Reading is not only an important professional skill. Reading is also a way to enjoy informative, creative and inspiring literary works that enrich our life experiences. Like any great skill to master, the habit of reading takes time and dedication to develop. However, the effort will be well worth it because reading is a lifelong source of fun and entertainment and an affordable hobby for anyone willing to open a book.
Step
Part 1 of 3: Developing Reading Habits
Step 1. Improve your reading skills
So that you can develop reading habits and enjoy reading to the fullest, start practicing good reading skills. For example:
- Get the contents. As you read, look for the main idea of each paragraph, along with the reasons that support it. When practicing your reading skills, you can use a pencil to take notes or underline the main idea of each paragraph.
- Look for the meaning of unfamiliar words. The online KBBI is a great resource for finding definitions of unfamiliar words. Underline unfamiliar words or make a list of these words. When you've reached a good point to stop reading for a moment, go back to each unfamiliar word and look for its meaning, then reread the sentence where the word was. It helps to contextualize the word and its use if the word has multiple meanings.
- Learn to understand context. When encountering unfamiliar words or ideas, often the literal, historical or social context of the text can provide clues as to what the character or author of the article said. Sometimes you have to do a little research outside of this article or book to understand the different levels of context in a text.
- Understanding literary devices. Especially if you're a fan of novels and short stories, by familiarizing yourself with common literary tactics, you can become a better reader. Understanding common tools like metaphor, hyperbole, parallel structure, personification, and prototyping can make your reading experience significantly richer.
- Do not rush. Reading to learn and have fun is not a race. Instead, try to take the time, develop your reading skills at your own pace. Don't be discouraged if it takes you a long time to read, especially if you're just starting out. Each day, as you read, your mind will use the reading tactics it has learned in previous days, often with greater efficiency.
Step 2. Make sure you have easy access to reading material
Basketball players cannot practice without a basketball and basketball shoes. Reading is just like any other skill. Here are a few ways to make sure there's new reading material in your reach:
- Subscribe: Business magazines or magazines on topics of particular interest are good reading options. There are also online literary magazines such as "Horison".
- Go to the library: Libraries offer a variety of books that can be read for free. If you're not a library member yet, sign up and take a look at your local library's collection.
- Try e-Readers. Barnes and Noble, as well as Amazon, have an e-Reader option and a large selection of digital books for sale or rent.
- Search the internet. Sites through the university library offer many literary works available online. For example "Project Gutenberg" available on Ibiblio through the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, which currently contains nearly 50,000 essays, novels, novellas, and short stories and about 50 new novels are added to the collection each week.
Step 3. Find ways to connect reading to everyday life
You will find it easier to develop reading skills if you incorporate reading activities into your daily schedule. Here are a few ways to achieve this.
- Join the book club. These clubs usually meet regularly and can be a great way to motivate you to read as well as meet people who are also committed to having good reading habits. Book clubs also give you the opportunity to discuss what you read and provide the advantage of interacting with some intelligent people who have an interest in reading.
- Download news aggregator. There are some free services like Feedly or Digg that allow you to follow blogs, newspapers, and online magazines via a browser-based platform that also organizes what you read into folders and sorts it by "read" and "unread" reading.
- Find a time and place to read. Is there your favorite table in the coffee shop, or a quiet corner in your home where you can curl up and relax? Find a place that is conducive to your reading habit. Set aside time regularly to enjoy this place and always carry the book you are reading with you.
- Set daily or weekly goals. There is no recommended reading speed to finish a book or magazine. However, if you are an ambitious reader and have a list of books you want to read, setting reasonable goals is a good way to fulfill this ambition. For example, set a goal to read an hour a day, or you will read a chapter of the book you are reading, or 10 pages of the magazine you are reading.
Part 2 of 3: Deciding What to Read
Step 1. Think about your personal hobbies and interests
Reading can become more interesting and satisfying when we read topics that we are interested in.
Look for blogs, books, and magazines that relate to your hobbies and interests to encourage reading and maximize enjoyment
Step 2. Ask for recommendations from friends
Suggestions from others often help to determine our reading choices.
- Talk to friends or search the internet for fellow readers with similar interests. Find out what books they like.
- Goodreads.com is a great place to get book recommendations with great reviews.
- Visit a bookstore in your city, if one exists. Some bookstore employees love to read and will be happy to recommend their favorite books. If there are independent bookstores or used bookstores in your town, this could be a better choice.
Step 3. Read a classic book
One of the things to being a good reader is knowing what good writing looks like. Try reading books that have played a role in shaping Indonesian history, while thinking about:
- How to expand that search and find books that are also classics in other parts of the world.
- Find out how each generation of writers claimed, possessed, and reinterpreted important facts from history for its own generation.
Step 4. Find out what the critics say
There is an assumption that everyone is a critic and that taste is relative. However, trends develop because some things in culture touch or feel relevant to many people at one time. Some of the benefits of reading book reviews include:
- Develop new reading skills. Reading criticism is different from reading fiction or nonfiction. Develop your skills by learning to understand the purpose and use of literary criticism.
- Get information about a book without having to buy it. Reviews are a great way to anticipate and cancel the purchase of a book. Book reviews are also a great way to learn how to convey your tastes as a reader.
- Initiate conversations based on information. Maybe you and your book club have just read a book that received bad reviews from the "New York Times." Bring this review and share the key points the critic made. Try to find out what others think. Develop your own opinion about this book.
Step 5. Create a reading list
It's important to make a list of books, magazines, and blogs that interest you so that when you're done reading the book you're reading, you know what to read next. Goodreads.com is a great place to make this list. But you can also list them in a personal journal.
Part 3 of 3: Making Reading a Long Term Commitment
Step 1. Try volunteering as a reader
Sometimes schools, nursing homes, rehabilitation centers, and other places need volunteers to read. By becoming a volunteer reader, you are doing an important service because:
- Not all children have parents who have time to educate them to have good reading habits. For single parents who have many children, it is not easy to help their children to read if the child has difficulty doing it. Volunteering means you can help shape this child's educational future and professional prospects.
- Not all adults can read. For various reasons, there are adults who cannot read, making it difficult to find work and reducing their ability to live independently. As a volunteer adult reader, you have a positive impact on the lives and self-confidence of people today.
- You can gain valuable knowledge. Older people with health problems can no longer read. If they enjoy reading beforehand, having someone read something to them is a valuable experience as it can offer friendship and an opportunity to share knowledge.
- Some communities may have volunteer programs where you can record audio while reading a book for people who are blind or dyslexic to hear.
Step 2. Start or participate in a book barter program
Try searching online for any communities that have this program, or find a used bookstore that offers this program.
Especially if you enjoy reading pop fiction, romance novels, or sci-fi, book swapping is a great way to save money while keeping your bookshelf stocked with books
Step 3. Visit a book festival
Want to learn about new writers and meet writers you already know? The book festival is a great opportunity for both. Book festivals also offer other benefits, including:
- Opportunity to buy books. Publishers and bookstores come to book festivals and often sell books by authors who participate in these festivals.
- Request the author's signature on the book you own. Especially when the author has just published a book, he is usually asked to appear at a book festival to promote his work. Book signing events allow you to enjoy literature and make memories at the same time.
- Enjoy it when others read to you. Festivals often invite writers to read texts from their latest works or hold public reading events to spark interest in talented writers or remember them.
Step 4. Create a book blog
Book blogs are a great way to remember which books you liked, criticize books you didn't like, and remember which books you have read. In addition, book blogs can:
- Help you meet other people. Make your writing publicly readable and allow strangers on the internet to enjoy and comment on your thoughts.
- Train yourself to write. Reading and writing are closely related. Writing well and developing a writing style that you enjoy is good practice. It also requires you to be your own editor, rereading what you've written to ensure quality and accuracy.
Step 5. Try learning to read in another language
If you enjoy reading in your own language, choose a new language to learn. You can start reading in another language by:
- Search the dictionary in the selected language. Try looking in the library or buy it at a bookstore.
- Start with children's books. Books for young children contain simple and straightforward writing and have basic vocabulary related to things in common life and are easy to translate. Learning to read at a basic level can prepare you for even more difficult reading.
- Studying poetry translation. Choose a well-known poet who wrote poetry in the language you have studied and look for books that contain works in both his language and Indonesian. Read slowly and carefully, and compare the translation with the original. Take a look at how some concepts are translated along with the language used to describe them. This is an effective way to understand a new language as well as a new culture.
