Feeling like you have a target number looming over you discourages you from abandoning books if you’re not enjoying them. How can you abandon a book when you’ve already read 100 pages?! You’ll fall behind on your goal! Starting a new book feels like a commitment, so you’re careful about which books you start.
Whereas if you feel free to quit reading, then you’re more likely to try new authors, genres and themes. Expanding your reading is more important than hitting an arbitrary number.
Another reason I don’t hold with setting a target number for books to read each year is that it discourages you from tackling a big giant enormous book. I read Ron Chernow’s massive, 1,200-page biography of Mark Twain last year and loved it. I would not have been so eager to jump into that book it if I felt like it would put me behind on a target goal.
I try to set myself a target of reading a certain number of pages every day. And if I miss my goal, I try not to sweat it too much. Last week I barely read any books at all, just from adjusting to being back at work after the holiday break. But I picked it up this weekend.