Examples of reading goals

11 Reading Goals for Adults in 2023

Are you looking to set reading goals for yourself in 2023? Lots of people talk about reading goals for kids and students, but reading goals for adults are just as important. Why? Well, reading has been shown to be highly beneficial for a range of reasons, including expanding your knowledge, improving memory, improving focus and concentration, and more. And, to be honest, it’s also just really good fun!

So if you’re looking to set reading goals for 2023, check out these ideas for excellent reading goals you can use for yourself this year!

What Are Reading Goals?

Reading goals are really just any goals related to reading, so they can really be whatever you want them to be. Essentially, the purpose of reading goals is to stretch you a bit to help you become a bit better at whatever your goal is—whether that be reading more, taking a specific action like reading all the books on your TBR, or anything else!

Why Are Reading Goals Important?

I spoke briefly a minute ago about some of the benefits of reading (expanding your knowledge, improving memory, improving focus and concentration, strengthening analytical thinking, etc. ). These benefits are part of the reason reading goals are important, but there’s a more basic reason too.

What is that reason? Well, setting reading goals will help you actually achieve your reading goals. If you think in the back of your mind that you, for instance, “might like to read more” but don’t actually commit to anything specific, you are far less likely to actually read more when push comes to shove and life gets busy.

But if you instead sit down, think, and actually commit to a specific goal, then you have a far greater chance of achieving it. Bonus points if you actually tell someone about the reading goal you set, as your chances again go way up if you know someone will hold you accountable to your goals!

Tip: You can share your reading goals for this year in the Bona Fide Bookworms book community on Facebook. Join us now!

How to Set Reading Goals

If you’re now wondering “How should I set my reading goals?”, don’t worry! I’ve got tips for you on how to set your reading goals…and in a few minutes I’ll even give you a few excellent reading goal suggestions.

So how do you set your book reading goals? Here are a few things you should consider:

• Choose a deadline. When do you want to your goal to be completed? If you leave a deadline nebulous, you’re less likely to get the results you want.
• Set a measurable goal. Goals that aren’t specific and measurable aren’t good goals at all. “Read more” isn’t a good goal on its own, but challenging yourself to read more and setting a number to that goal (like reading 50 books) is specific and it is easy to measure when you have reached it.
• Set your goals a little higher than you think you can reach. What is the point of setting goals that you can already meet? Goals help us become better, so whatever goal you choose should be a little bit of a stretch so you have something to strive for.
• Find the element of fun. While we’re partially here for the benefits of reading, we’re also here for the fun! Make sure whatever goal you choose has the possibility for at least an element of fun in it, rather than just being drudgery.
• Make sure your goal can break down into smaller goals. Choosing one big goal is great, but think about all those times you had lofty ambitions and never reached your goal… If you break your big goal down into small ones, then every time you complete a small goal you will get a hit of feel-good dopamine that makes you want to keep going!

These are some great characteristics to remember when setting your goals, as considering these elements will set you up for success in reaching your reading goals this year!

What Are Good Reading Goals?

Now that you know all about what reading goals are, why they’re important, and how to set them, you may be wondering what some examples of good reading goals are. Here are 11 reading goals examples to help you choose your next goal!

1. Read More Books

One of the most popular reading goals for adults is to read more books. This works for readers of all types, as you can just set your goal a little higher than you already read each year!

If you don’t read much, you may want to set your goal at a smaller number like reading 12 books this year (that works out to 1 per month). Or if you read quite a bit and want to read more, you could set your goal at 52 books (1 per week) or even higher like 100 or more books in a year!

This is the concept of the super popular Goodreads Challenge, where you set a specific number of books you want to read this year and can then keep track of your reading and watch as your number of completed books begins to climb! It’s a lot of fun to watch as you near your goal, and a goal like this is very easy to track.

Alternatively, you could get more specific with your “read more books” goal and challenge yourself to read more books of a specific type, genre, etc. (For instance, “read more science fiction books”). Remember to set specific, measurable goals to help yourself stay on track!

2. Read a Specific Number of Pages a Day

While some people like to try to read more by setting a specific number of books to read in a year, others may not want to read that much but still want the goal of reading every day. A great goal to use with this is to set a specific number of pages you want to read each day!

Whether that’s 10 pages or 100, setting a goal like this will set you on a good track for developing a reading habit. It’s also easy to measure and you’ll feel great each day when you reach your day’s goal!

3. Spend More Time Reading

Another way to read more is to set a goal to spend more time reading. Rather than choosing how many books to read this year or how many pages to read each day, you can instead choose the amount of time you spend reading.

So ask yourself: what would be a goal that is a stretch but still achievable? 15 minutes a day? 30 minutes? An hour? Or more? Think about what will work for you and your schedule, and then commit to it!

4. Listen to More Audiobooks

Do you like listening to audiobooks but don’t do it often? Or do you wish you liked audiobooks but you haven’t had time to try them out/haven’t liked the ones you’ve listened to so far? If so, then a goal of listening to more audiobooks this year could be an excellent reading goal choice!

Like a goal of reading more books, your audiobook listening goal should be specific and measurable. This could mean listening to a specific number of audiobooks in the year, listening for a specific length of time each day, or any other goal you can come up with!

Get up to two free audiobooks and 30 days of unlimited listening with an Audible Free Trial!

5. Read More Diverse Books/Books You Don’t Normally Read

Another excellent goal is to read more diverse books or books you don’t normally read. One of the best things about reading is learning new things, hearing new ideas, and discovering the world through the eyes of others, so if you find yourself falling into a rut in your reading then this makes a great goal.

With this goal, you can decide to read a specific number of books from diverse authors throughout the year or a specific number of books from genres you don’t normally read. Or, you can go alternative routes with a goal like “read at least 1 book from [insert diverse authors/different genres/etc.] each month”. But however you choose to measure it, this will be a goal that will help shake up your reading!

6.

If you’re the type of reader who feels that you need to finish reading every book you start (even when you hate it), then setting a goal to only read things you find interesting is the perfect choice! This is also a good choice for you if you’ve found yourself not enjoying reading as much anymore.

With this goal, you give yourself permission to stop reading things you don’t like. That means you can DNF a book at any point if you find yourself not enjoying it. It also means you can stop reading books your friends recommended/gave to you if you aren’t enjoying them (even if its your friend’s favorite book!) Reading can be a learning endeavor, but it should also be fun…so this year your goal can help you re-find the fun in reading!

7. Read All the Books Currently On Your TBR

Is your TBR list getting out of hand? If so, a goal you might like to try is reading all the books currently on your “to be read” list. TBR lists can get wildly out of hand very quickly, so dedicating the year to reading everything on your TBR list can be a great way to clear it out and prepare it for all the new books you’re going to want to add to it this year!

8. Stop Buying Books

For those of us who love reading, buying books can be a big addiction! If you’ve found yourself buying way more books than you can read, then maybe you want to challenge yourself to stop buying books as your reading goal this year.

This goal can work in a lot of different ways. You can do a short-term buying ban (like a month or 3 months) or a full year of only reading books you already own, books from the library, and books that are gifted to you. Alternatively, you could combine this goal with the previous one and say that you won’t buy books again until you’ve read all the books on your TBR list.

As you can see, this goal can be easily tailored to your own situation and what you want to commit to as far as time or combining with other goals. So if your book buying is getting out of hand, try this as one of your 2023 reading goals!

9. Organize Your Bookshelves

This next item on this list of reading goals can also easily be tailored to your situation—and that goal is organizing your bookshelves! Bookworms often find they have so many books and little organization, so this can be a great book goal to set.

Whether you want this to be a complete overhaul of your bookshelves (complete with alphabetizing and cataloging) or you just want to be able to put every book on a shelf rather than having books overflowing onto the floor or stashed in bags around your house, this goal can help you set up a system to find your books easier or simply help you treat your books better.

Remember to find an element of fun with your goal, though, as we don’t want it to just be drudgery. So, for instance, you could have fun picking out bookshelves or finding fun knick-knacks to set on your shelves if you love to decorate. But whatever is fun for you, just try to make sure you do some of that too!

10. Declutter Your Books

Speaking of organization, another goal you could set is to declutter your books. This is an especially good goal if you don’t have enough shelf space for all the books you currently own!

Now, I’m not asking you to give away your precioussssssss books (said in a Gollum voice). But if you still own books you didn’t really like, books that you’re never going to read again, etc., then it may be time to take a look through your shelves and see what you don’t need or want anymore.

11. Track Your Reading

Last, but not least, one of the best reading goals you can set for the year is to keep a reading journal or otherwise track your reading.

Why? Well, have you ever forgotten the name of a book you read and now you really want to find it but can’t? Keeping track of your reading will help eliminate this issue. It is far easier to look back at a record of all the books you’ve read to find a forgotten book than it is to try to find it from scratch.

Keeping track of your reading can be as simple or as detail-filled as you would like, but it is a great idea for all readers to do. It’s also very rewarding and enjoyable to see the list of all the books you’ve read as it grows over time! Learn about the best ways to track your reading here.

What Are Your Reading Goals?

Now you have seen some good reading goal examples and learned all about setting reading goals! So what are your reading goals for 2023? Feel free to leave a comment with your reading goals for the year, or join us in the Bona Fide Bookworms community to share your goals there!

• Share
• Tweet

8 SMART Goals Examples to Improve Reading Comprehension

There might be affiliate links on this page, which means we get a small commission of anything you buy. As an Amazon Associate we earn from qualifying purchases. Please do your own research before making any online purchase.

Do you find yourself reading the same passage of text over and over again, only to feel it fly right over you?

If so, then you might need help with your reading comprehension.

Reading comprehension adds meaning to what you are reading. Without it, the ideas, concepts, and thoughts you read on a page are just meaningless words. With proper comprehension, reading becomes informative, fun, and enjoyable.

Reading comprehension is a skill that you need to succeed in life. It’s also a skill you should learn whether or not you’re still in school. In fact, reading comprehension is a skill that requires continuous improvements throughout our lives.

One strategy that can help is to set and achieve SMART goals related to reading comprehension.

So with that in mind, let’s briefly define the SMART goals concept and then we’ll cover eight examples you can use to improve your reading comprehension.

What You Will Learn

• What are SMART Goals?
• Why Are SMART Goals Important for Reading Comprehension?
• 8 SMART Goals Examples for Reading Comprehension
  • 1.  Improve Vocabulary
  • 2. Break Text Up into Chunks
  • 3. Information Overload
  • 4. Summarize
  • 5. Skim and Prepare
  • 6. Reading Aloud
  • 7. Ask Questions
  • 8. Reflection
• Final Thoughts on SMART Goals for Reading Comprehension

What are SMART Goals?

Goals motivate us whenever we are running low. Having a goal gives us a direction to work towards in both personal and professional lives. They push us forward and repeatedly remind us of what we want to achieve.  

Humans have been setting objectives and achieving them throughout history. In the 19th century, philosophers began to notice that many people were failing in achieving their objectives. They did not fail because they lacked energy or motivation, but rather because they could not keep themselves focused on their objectives.

But it was not until November 1981 that the term “SMART goals” was coined by George T. Doran. SMART goals enabled us to define our objectives in a more meaningful and organized manner, which helped us focus on what we wanted to achieve. With a narrowed-down focus on our objectives, our chances of achieving them increased multifold.

SMART is an acronym that claims that every goal we set should have five characteristics:

1. Specific: The objective has to be narrowed down and clearly defined. It should focus on a specific and small area for improvement.
2. Measurable: The goal must be linked to measurable criteria, which means there should be some indicator to indicate your progress towards the goal.
3. Attainable: The goal must be something that we can achieve. The bar should not be set too high, and someone must have accomplished something similar in the past.
4. Relevant: The goal must have a significant value in your life, and you should have a burning desire to achieve it.
5. Time-Bound: The goal must be linked to a deadline, such as a date when you want to see yourself as having accomplished the goal.

Setting SMART goals is not too complicated, especially when you know the necessary tricks and tools. Our Ultimate Guide to SMART Goals is an excellent guide to get you started and makes setting and achieving your goals much easier.

Why Are SMART Goals Important for Reading Comprehension?

Countless studies and research have shown that we spend most of our lives on auto-pilot mode, hopping from task to task, every day, every night. We remain busy throughout the day and yet feel less and less accomplished every day. We never seem to have enough time and yet feel we are not doing enough.

Unfortunately, most of us like to live in our comfort zone, even if that means NOT planning or setting goals for the future. Statistics show that more than 80% of us don't even bother to define our goals. We often wish we had something or reached some position but never actually work towards it.

Most of us don't set goals simply because we are lazy. Others, because they are so pessimistic, doubt their capabilities to achieve what they are striving for.

A major reason for not achieving what you desire is failing to establish it as a goal. Once you have set your objective, only then can you begin to work towards it. If you don't have a direction, you will go in all directions and reach nowhere.

Those who fail after setting a goal have often set a goal that is too vague, unrealistic, or sometimes even irrelevant to them. Goals such as “I want to be better at reading comprehension” are vague and do not define the direction you want to take to achieve it. Since the goal is unclear, it will probably end up in the drawer and on the “things I hope to do someday” list.

Setting SMART goals for reading comprehension will help you define your ideas and objectives beforehand. Once you have a clear vision of what you want to achieve, you will find staying focused on the goal much easier.

We all have to deal with multiple tasks daily, and it is easy to forget about working on improving our reading comprehension on a daily basis. However, a SMART goal can be broken down into smaller tasks to allow you to set and achieve a milestone every single day.

SMART goals for reading comprehension will give you direction and allow you to focus on your objective. You can keep your daily milestones in mind whenever you read something throughout the day.

So let’s review those eight examples…

8 SMART Goals Examples for Reading Comprehension

1. Improve Vocabulary

I want to improve my vocabulary to better understand what I am reading. I will try to learn five new words every day. Whenever I come across a word, I will look up its definition and then use it in a sentence to understand its meaning. 

Specific: Improve vocabulary by learning five words daily

Measurable: Five words daily allows you to measure your progress daily

Attainable: The goal is achievable if the steps of searching for a definition and using it in a sentence are followed

Relevant: I want to better understand what I am reading, and vocabulary is a crucial factor in reading

Time-Bound:  One day is the deadline for five words

2.

I will take a break of two minutes after every fifteen minutes of reading. Instead of going on continuously, I will give my mind some time to absorb the information I have read. I will gradually increase my continuous reading time from fifteen minutes to thirty minutes in the next fifteen days by adding one or two minutes every day. 

Specific: Break up large bodies of text into smaller passages to understand them better, and increase continuous reading time to thirty minutes

Measurable: A break of two minutes after every fifteen minutes. Increase reading time to thirty minutes

Attainable: The goal is achievable because I am making small improvements every day

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and giving myself breaks will allow my mind to refresh and grasp information better

Time-Bound:  The deadline for taking a break is fifteen minutes initially. This will be increased to thirty minutes over fifteen days.

3. Information Overload

To keep myself focused on what I read, I will limit myself to reading 5,000 words per day. I will gradually increase the word count to 15,000 words per day over the next 30 days. 

Specific: I want to read 5000 words per day to keep myself focused

Measurable: A daily goal of 5000-15000 words will allow me to measure my progress 

Attainable: Allowing myself to build the habit of reading gradually will make me better at understanding what I read

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and reading too much can cause me to lose concentration. 

Time-Bound: The deadline for reading 5000-15000 words is one day, and for building the habit is 30 days.

4. Summarize

I will summarize whatever I read. I will write a 50-100 words summary after reading approximately 2000 words or after every fifteen minutes. I will consciously practice this for 30 days, and it will help me build a habit of focusing on what I am reading. 

Specific: Write a summary to make sure that I understand what I am reading

Measurable: I will write 50-100 words after every 2000 words  

Attainable: The goal is achievable as writing a summary should not be too difficult after reading

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and summarizing the passage will ensure that

Time-Bound:  The deadline for starting a summary is fifteen minutes, and for building the habit is 30 days.

5. Skim and Prepare

I will skim through the headings and the passage before reading to understand what I am about to read. I will write down three questions that I am looking to get answered from the text before I begin reading. I will practice this habit for the next 30 days. 

Specific: Write questions regarding expectations from the text

Measurable: I will derive three questions from the passage I am about to read and will continue skimming until I get three questions  

Attainable: The goal is achievable as skimming through the text will give me an idea of the context and what I am going to read about

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and having questions beforehand will keep me more focused because I will be searching for answers

Time-Bound:  The deadline for building this habit is 30 days

6. Reading Aloud

I will practice reading at least 1500 words aloud every day. This will help me slow down and break my habit of skipping over words. I will carry on this practice for 15 days. 

Specific: Read 1500 words aloud every day

Measurable: 1500 words aloud per day

Attainable: The goal is achievable because reading aloud will stop me from skipping words

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and reading each word can help me understand what I am reading 

Time-Bound:  The deadline for 1500 words is one day, and for breaking the habit of skipping words is 15 days

7.

I will practice taking a break after reading for 15 minutes, ask myself questions like “What did I read about?” and try to define what I read in my own words. 

Specific: Ask a question about what I read after every fifteen minutes

Measurable: One question for every fifteen minutes of reading

Attainable: The goal is achievable because recalling 15 minutes' worth of reading should be challenging but not impossible

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and asking questions will ensure that I understand what I am reading 

Time-Bound:  The deadline for one question is fifteen minutes

8. Reflection

I will try to recall at least three ideas from what I read during the day. Thinking about what I read will help me retain the text and will help me understand it better. I will build a habit of this over the next 15 days.

Specific: Recall three ideas from what I read after a few hours

Measurable: If I am unable to recall at least three ideas, it means that I will have to reread the text

Attainable: The goal is achievable because recalling three ideas should not be too difficult if I understood what I read

Relevant: I want to make sure that I understand what I am reading, and pondering over what I read will ensure that I understand it better and retain it longer  

Time-Bound:  The deadline for three ideas is one day, and for building the habit is 15 days

Final Thoughts on SMART Goals for Reading Comprehension

Reading is not about going over the words. It is about learning, thinking, and reflecting on what you read. Passages of texts can transform into thoughts and ideas when read with proper comprehension; otherwise, they are mere chunks of the alphabet.

The key to accomplishing SMART goals for reading comprehension is to have them written down and revisit them every day. So if you want to take immediate action on this concept, then be sure to check out our 13-step process for setting SMART goals and also download the worksheet that we link to on this page. 

Tips with Examples • Asana

Every team that achieved phenomenal results started with goal setting. Teams with the right goals can do amazing things: cure diseases, create more energy efficient appliances, or make the oceans safer for whales and dolphins. By setting goals, we can visualize where we want to go and determine what actions need to be taken to get there.

But achieving ambitious goals is not just about reaching for the stars. You need to understand how to get to your destination. The SMART methodology is precisely for this purpose. SMART is an acronym for helping you define and set the right goals. With the help of the SMART methodology, any goal - from the tasks that the project solves to the strategic prospects of the entire company - will contain everything necessary to achieve it. Here's how it's done. nine0003

Specific

Don't forget, you set a SMART goal to achieve something specific, it should not be too general. The goal is not to make any initiatives successful. You strive to complete a certain project with high quality. Make sure that the goals you set are closely related to what you are working on. Then you are guaranteed to be able to achieve them.

Measurable

M stands for measurable, which means the ability to measure the success or failure of a project. Goals should have an objective way to measure them. This could be due date, quantity, percentage change, and so on. nine0003

Achievable

Goals should not be too easy to achieve - at the same time, the goals you set should be achievable in principle. Achievable goal means that the goal should not be beyond the possible. Ask yourself: Is the goal within the scope of the project? If it is not, it is not reachable.

What about high goals?

Inflated goals are intentionally complicated tasks. For example, if your website typically has 30,000 monthly visitors, a high target would be 50,000 monthly visitors. This is significant growth! But this goal is still within the realm of possibility. Inflated goals should be ambitious, not unattainable, such as the goal of getting 300,000 monthly visitors instead of 30,000.

Realistic

The letters A and R in SMART are closely related. Goals should be not only achievable, but also realistic. For example, a goal may be achievable, but for this all employees will have to work six weeks in a row. Such a goal, of course, is achievable, but it can hardly be called realistic. In order for your goals to meet both of these parameters, you need a clear resource management plan.

Time-bound

Your SMART goal must have an end date. Without a time limit, a project can drag on, have no clear metrics for success, and grow in scope. If you haven't already done so, make sure you have a clear project timeline. nine0003

What are the benefits of SMART goals?

Forming important goals with all the components of SMART in mind can take longer than the standard goal setting process, but the benefits of using SMART goals outweigh the difficulties associated with this process. Goals are not something you can talk about and forget about. They are a key element of the project planning process. Using SMART goals, you get:

1. Clear communication and consistency. When a project team knows exactly what goal it is working towards, it is more motivated and united. Employees who know how their personal work contributes to the achievement of the company's global goals have a level of motivation 2 times higher than those who do not know this. Therefore, creating SMART goals and communicating them to employees allows you to increase the motivation of the entire team. nine0003

2. Clear understanding of project success. Have you ever completed a project and found that you do not understand whether it solved the problem? SMART goals allow you to set clear guidelines and avoid vague formulations.

3. Clear plan and finish line. When using SMART goals, you have a good idea of ​​what you want to achieve and at what time. You'll make sure your goals are realistic and achievable, and you'll know how to measure results to see if a task is accomplished or not. nine0003

4. Tracked indicators. When using SMART goals, you can easily evaluate the success of the project after its completion. There is nothing wrong with not reaching the goal. We at Asana strive to achieve 70% of our goals. So we understand that we set difficult, but achievable goals. Whether or not you have completed your goals, SMART can help you evaluate your goal and learn from the work you have done.

Five examples of SMART goals

Ready to get started? Before you start creating your SMART goals, take a look at the following five examples of SMART goals and how they fit the SMART criteria. nine0003

1. Business objective

• Example. Create at least three different types of high-volume marketing materials (e.g. e-book, webinar, video, sales brochures) per month during the first quarter.

• Why is this a SMART goal? This goal is specific (large marketing materials) measurable (three different types) achievable and realistic (this depends on the number of project participants, but we assume that there are enough of them to create three types of materials per month), and also limited in time (per month during the first quarter) .

2. Command target

• Example. During the first half of FY 2022, the product development team will be involved in five cross-disciplinary projects focused on usability testing, consumer research, consumer marketing, or R&D.

• Why is this a SMART goal? nine0066 This goal is specific (projects focusing on usability testing, consumer research, consumer marketing, or R&D) measurable (five projects across departments) achievable (five projects in six months) , realistic (the project will involve the entire product development department), and limited time (during the first half of fiscal year 2022) . nine0003