your professional life as well.
Better vocabulary and language skills also help you improve your writing skills as well.
Overall, you can improve your communication skills in more ways than one when reading regularly.
4. Helps you develop self-discipline
Starting to read a book is one thing, and completing it is another. When you read more books, you are more likely to complete them as well.
Going through any task of whether you like it or not, requires is immense self-discipline. Therefore, the more books you read, the more self-discipline you will develop.
Self-discipline can once again help you in every sphere of your life.
With the help of greater self-discipline, you can achieve greater heights of success as well.
Consequently, this is a byproduct of reading which can benefit you immensely.
5. Improves your imagination power
When you're reading, you imagine the things which you are reading. Many times, when you're reading novels as well, you imagine the characters, story, and background, and so on. Only when you do so will you enjoy reading the book. You will be able to go with the flow of the book quite easily.
The more you imagine, the better your imagination power. Your visualization power also increases due to the same.
A higher imagination power always allows you to innovate as well as think out of the box.
As you can see, by reading you can improve your imagination power which in turn can benefit you in more ways than one.
6. Aids skill development
There are numerous books which can help you develop various kinds of skills. Whether you're looking to develop programming skills, time discipline skills, or self-discipline, there are books on each and everything.
While going through such books, you can develop your skills. Not only that, you will develop practical tips which you can follow on a day-to-day basis as well.
If you want to master any skills, reading can help you.
7. Easy to become an expert
If you want to become an expert or gain authority in any field, it is good to read more in the field. The only solution to become an expert in any field is to read more.
Many experts in different fields have written books about their experience as well as skills. That is why; learning from the best is certainly possible by going through books.
Once you become an expert in any field, you can easily excel in that field. You can make more money and also climb the carrier hierarchy quite quickly.
It is another reason why you should read more books.
As you can see, there are quite a few reasons why you should read more books.
So, even though many people don't read books but they should do. The benefits of reading far outweigh the benefits of any other activity. Also, once you read the books in the right way, you will not feel bored. Moreover, the advantages which you will gain by reading books are much higher.
