I don’t like how scrolling makes me feel these days.
Every headline, meme, and take I scroll past leaves me feeling worse about the world.
It isn’t entirely unwarrantedthere’s a lot of bad happeningbut marinating in that feeling doesn’t help.
Scrolling isn’t always detrimental, of course.
Scrolling is briefly thinking about lots of things; reading is taking the time to think about one thing.
That’s why I’m trying to do more reading and less scrolling.
Taking the time to get context on the issues I care aboutand thinking deeply about themmight.
So I’ve been taking active steps to nudge myself toward scrolling less and reading more.
I hope these tips will help you achieve the same.
The simplest thing you could do so you can scroll less is to get those icons off of there.
Either way, the process is easy: tap and hold on the icon.
I, personally, tend to just remove the apps from my home screen.
That might not be enough for you, though.
It will cut off the problem entirely.
Put books on your phone
Getting books onto your phone isn’t hard.
There are the big apps, includingKindleandKobo, if you want to purchase current titles.
(Apple has its own proprietary “Books” app as well.)
You canaccess millions of books in the public domainwith a little bit of searching.
Set up one or multiple of these applications and put them right on the home screen of your phone.
Ideally, you’ll put the icon right where the social system you used to open constantly lives.
The idea is to trick yourself into opening books.
This isn’t magicyou’re going to need to force yourself to actually read.
Over time, though, the habit may begin to form.
Another thing to consider: audiobooks.
Some people can’t get into reading no matter how hard they try.
Others can’t find the time.
In either case, I think audiobooks can be a great alternative.
Some people get elitist about thisignore them.
Listening to books is great.
Most local libraries offer audiobooks, whether in the Libby app or as physical CDs.
Otherwise, there are services likeAudibleand evenSpotifyto get your audiobook fix.
I like havingread-it-later appson my phone’s home screen.
These let you save articles you find on the web for future reading.
But it’s also a good idea to have a few publications that you browse regularly.
There are all kinds of ways to do this.
That way, you’ve got the option to keep up with everything in one place.
Or, you could look into apps that let you read entire print publications.
I recently discoveredPress Reader, which offers full versions of magazines and newspapers.
(I love doing this.)
Mange your notifications
Nothing disrupts reading faster than being pulled into something else.
But the gist is you don’t want notifications popping up when you’re trying to read.
E-ink devices work, but so do paper books and magazines.
It’s literally impossible to scroll Reddit on a book.
Depending on how your brain works, though, a new gadget might help.
This is basically an e-ink Android equipment, roughly the size of a phone.
If you want something bigger, you canlook into an e-ink tablet.
These are great for both reading and jotting down ideas.
I personally use a Remarkable for reading papers and researching articles.
Getting away from my colorful and animated computing devices for a bit is helpful.
Look into themthey might be what you better trick your brain into reading more.
