How to Set Reading Goals You Will Actually Achieve | Chapterly Blog
How to Set Reading Goals You Will Actually Achieve January rolls around and you set the same goal you set last year: read 24 books. By March, you are three books behind pace and feeling guilty. By June, you have quietly abandoned the goal entirely. By December, you set the same goal again. This cycle is not a willpower problem. It is a goal-setting problem. Most reading goals are structured in a way that almost guarantees failure. Here is how to set reading goals that work with your psychology instead of against it. Why Book-Count Goals Usually Fail The most common reading goal is a number: read 12, 24, 50, or 100 books this year. Platforms like Goodreads build their entire reading challenge feature around this metric. The problem is that book-count goals incentivize the wrong behaviors. They Punish Ambitious Reading If your goal is 24 books this year, you are subconsciously incentivized to choose shorter, easier books. A 900-page biography counts the same as a 150-page novella. Deep, challenging books that might take a month feel like a penalty because they slow your progress toward the number. The best reading experiences often come from books that take time and...