Speed Reading

I set a personal record today of 139 pages in about an hour and fifteen minutes.

I think there's a lot things that contributed to my PR in reading speed today.

1. I was reading something that I was looking forward to reading (No, it wasn't a Spider-man comic).

2. I was familiar with the topic and some of the material (but I hadn't read this book before)

3. I had scanned the book a couple of times.

4. I've been practicing my speed reading a bit.

Now, if there ever was a skeptic in regard to speed reading, I was a total nonbeliever.

I saw all the commercials of the kids with their school book pages turning at incredible rates with the announcer's voice reminding you, "These kids are actually reading!!" Just in case you didn't believe that they were.

I saw the late night infomercial of the guy that "read" an unfamiliar textbook with a 5-second scan per page claiming amazing retention (he was lying by the way).

Nevertheless, I have a lot of stuff I like and/or want and/or need to read. So I took a chance and bought a speed reading course. Yes, I felt stupid as I clicked the "checkout" button on the webpage, but I promised myself to give it an honest try.

I can't tell you how glad I am that I did. From a productivity standpoint, it's saved me hours.

I realize that this probably sounds like an informercial by now, but since I encourage folks to read as much as they can, I feel obligated to get you to read faster, so you can read more.

I'll even give you a few tips that if you practice dilegently will almost immediately notice an increase in your reading speed.

1. Read with your finger

Remember how when you were first learning to read, and you were taught not to lead your eyes with your finger because you were told that it would slow down your reading?

They were wrong.

What you actually find if you follow someone's eyes as they read is that there's a great deal of back tracking and losing and regaining your place as you read. Having a cue such as a finger to lead your eye and keep it on track prevents unnecessary rereading and maintains your focus on the material.

I prefer to place my entire hand on the page and just slide it back and forth. It seems more comfortable.

2. Lose your "inner voice"

When most people read they actually hear their "inner voice" as if a voice was reading aloud. This is a time killer.

Have you ever scrolled your computer screen really quickly as you looked for a specific name or word in a list or on a page? As soon as your eyes recognized the name or word, you immediately stopped scrolling. Had you tried to read every name or word on the list it would have taken hours, yet your brain was able to identify the word you sought very quickly.

You can do the same thing as you read a book, but it takes practice.

Here's what I would do to practice.

1. Read something that is familiar to you.

Either read something that you have read before or something that contains material or topic you are familiar with.

2. Scan it first.

Glance at each page or section to look for familiar words or phrases that will provide you with some preliminary information about what you're reading.

3. Read small sections and determine what you've retained.

You'll be surprised how much you pick up on the first try.

4. Keep practicing

I don't think that I can maintain the same rate of reading speed with something that is totally unfamiliar, but today's revelation was an indication that I've made dramatic improvements (and regained some that I'd lost from getting lazy).

BTW, here's the course that I used. It's been around forever (my Mom took the same course decades ago).



Later

P.S. It's worth it.