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At the moment, I listen to audiobooks at 3.5x speed (yes, this is me bragging), and I can comfortably listen my way through 3 to 4 audiobooks in a week, and I’m talking about books of at least 16 hours.
But when I first started out, I would start listening to a book and fall asleep almost immediately. This was at a point in my life where looking at words made me dizzy and physically sick, but I still needed to read.
So, I knew I had to explore other options like having someone read to me face-to-face, which I didn’t like, and listening to audiobooks, which I hadn’t tried. I jumped in right away, and it was a negative experience at first because, as with everything, you need to try your hand at activities before you realise how best to go about it.
I gave it a break for a few weeks, and during this time, I researched and thought about different things I could do while listening because I found out that my retention rate was much higher when I listened to a book as opposed to reading it.
Some science people might have explained it in better terms, but I remember learning that when your brain is active at the same time your body is physically moving, it sort of jogs your brain and keeps you focused on the task at hand.
The next time, I tried to listen to an audiobook, while doing my chores at home, and it was wonderful because I was able to complete an entire short story collection in those few hours. But then chores are no fun, and I needed something that would make me happy and also allow me to read at the same time (listening to a book is reading in my book – every detectable pun intended).
And now, after years of experience listening to books, I’ve found that the best way to do this is by pairing a low-intensity activity with a high-intensity activity like reading.
Luckily, there are tons of low-intensity activities you can do while listening to your audiobook, so go through this list and let me know in the comment sections which ones you’ve tried and which ones didn’t work for you.
1. Work on a craft project like knitting, origami, paper crafting, woodworking, painting, or drawing while letting your imagination roam.
2. Take a leisurely bike ride through your neighborhood or a nearby trail. You can even visit new areas of your city or town on foot while listening to an audiobook.
3. Tend to indoor plants like propagating plants or caring for succulents or start a small garden in your backyard.
4. Do low-intensity exercises like tai chi, yoga, or gentle stretching, or you can do some light exercises at home or the gym. Or, you could even work through your home workout routine and do some bodyweight exercises or Pilates.
5. Go for a walk or jog in the park or run through your neighborhood at a time during the day that’s most convenient for you. Evenings might be better since they’re cooler, and you can focus on your audiobook and running without being scared of getting a heat stroke.
6. Clean and organize your living space. Perhaps you could schedule a deep cleaning session every other Saturday and in those few short hours sink into an audiobook of your choice.
7. Cook or bake your favorite recipes as meal prep or dishes you can eat immediately. This could also include preparing homemade juice and whatnot and trying out recipes you come across.
8. Commute to work or run errands while following along with an audiobook that you love.
9. Do household chores like laundry (fold and iron) or dishes. You can even take out the trash and mow your lawn while at it. And, you could also rearrange and declutter a room in your home.
10. There’s no better way to unwind after a hard day at work and relaxing in the bath or shower with an audiobook is just the right type of fun.
Related: More for Less: 13 Best Sites To Get Free Books In 2024
11. Travel or go on a road trip one weekend and pair it with the best audiobook you can find.
12. Meditate or practice mindfulness.
13. Play casual mobile games, brain teasers, or puzzles to keep yourself busy while listening to an audiobook of your choice. Or, you could play a board or card game with family and friends.
14. Work on a DIY project around the house or replace spoilt or damaged fixtures.
15. You can also enjoy a picnic in the park or backyard while listening to an audiobook and basking in nature.
16. Engage in a hobby like photography, birdwatching, crocheting, pottery, and even marbling.
17. Practice a musical instrument or learn a new one.
18. Write in a journal or work on creative writing. You can even make whatever you write inspired by the book you’re listening to.
19. This might be unconventional, but I love drawing mock maps of non-existent countries, and you can absolutely keep yourself busy with this while listening to audiobooks.
20. Take a scenic drive-through time or pick one cool evening with the best weather to go on a bike ride.
21. Visiting a museum or art gallery and admiring the works while listening to an audiobook is also an amazing way to pass the time, and you’ll have fun too.
22. You can also take a day off to attend to your personal grooming tasks like skincare or even grooming your pet, all while listening to an audiobook – you can even get a massage.
23. This might sound terribly mundane, but simply sitting back and enjoying a cup of tea, coffee, or juice while listening is another fantastic thing you could do while listening to a book.
24. Plan your week, month, or year and set goals for all periods. This will help you stay on track of your personal development, and you’ll be entertained all through.
25. Sort through old photographs and organize them into albums while listening to an audiobook (bonus points if it’s terribly nostalgic).
Also See: How To Read 100+ Books & Articles A Month: 20 Valuable Tips To Get You Started
26. You can also paint or touch up the walls in your home while listening to an audiobook. And if you have a serious hankering for home-improv projects, you could try your hand at assembling furniture.
27. Practice calligraphy, hand-lettering, or handwriting. If you like coloring, you can also use an adult coloring book.
28. Experiment with new hairstyles or makeup looks. Or, you could attempt to mimic the look of your favorite public figure.
29. You can also keep busy with a DIY home decor project, like making candles or creating wall art.
30. Practice a new language using language learning apps or courses (like Duolingo or Coursera).
31. You can also use the time spent listening to an audiobook to write letters or postcards to friends or family members so that you all stay in touch the traditional way.
32. Get started on a home spa day complete with face masks, body scrubs, and all the fanciest relaxation hijinks.
33. If you are a creative writer, you can start planning your next work and making a rough outline of what you want it to look like. For other creatives, you could research and brainstorm ideas for your upcoming projects.
34. Research isn’t only for creatives, and as a non-creative, you definitely have some things that interest you – while listening to your audiobook, you can research these and think up ideas.
35. Create a vision board with images and words that inspire you. You could host it on Pinterest or cut out pieces from newspapers and magazines.
36. Do a deep clean of your car interior while listening.
37. You can also try out a new hobby like stargazing or amateur astronomy to keep yourself busy while listening to an audiobook.
38. Depending on the intensity of your actual job (whether you work in-office or from home), you can also listen to an audiobook while working.
39. You can also volunteer for community service activities like cleaning up a local park, helping at a food bank, or participating in charity events while enjoying your audiobook.
40. Use your audiobook time to research and plan your next travel adventure. You could check out reviews of several destinations, work out a budget, and even create an itinerary.
41. If you want to keep your hands busy while you read, you might also want to consider taking up embroidery or other needlework projects.
42. Basking in nature is all the more fun if you document the entire process, and you can do this while listening to a book.
43. As I said earlier, I went through a spell a few years ago when I was unable to sit still and read an actual book, audiobooks cured that; in time, I would pair the audiobook with a physical copy and read along.
Audiobooks are so very important if you have a large TBR you need to work through and trust me, once you get a taste of it, you are going to be hooked.
These are just a few activities you can get into while listening to your audiobook, and I really do wish you would try and give them a chance.
The most popular platforms I know for sure where you can listen to audiobooks are Everand (formerly Scribd), Spotify, and Audible. Some authors license out their books to these platforms, and they all have their pros and cons.
Spotify has a good selection of books both classics and contemporary works, but the drawback of this platform is that there is no option to increase the speed, so you are stuck with the 1.0x speed, which can be a little boring.
Spotify is great though because for a single subscription fee every month or every year for every 6 months you have access to 100s of podcasts or your music and also a lot of books.
On the other hand, Audible operates on a credit-based system, so essentially you need to buy credit to help you read the books or you have to buy the actual audiobook, and this can become expensive because books aren’t cheap. The great thing about Audible is that it has a lot of audio-only originals that are super interesting to listen to, and this is perhaps the only platform that hosts multicast audiobooks.
But I personally use Everand (formerly Scribd) because it’s by far the cheapest and most accessible, especially if you are like me and you are a big mood reader like me. The only drawback of this platform, I would say, is that towards the end of the month, there is usually an availability issue.
It seems this is the time of the month when requests for a book go up and when it happens a book sitting in your library might be unavailable until a particular date which might fall outside your subscription duration.
For less than $10 a month, you can read hundreds of books and listen to hundreds of audiobooks on this platform throughout the month. You can opt for a monthly or an annual subscription, and it’s honestly is steal because it is so cheap. Check it out here.
So, between Everand, Audible, & Spotify, I would pick Everand, especially if you’re only just getting into audiobooks and you haven’t decided for yourself your preferences.
I write a lot about books and audiobooks I love, so make sure you check out other posts on the blog, and I just know that you’re going to find a new book recommendation before you get off here.
