Breaking a 20-Year Habit
My father read the Times of India every morning. When I was a child, I'd sit beside him, pretending to read the sports section. By the time I was in college, the ritual was mine. Every morning: coffee, the Times of India, and the feeling of being informed.
For 20 years, I didn't miss a day. Then one morning, I didn't pick it up. I was traveling for work, in a small town with no English newspaper. I felt a small panic.
But the day passed. Nothing bad happened. I didn't miss anything urgent. When I returned home, I realized: I had been doing this out of habit, not necessity.
What I Gained by Letting Go
Those 30 minutes in the morning were now mine. I used them to write, to read books, to plan my day. My productivity increased. My anxiety decreased.
I also started reading news differently. Instead of skimming 50 stories, I picked one or two and read them deeply. I understood more. I remembered more. I started having opinions instead of just knowing facts.
The Times of India is a good newspaper. It covers the country well. But it's designed for breadth, not depth. And breadth, over time, becomes noise.
A New Relationship with News
Now, I read the Times of India a few times a week, not every day. I look at the front page. I read the editorials for reasoned opinion. I scan the sections that interest me. The rest, I skip.
The biggest change: I no longer feel like I have to read. I read because I want to. That freedom has made me a better reader. And a better thinker.
The newspaper is a tool, not a master. Use it accordingly.