The list of books you plan to read in the future can offer excitement and motivation to keep reading and provide value and a way to express your love of books. Whether your to-be-read, TBR, list consists of pen-and-paper scribbles in a notebook, a public list on Goodreads, or an uber-organized spreadsheet, keeping track of the books you hope to read in the future sounds like a great idea.
But is your TBR stressing you out?
One market research study showed that consumers often feel pressed for time because of conflicting goals (Etkin, J., Evangelidis, I., and Aaker, J., 2015). You want to start working through your TBR but are also committed to cooking a healthy dinner at home, spending special time with your kids, and getting started on that work project. You are knee-deep in goal conflict, and likely feeling the pressure and stress it brings. Growing TBR lists might only indulge your feelings of FOMO, overwhelm you, and ultimately lead to the realization that one life is not long enough to read all the books.
Having too many things on your to-do list (or to-read list) can give you the feeling that there’s just not enough time, often causing anxiety. Hundreds of books on your list, and counting, is realistically unattainable and can add to your mental load, leading to guilt when you are not making much progress. With the potential to cause stress, guilt, and overwhelm, it begs the question: Should readers ditch their book lists?
Not necessarily. People with a short, prioritized list, may feel empowered with enough time to reach their goals, without the added stress (Murphy, M., n.d.). Research shows that list-making can be a healthy tool for increasing productivity (Schrager S, Sadowski E., 2016).
Writing down the books you plan to read might help you achieve your reading goals while freeing up your cognitive resources to pursue other tasks (Masicampo EJ, Baumeister RF., 2011). Best of all, when you cross a book off your list, your brain enjoys a rewarding dopamine hit, increasing motivation to keep reading (Bromberg-Martin ES, and colleagues 2010).
To keep the list stress-free, here are a few tips.
Perhaps what matters most isn’t the length of your list, but the time you spend reading each day. If you want to increase your reading time, crafting a specific, measurable, attainable, realistic, and timely SMART goal to add daily reading to your to-do list can be an effective way to build a reading habit.
In the world of “book-stagram” and “book-tok,” being a book lover isn’t about collecting books, or titles on a list, but the joy of reading.
References
Etkin, J., Evangelidis, I., & Aaker, J. (2015). Pressed for Time? Goal Conflict Shapes how Time is Perceived, Spent, and Valued. Journal of Marketing Research, 52(3), 394-406. https://doi.org/10.1509/jmr.14.0130
Masicampo EJ, Baumeister RF. Consider it done! Plan making can eliminate the cognitive effects of unfulfilled goals. J Pers Soc Psychol. 2011 Oct;101(4):667-83. doi: 10.1037/a0024192. PMID: 21688924.
Murphy, M. (n.d.). You Have Too Many Items On Your To-Do List, New Data Shows. Forbes. Retrieved March 26, 2024, from https://www.forbes.com/sites/markmurphy/2020/01/24/you-have-too-many-items-on-your-to-do-list-new-data-shows/?sh=21841ea069d6
Clinic, C. (2020, June 2). Why Downtime Is Essential for Brain Health. Cleveland Clinic; Cleveland Clinic. https://health.clevelandclinic.org/why-downtime-is-essential-for-brain-…
Schrager S, Sadowski E. Getting More Done: Strategies to Increase Scholarly Productivity. J Grad Med Educ. 2016 Feb;8(1):10-3. doi: 10.4300/JGME-D-15-00165.1. PMID: 26913095; PMCID: PMC4763375.
Berkman ET. The Neuroscience of Goals and Behavior Change. Consult Psychol J. 2018 Mar;70(1):28-44. doi: 10.1037/cpb0000094. PMID: 29551879; PMCID: PMC5854216.
Knollman-Porter, K., & Julian, S. K. (2019). Book Club Experiences, Engagement, and Reading Support Use by People With Aphasia. American Journal of Speech-Language Pathology, 28(3), 1084–1098. https://doi.org/10.1044/2019_ajslp-18-0237
Bromberg-Martin ES, Matsumoto M, Hikosaka O. Dopamine in motivational control: rewarding, aversive, and alerting. Neuron. 2010 Dec 9;68(5):815-34. doi: 10.1016/j.neuron.2010.11.022. PMID: 21144997; PMCID: PMC3032992.
login
who are we?
contact us
qosheapp
Toi Staff
Gideon Levy
Belen Fernandez
Tarik Cyril Amar
Rami G Khouri
Dr Ramzy Baroud
Mort Laitner
Bradley Blankenship
visit website
