So you’ve already failed your reading goals for 2022. Here’s what you should do

January has flown, and so have your dreams of reading more books in 2022.

Much like winter in South Florida, resolutions aren’t made to last. And so during the first month of the year, you spent your time arguing with strangers on Twitter, obsessing over your Wordle solutions and boring followers with your scores, exhausting your Netflix library and generally doing anything but tackling that TBR pile by the bed.

But don’t worry. There’s still time to turn things around. You’re just going to have to make some changes.

Here are a few tips on how to read more efficiently in the new year. Which is still pretty new. Really.

Don’t start your quest with a monster

Look, we know you are eager to finally get “Moby-Dick” under your belt. I’m not, but maybe you are. But if you’re having trouble focusing — and who hasn’t been struggling since March 2020? — start with something a little more modest. Grab a thriller or a crime novel, an upbeat romance or fantasy adventure. It’s easier to fall into a fast-paced plot. And “Moby-Dick” will still be there come March.

Make time to read before bedtime

Once you climb into bed with a book or your tablet, you’re going down, and you’re going down hard. Read earlier in the evening, then watch TV. You can still read when you get into bed, but you won’t feel so guilty when you doze off after a paragraph.

Make time to read in the morning

Books go better with coffee than they do with exhaustion. If you’re an early riser, there’s no better time to read. The coffee keeps you alert, and you can pretend for a short while that you don’t have to go to work.

Always read on the weekend

What’s more fun, mopping the floor or reading a great book? Exactly. Schedule time to pick up a book and let the dog hair pile up around you.

Stick to a hard and fast 50 page rule

If you’re 50 pages in and waging a battle with every page, it’s time to find something else to read. There is no pop quiz. But there are a lot of other good books.

Put your phone in another room

Think of your phone as that hot but unreliable ex: If it’s within reach, you’re not going to be able to resist it. Place it in a strategic location that’s just far enough out of reach that you won’t get up and check it. Laziness has its merits.

Delete apps from your e-reader

If you read on a tablet, make sure you can’t cheat on your book with your social media.

Consider short stories

If you’re pressed for time, read a story collection. That will allow you to pop in and out without losing a sense of the narrative. If you prefer nonfiction, try a collection of essays.

Try audiobooks

They’re great to listen to while walking, and if you stumble onto a good one, you’ll walk twice as far as you expected. Then you can have a bagel with tomorrow’s breakfast read. Win win.

Keep track of what you read

Some people will see this as a burden, but there’s something addictive about logging in the titles as you read them, whether you use GoodReads or just keep a file on your laptop.

This story was originally published January 31, 2022 at 6:00 AM.