Reading Archives - Mandi Stanley

Our theme in January is Keep Reading Alive in 2025!

In recent weeks I’ve shared several tips for achieving your reading goal this year.

SECRET ONE. I don’t watch a lot of tv.

SECRET TWO. I keep two books going at once.

SECRET THREE: Set up an account in Goodreads.

SECRET FOUR: Always keep a book in your car.

Allow me to post two final thoughts on reading.

SECRET FIVE:

Support your local library.

If you feel as if you are spending a fortune on new books—whether digital, audible, or from the bookstore—don’t forget your local library provides access to thousands of titles. And, if they don’t have the book you are looking for, they will happily get it for you. Last week my sister-in-law, Emily Garrigues Marett, reminded me how we can apply for nonresident library cards at other library systems for a small fee to get access to more plentiful digital options in libraries with bigger budgets.

SECRET SIX.

Don’t be afraid to QUIT a book.

As someone who never quits anything, I find such freedom in this statement. I used to think if I started it, I had to finish it. However, this year I quit two books. They simply weren’t my cup of tea, and there wasn’t a single redeeming character in the pages of either one. I just couldn’t get into them, and I dreaded having to finish them. So—I didn’t. I’ll give a book six chapters, and if the pace hasn’t picked up by then, I give myself permission to put it aside without finishing it. (Not easy for me.)

What other ideas do you have for keeping reading alive in 2025?

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

Certified Speaking Professional Mandi Stanley works with business leaders who want to boost their professional image by becoming better speakers and writers through interactive high-content keynotes, breakout sessions, workshops, technical writing seminars, and fun proofreading classes.

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Photo by Caio

Our theme in January is Keep Reading Alive in 2025!

Last week I shared my first two secrets to help us all achieve our reading goals this year:

SECRET ONE.

I don’t watch a lot of tv.

SECRET TWO.

I keep two books going at once.

This week let’s look at two more simple yet helpful tips for staying on our reading track in January.

SECRET THREE.

Set up an account in Goodreads.

Goodreads is fun! It allows you to keep track of the books you’ve read, follow friends (I learn a lot from my friends’ reading lists), and stay on top of new releases from your favorite authors. You can check it out at www.goodreads.com. I’d love for us all to become reading friends.

SECRET FOUR.

Always keep a book in your car.

I know a lot of you have gone digital, so you always have a book close at hand and ready to read on your phone or Kindle. Still, there have been times I’ve gotten somewhere and realized there’s going to be a long wait. I keep a book in my car for such occasions. I can chip away at it a few pages or chapters at a time, and I can finish an additional 12 books a year on average just by reading while I’m waiting. It often comes down to deciding if I’m going to read or if I’m going to scroll.

What about you? I invite you to state your 2025 reading plan in the comments along with the book you are currently reading or are about to begin. For those of you who have gone digital, I’d love for you to talk me into it and bring me into the current century. I still walk around with a book in my hand like someone from the 1990s!

To customize a keynote or professional development session that will have your audience laughing and learning, contact Mandi Stanley.

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It’s Interview Time: What’s the One Detail Most Interviewees Forget?

Wacky Word of the Week: Purge this Particular Word

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