Happy National Reading Month. It is celebrated during the month of March in honor of one the great children’s authors, Dr. Suess. His birthday is March 2nd. Schools and libraries across America encourage children to develop a life-long love for reading. And generally, I find kids love to have books read to them, and if introduced to the right books, they will sit and read on their own. I loved grade school and middle school activities, like Read and Feed or Stop, Drop and Read. My niece today wore her pajamas, packed a blanket, stuffed animal, snack and favorite book for Stop, Drop and Read.

I encounter adults who complain that they just don’t have time to enjoy a good book. They are too busy, too tried, or too focused on what really matters. And to that I say “ridiculous”! You have the time. You just have to find it and reallocate it.

Here are a few tips for finding more time to read:

1. Read when you eat breakfast. Studies say that most of us eat breakfast alone. Make use of that time. Read.
2. Try an audiobook. I usually checkout the audiobook and the physical copy of the book together. When I stop reading the physical copy to do household chores, I turn on the audiobook. I can get through a lot of books doing this.
3. Carry a book with you everywhere. I have a book in the car and in my bag. I am never without reading material. I have read many good books while waiting for someone to finish practice.
4. Give up that television show you find less than entertaining and dedicate the time to reading. Every summer I watched The Bold and the Beautiful and the Young and the Restless. I often wondered why I was watching these because it was the same thing over and over. I now dedicate the time to reading. The drama in the books is better than on the screen.
5. End your day with reading, just 20 minutes.