9 Benefits of Reading - Why You Should Read Everyday

Are you contemplating on making reading a regular habit? Or like the majority out there, your reading habits are mainly centered around social media status updates and short-form news briefs. If you’re one from the latter then, you may be missing out big time.

Read on to know 9 reasons why reading should be a part of your everyday life.

Reading provides you food for the mind. It keeps filling your brain with new information that can be tapped into whenever there’s a need. The bigger the reserve, the better equipped you will be to tackle any challenge that life might throw at you.

In your life, there might arise situations where you may lose everything else—your job, your possessions, your money, even your health—but there is one thing that can never be taken from you, knowledge!

Research shows that reading is one of the best mental stimulator and can slow the progress of (or possibly even prevent) Alzheimer’s and Dementia. Reading helps in cognitive stimulation and keeps your brain active and engaged and prevents it from losing power.

Brain, just like any other muscle in the body, needs exercise to remain strong and healthy. Reading is among the best exercises for the brain.

In case you are stressed at work or have problems in personal relationships or countless other issues of daily life, reading a good book or an engaging article will distract you and take you to a world where your tensions will simply slip away. This not just helps you to relax, but also rejuvenates you to face life better.

Reading a book makes you remember an assortment of items. All the nuances, with all the twists and turns of the story, are quite a bit to remember. But when you indulge with interest, your brain remembers all these with ease.

And it is seen that every new memory you create, your brain, in turn, creates new synapses (pathways) and strengthens the existing ones. This plays a vital role in short-term memory recall, which in layman terms we say improves memory.

Reading makes you gain exposure to newer words which inevitably do make their way into your vocabulary. With enhanced vocabulary, you’ll be articulate and well-spoken which will eventually boost your self-esteem.

It can even help you in boosting your career prospects. It is seen that candidates who are usually well-read and well-spoken stand higher chances of getting selected for a job or getting a promotion than those who don’t indulge in reading.

When you read a book or an interesting article, your entire attention is focused on the story as you absorb every fine details of the plot. As you get shut out of the world and are engrossed in reading, it immensely improves your focus and concentration.

When reading improves your vocabulary, your writing skills also improve. When you expose yourself to works of good writers and observe their writing style in terms of word choice, coherence of thoughts, the fluidity of ideas, it’ll have an effect on the way you write.

Reading in general calms the mind and alleviates stress. However, the genre one reads also tends to have an influence over his demeanor. For e.g. reading spiritual texts can help one develop an immense sense of calm while reading self-help books or personality development books help people overcome anxiety and bring peace of mind.

Remember the last time you read a mystery novel and could solve the mystery before finishing the book? At that time, you had put all your analytical thinking skills to work and sorted out the information to unravel the plot. Reading enhances your reasoning and analytical skills.

Reading is perhaps among the most affordable entertainment options of all time. If you have a local library membership, it is practically free. Given the innumerable benefits of reading, it is highly recommended that you invest some time to cultivate this habit.

Keep reading, keep learning, and enjoy the journey!