If you work remote full-time, you know the trap all too well. You wrap up your last Zoom call of the day, your laptop is still propped open on the coffee table, your Slack notifications are pinging with after-hours messages from colleagues in other time zones, and the stack of unread books on your nightstand feels like a personal failing. You tell yourself you'll start reading tomorrow, when work slows down, when you're less burnt out, when you finally stop answering 7 p.m. client emails. But tomorrow never comes, and your reading habit stays stuck in the "someday" pile, right next to the pile of laundry you keep meaning to fold.
I spent two years working remote full-time letting my reading habit die, because I kept treating it like a luxury I didn't have the time or mental energy for. I'd set grand goals of reading a book a month, then spend every evening after work doomscrolling to decompress from 8 hours of back-to-back calls, never touching the book I'd bought myself as a pre-remote treat. It wasn't until I stopped trying to force 2-hour uninterrupted reading blocks after work, and built tiny, work-integrated habits that fit the chaos of remote life, that I got back into reading---no rigid schedules, no guilt for only reading 2 pages a day, no sacrificing work performance to make it happen. Below are the only strategies that actually work for building a consistent reading habit while working remote full-time.
Swap your post-work doomscroll for 5 minutes of reading first
Remote work blurs the line between "on" and "off" more than any in-person job, so most of us have a default decompression ritual when we finish work: close the laptop, scroll TikTok or LinkedIn for 20 minutes to "switch off" before doing anything else. That scrolling is almost always mindless, leaves you more burnt out than you were when you finished work, and eats into the tiny window of time you might have to read. The fix is stupidly simple: swap the first 5 to 10 minutes of that scroll time for reading. Keep your current read right next to your work setup, and make a rule that you have to read at least 2 pages before you're allowed to touch your phone. You don't have to pick a dense classic or a "worthy" book---cheesy rom-coms, celebrity memoirs, or the YA fantasy you loved as a teen work just as well. The goal isn't to absorb deep, complex ideas in those first 10 minutes; it's to give your brain a transition from work mode to personal mode that doesn't involve staring at a screen, and to get a tiny win of reading time in before you get sucked into the scroll hole. If you're too burnt out to focus after a brutal day, you can even just sit and stare at the pages for 5 minutes---no pressure to actually process the words. The habit of picking up the book is more important than the content you consume on hard days.
Lean into workday micro-breaks instead of waiting for after-work time
If you work remote, you take more tiny, unplanned breaks than you probably realize: 3 minutes between back-to-back Zoom calls, 5 minutes waiting for a large file to upload, 10 minutes during your lunch break instead of eating over your keyboard while you answer emails. These gaps add up to 30 to 45 minutes of wasted time most days, almost all of which is spent scrolling social media or checking work notifications you don't actually need to answer right away. Keep your current read (physical book or e-reader) right on your desk, not tucked away in a drawer or bag, so it's the first thing you reach for when you have a spare minute. Pick a book that's easy to pick up and put down without needing to re-read the last 3 pages to remember what's happening: short story collections, essay anthologies, or light fiction work best for this. I used to read 2 to 3 pages between every call during my remote work days, and by the end of the week, I'd often finished a whole novella without ever setting aside "dedicated reading time" after work. No extra time required, no guilt, just tiny bits of reading that add up fast.
Pair reading with low-stakes, hands-free work tasks
Remote work comes with a lot of mindless, low-effort tasks where your hands are busy but your brain is half-idle: formatting spreadsheets, transcribing meeting notes, folding laundry while you wait for a call to start, walking around the block to get some fresh air during your afternoon slump. These are the perfect times to listen to an audiobook, no extra time needed. Pick a low-stakes audiobook that you don't have to rewind every 2 minutes if you miss a line while you're typing up a report: re-reads of your favorite comfort series, light rom-coms, or even well-narrated nonfiction work well for this. I used to listen to the Harry Potter audiobooks (I'd read them so many times I didn't mind missing bits here and there) while I did my weekly expense reports, and by the end of every month, I'd finished 2 full books without ever sitting down to "read" in the traditional sense. If you don't love audiobooks, you can even follow along with the physical copy of your book while you listen, so you still get the satisfying feeling of turning pages, and don't miss any of the plot.
Stop treating reading like a chore you have to schedule
The biggest mistake remote workers make when trying to build a reading habit is treating it like a work task: scheduling it into their calendar, setting a goal of reading 30 pages a day, feeling guilty when they miss a day because a last-minute project came up. Reading is supposed to be an escape, not another item on your to-do list. Instead of setting rigid goals, aim for "minimum viable reading": 2 pages a day, even if it's just 2 pages you read while you wait for your coffee to brew in the morning, or 2 pages you read while you wait for your lunch to heat up in the microwave. If you miss a day, or a week, or a month, you can just pick the book back up where you left off, no "starting over" required. If you only read 2 pages a day, that's 730 pages a year---almost two full average-length books, no extra time, no guilt, no rigid schedules required. The goal of a consistent reading habit isn't to hit a Goodreads challenge or impress anyone with how many books you read; it's to have a tiny, low-pressure escape from the chaos of remote work that you can turn to whenever you need it.
Separate your reading space from your work space as much as possible
One of the biggest downsides of remote work is that your work and personal life exist in the exact same physical space, so your brain starts to associate every part of your home with work. If you work from your couch, you'll find it hard to read on your couch, because your brain is wired to associate that spot with Slack pings and deadline stress. If you can, pick a dedicated reading spot that's not where you work: a corner of your balcony, an armchair in your bedroom, even the floor of your living room if that's all you have. If you live in a tiny apartment and don't have space for a separate reading nook, create a small ritual to signal to your brain that it's reading time: put on a specific scented candle when you read, use a different blanket than the one you use while you work, or only read physical books (not work e-books) so your brain knows the difference. If you read before bed, keep your book away from your work laptop, so you don't end up scrolling work emails when you're supposed to be winding down.
Last year, I worked remote full-time while finishing my master's degree, taking 12 credit hours while working 40 hours a week, and I was sure I'd have zero time to read for fun. But using these tiny, low-effort strategies, I read 32 books that year---more than I'd read in any year before I started working remote. I didn't have any dedicated reading time, no rigid schedules, no 2-hour blocks of uninterrupted quiet. I just read 2 pages between calls, 5 pages before I touched my phone after work, listened to audiobooks while I did my expense reports. Building a consistent reading habit while working remote doesn't require more time, or more willpower, or a perfect schedule. It just requires you to stop treating reading like a luxury you have to make time for, and start treating it like the low-effort, low-stakes escape it's supposed to be. Cut yourself some slack on busy weeks, skip reading entirely if you're too burnt out, and pick the book back up whenever you have a spare minute. Even if that's just 2 pages. Even if you read the same page three times because you're too tired to focus. That's enough.