How I Read 100 Books a Year - 8 Tips for Reading More

Ali introduces the video topic of sharing eight tips for reading more consistently. He mentions averaging one to two books per week while maintaining a full-time job as a doctor and running a YouTube channel and business. He emphasizes that he has found time to integrate reading into his routine over the past eight years, which has added significant value to his life. The video includes timestamps in the description and pinned comments for easy navigation.

The first major recommendation is purchasing a Kindle, supported by evidence showing Americans who use e-readers read 40-50% more books annually than non-users. Ali has been reading exclusively on Kindle since 2008 and describes it as completely transforming the reading experience. He references three other videos where he discusses the benefits of Kindle in detail. Everyone he has recommended Kindle to has later confirmed they read significantly more and found the purchase worthwhile.

Ali discusses a critical mindset shift about not treating books as sacred objects that must be completed. He previously felt obligated to finish every book before moving to the next one, even when bored. He shares the common example of people struggling with 'Sapiens' for 18 months, feeling guilty every time they try to read. The solution is simply closing or deleting the book and reading something else instead. Ali advocates treating books more like blog posts - if you don't finish a blog post, there's no shame, and the same should apply to books.

This section addresses the misconception that reading should focus on literary classics like Charles Dickens or Jane Eyre. Ali questions who defines what makes a book 'good' and why English literature students' curriculum should dictate personal reading choices. For beginners who don't read consistently, he recommends starting with accessible fiction like Harry Potter or fantasy books that make you want to turn the page, rather than difficult classics from bygone eras. Once the reading habit is established, readers can explore more challenging literature. Ali shares his recent enjoyment of the 'Psy-Changeling' series - 16 books in the paranormal romance genre he describes as 'absolute trash' but fun and engaging, reading without guilt because he genuinely enjoys them.

Ali introduces the concept of two reading modes from a podcast: reading for enjoyment versus reading for information or inspiration. For fiction (enjoyment), he doesn't highlight passages or take notes, and he's comfortable skipping long descriptions if he understands the story. For nonfiction (information), he uses completely different tactics including actively looking for content to highlight on Kindle, reviewing the table of contents first, and jumping to sections that interest him. If sections are boring, he flicks through pages to see if content improves, and if not, he closes the book without guilt. This approach treats books exactly like articles or blog posts, with no shame in skimming or not finishing.

This is described as the most important tip after getting a Kindle. Ali details his specific nighttime routine: brushing teeth, getting into bed, asking Alexa to set lights to 'Relax' mode at 10% brightness, and placing his phone across the room with an alarm set for 6:30 AM. This setup leaves only two options in bed - sleep or read on Kindle. He's maintained this routine for five to six years, reading every night until his eyes close from tiredness. This consistent habit makes finishing one book per week easy, as he reads at least 20-30 minutes daily. Particularly gripping books like 'Bad Blood,' 'Shoe Dog,' and 'The Third Door' have kept him reading until 2-3 AM without regret.

Ali promotes Audible (which is sponsoring the video, though he didn't know when filming) as enabling reading during activities like driving or exercising. He's used Audible for two years and considers it one of the best monthly subscriptions at $7.99. For audiobooks, he prefers fiction over nonfiction, as nonfiction is better on Kindle for highlighting and skimming, while fiction narrators are typically excellent. He's currently listening to the 'Wheel of Time' series at the gym. The video includes a promotional offer: 30-day free trial with one free audiobook and two Audible originals via audible.com/aliabdaal or texting 'Ali Abdaal' to 500 500.

Goodreads is recommended as the ultimate social network for books, with a library of every published book. It automatically integrates with Kindle - books being read appear in the 'currently reading' section, and completion prompts for ratings that sync to Goodreads. This creates a comprehensive library tracking every book read over time, with options to write reviews, read others' reviews, and follow recommendations. When Ali created his account 4-5 years ago, he spent a day adding every book he'd ever read and rating those he remembered. He now has over 300 books in his library, which has become a personal game - getting excited to add new books and mark finished ones, making reading more consistent and enjoyable.

Readwise is described as an incredible service that syncs with Amazon accounts and sends daily emails containing five random highlights from previously read Kindle books. This provides an effective way to resurface valuable content that was highlighted but might otherwise be forgotten. Before Readwise, Ali only occasionally browsed Kindle highlights when researching blog posts. Now daily emails remind him of quotes from books like 'Happy' by Derren Brown or 'Tools of Titans' by Tim Ferriss that apply to current situations. Readwise also syncs all highlights to Evernote, making them searchable - for example, searching 'productivity' finds relevant quotes across hundreds of books. With approximately 2,000 highlights across hundreds of books, plus integration with Instapaper for article highlights, Readwise becomes the ultimate 'second brain' system where anything highlighted is searchable and accessible whenever needed.

Ali summarizes the eight key points, emphasizing the two most important: getting a Kindle and building reading into a nighttime routine. He reiterates that it's acceptable to not finish books, to skim content, and to avoid classics, reminding viewers that reading should be enjoyable rather than a chore like English lessons. The conclusion includes recommendations to watch related videos about books that changed his life and fantasy book recommendations available on Audible. He signs off by directing viewers to a playlist of recommended reading content on his channel.