This might sound like the start of a very dreary English lesson at school, but I promise you that it isn’t. I am very serious about reading, and I want you to be too. Not because I’m a boring kill-joy – because out of the long-list of things I’ve been called, that is definitely not one of them – but because reading is SO DARN GOOD FOR YOU.

Got it? Great, let’s begin.

Whether it be fiction or non-fiction, there are endless stories that can help to broaden your understanding of the world and the people who live in it, and if the world needs anything right now, it’s perhaps a little more empathy from its inhabitants.

Books and carefully crafted stories are also a great way of helping you to navigate through a particularly difficult or turbulent part of your life or career, and can even help you to discover new passions and hobbies when you most need them.

Plus, those who read a lot tend to demonstrate more finely tuned and focused minds, meaning that through reading, you can improve your mind both psychologically and cognitively, which is very good for our busy little brains that have to deal with a lot of information, emotions and stress, day in day out.

So, to get you inspired to read more, and thus encourage your brains to work a little bit better, we’ve compiled 5 reasons why you really should be reading more…

1. Increase your verbal skills

Now, while reading might not necessarily make you a better all-round communicator, those who read more do tend to have a much more varied, and wider, vocabulary. This means, that the more you read, the higher the level of vocabulary is that you are putting at your disposal to use in everyday life, whether that be for a big nerve-wracking meeting or just socialising with new friends – having an extensive vocab to hand always helps to boost your confidence.

2. Improve your concentration

Unlike reading short news articles and social media posts online, sitting down to read a book takes a lot longer and requires sustained periods of focus and concentration. This can be hard to do at first, but by being fully engaged in a book, you are closing yourself off from the outside world and immersing yourself into the content that you’re reading. This, in time, will work to positively strengthen your attention span, and thus arm you with the tools to focus more fully on projects that require your complete focus.

3. Inspire creativity

You are only ever limited by your own imagination and the words, experiences, views, opinions and ideas that are described in books by other people will help expand your understanding of what is possible and what, in turn, you can help to create. By reading a written description of a place, someone’s’ face or an event, your mind is solely responsible for creating that image in your head, instead of having it mercilessly served up in front of you, already complete, when you watch television. So by reading, we can encourage our brains to create even better, more curiously wonderful things that will hopefully go on to inspire others!

4. Improve your memory

Weirdly, but rather accurately, reading gives you more time to think, and it encourages you to pause for comprehension and insight. However, when you watch a film, you rarely press pause to reflect on what you’ve watched to digest its meaning and impact. The benefits of this increased activity in your brain helps to keep your memory sharp and your capacity for learning agile, allowing you to process things more effectively and efficiently in everyday life.

5. It’s a stress buster!!

This is super important, especially when life starts to get a bit crazy and we don’t know how to slow things down and take stock. Studies have shown that by reading silently for just 6 minutes, a subjects heart rate can slow down and muscle tension relax considerably. And if that’s not a reason enough to pick up a juicy tale or a creepy thriller, then I really don’t know what is…

These are just a few simple reasons as to why reading is important and how it can help you to function as a more productive, less-stressed, competent and inspiring person, but also please remember this – reading is actually supposed to be fun, yes really. Books are there for your entertainment and education, so utilise them, because anything that helps you to improve your mind, your perception of the world, and your creativity at the same time, is pretty darn important.

Now, while you’re not too busy becoming immersed in your next great read, why not think about the kind of stories that you’d like your brand to tell and let us help you to create them. We’d love to help you connect and engage with your customers in the most inspiring ways possible, so get in touch today!