Benefits of Reading: Why You Should Read Every Day?
When was the last time
you read a book, or a substantial magazine article? Do your daily reading
habits center around tweets, Facebook updates, or the directions on your
instant oatmeal packet? If you’re one of countless people who don’t make a
habit of reading regularly, you might be missing out: reading has a significant
number of benefits, and just a few benefits of reading are listed below.
1.
Mental Stimulation
Studies have shown
that staying mentally stimulated can slow the progressof (or possibly even prevent) Alzheimer’s and
Dementia, since keeping your brain active and engaged prevents it from losing
power. Just like any other muscle in the body, the brain requires exercise to
keep it strong and healthy, so the phrase “use it or lose it” is particularly
apt when it comes to your mind. Doing puzzles and playing games such as chess have also
been found to be helpful with cognitive stimulation.
2.
Stress Reduction
No matter how much stress you have at work, in your personal relationships,
or countless other issues faced
in daily life, it all just slips away when you lose yourself in a great story. A well-written novel can transport you to other realms, while an engaging article will distract you and keep you in the present moment, letting tensions drain away and allowing you to relax.
in daily life, it all just slips away when you lose yourself in a great story. A well-written novel can transport you to other realms, while an engaging article will distract you and keep you in the present moment, letting tensions drain away and allowing you to relax.
3.
Knowledge
Everything you read
fills your head with new bits of information, and you never know when it might
come in handy. The more knowledge you have, the better-equipped you are to
tackle any challenge you’ll ever face.
Additionally, here’s a
bit of food for thought: should you ever find yourself in dire circumstances,
remember that although you might lose everything else—your job, your
possessions, your money, even your health—knowledge can never be taken from
you.
4.
Vocabulary Expansion
This goes with the
above topic: the more you read, the more words you gain exposure to, and
they’ll inevitably make their way into your everyday vocabulary. Being
articulate and well-spoken is of great help in any profession, and knowing that
you can speak to higher-ups with self-confidence can be an enormous boost to
your self-esteem. It could even aid in your career, as those who are well-read,
well-spoken, and knowledgeable on a variety of topics tend to get promotions
more quickly (and more often) than those with smaller vocabularies and lack of
awareness of literature, scientific breakthroughs, and global events.
Reading books is also
vital for learning new languages, as non-native speakers gain exposure to words
used in context, which will ameliorate their own speaking and writing fluency.
5.
Memory Improvement
When you read a book,
you have to remember an assortment of characters, their backgrounds, ambitions,
history, and nuances, as well as the various arcs and sub-plots that weave
their way through every story. That’s a fair bit to remember, but brains are
marvellous things and can remember these things with relative ease. Amazingly
enough, every new memory you create forges new synapses (brain pathways)and
strengthens existing ones, which assists in short-term memory recall as well as stabilizing moods. How cool is
that?
6.
Stronger Analytical Thinking Skills
Have you ever read an
amazing mystery novel, and solved the mystery yourself before finishing the
book? If so, you were able to put critical and analytical thinking to work by
taking note of all the details provided and sorting them out to determine
“whodunnit”.
That same ability to
analyze details also comes in handy when it comes to critiquing the plot;
determining whether it was a well-written piece, if the characters were properly
developed, if the storyline ran smoothly, etc. Should you ever have an
opportunity to discuss the book with others, you’ll be able to state your
opinions clearly, as you’ve taken the time to really consider all the aspects
involved.
7.
Improved Focus and Concentration
In our internet-crazed
world, attention is drawn in a million different directions at once as we
multi-task through every day. In a single 5-minute span, the average person
will divide their time between working on a task, checking email, chatting with
a couple of people (via gchat, skype, etc.), keeping an eye on twitter,
monitoring their smartphone, and interacting with co-workers. This type of
ADD-like behaviour causes stress levels to rise, andlowers our productivity.
When you read a book,
all of your attention is focused on the story—the rest of the world just falls
away, and you can immerse yourself in every fine detail you’re absorbing. Try
reading for 15-20 minutes before work (i.e. on your morning commute, if you take
public transit), and you’ll be surprised at how much more focused you are once
you get to the office.
8.
Better Writing Skills
This goes hand-in-hand
with the expansion of your vocabulary: exposure to published, well-written work
has a noted effect on one’s own writing, as observing the cadence, fluidity,
and writing styles of other authors will invariably influence your own work. In
the same way that musicians influence one another, and painters use techniques
established by previous masters, so do writers learn how to craft prose by
reading the works of others.
9.
Tranquility
In addition to the
relaxation that accompanies reading a good book, it’s possible that the subject
you read about can bring about immense inner peace and tranquility. Reading spiritual texts can
lower blood pressure and bring about an immense sense of calm, while reading self-help books has been shown to help people
suffering from certain mood disorders and mild mental illnesses.
10.
Free Entertainment
Though many of us like
to buy books so we can annotate them and dog-ear pages for future reference,
they can be quite pricey. For low-budget entertainment, you can visit your local library and bask in the glory of the countless
tomes available there for free. Libraries have books on every subject
imaginable, and since they rotate their stock and constantly get new books,
you’ll never run out of reading materials.
If you happen to live
in an area that doesn’t have a local library, or if you’re mobility-impaired
and can’t get to one easily, most libraries have their books available in PDF
or ePub format so you can read them on your e-reader, iPad, or your computer
screen. There are also many sources
online where you can download free e-books, so go
hunting for something new to read!
There’s a reading
genre for every literate person on the planet, and whether your tastes lie in
classical literature, poetry, fashion magazines, biographies, religious texts,
young adult books, self-help guides, street lit, or romance novels, there’s something
out there to capture your curiosity and imagination. Step away from your
computer for a little while, crack open a book, and replenish your soul for a
little while.
0 Response to "Benefits of Reading: Why You Should Read Every Day?"
Posting Komentar