Speed Reading, Fact or Fiction?
started 8 months ago | 16 posts | 1682 views | topic rss | latest reply
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There's a free piece on Squidoo (that I haven't yet tried...it's in the "eventually" file) that promises faster reading in 9 days. Maybe it's worth a look: http://www.squidoo.com/speed-reading-how-to (edit: it looks like this just links to a pay service repeatedly. Sorry!)
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I wonder the same about the speed reading scam! Not because I've tried it and filed, but the whole idea of being able to do this in a few days defies common sense. I think there are people in the world that can do this, but it's not something I or most people can learn in such short time.
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Personally, I like to read things slowly! I enjoy it much more and it certainly sticks in my memory better if I read slow.
And even though I have a ton of RSS feeds in my feed reader, what's important are the filters so that I only see the good stuff, not the junk. I see no point in speed reading through hundreds of junk posts. ;)
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Saw this Groupon today for a "speed reading" class. Although I'm skeptical, the advertised improvement of 2-5x faster is more believable than what I saw on some other online products. Anyone has any experience with these type of courses?
http://www.groupon.com/deals/iris-reading-3
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About 10 years ago, I purchased the photoreading course, I practiced for a few weeks and really did notice improvements. The photoreading system isn't speedreading but more of speed-knowledge gathering. You wouldn't use it to read books for pleasure but you would for reading a CAD Manual or the specs for the latest language. After you photoread, you just sort of know the stuff, it really is cool. You have to practice! You have to keep up with it. Think of it as more of learning a new language (tongue not programming), if you don't practice then yes it is a scam. It is the same as all the weightloss commercials, they are scams if you don't do their whole program (take the pills AND eat right and Exercise, the pills are just the motivator).
This is not an AD and this course is floating out there.
Love the site.
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Are there uncommon strategies needed to improve ones speed reading
skills? What does speed reading achieve at the end of the day and why
do people speed read? One surefire way to make sure you develop a speed
reading habit is by affirming to yourself that you need to speed read.
You tell yourself and you do all it takes to accomplish that need.
lecture rapide is a skill that you can actually master, only if you know
how to. The solution lies in the strategies you use to accomplish this
skill.
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Both my dad and I can read whole novels in a day but nobody else in my family, not even my brother. I learned to read because I started reading real early because I wanted to play games like Oregon Trail and Zork. What really helped me the most to speed up my reading was watching subtitled foreign films though. That got me up to being able to read a sentence at a time. Later on I was able to take a couple of speed reading classes in middle school that improved my speed somewhat but mostly solidified what I already had. Though truthfully I only speed read when I'm working on something, the rest of the time I just leisurely pace myself so I can get the most out of the book.
To me most speed reading classes won't help you if you can't learn to turn off your internal monologue when reading.
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Ah For crying out loud ...
Here is your speed reading technique for free:
Starting point. Its not important but its a basic standard of life. ANY and EVERY limitation you have is self imposed. In the time you think something is impossible somebody finds the way to do it.
HOW to speed read...
The average reader reads and the text gets transformed to "sound" in his mind.
The idea is to TRASH this habit, use your eyes only, keep your mind occupied with OTHER sounds (hum a song, recite a speech - whatever).
Reading with your average speed you barely remember anything off the text at first.
Then you start memorize a little.
Then you pick up the pace. You do NOT wait to train complete memorization at slow speeds.
As soon as you remember fragments you pick up the pace.
Our minds are lazy they have the ability to skyrocket but they get comfortable with whatever you let them get comfortable. I have asked people that read slowly to read with 2-3 times the speed. They actually succeeded right there on the spot - most of them have a self imposed limitation not a lack of ability.
When you train your purely visual perception you can read 2 a4 pages in less than 10 seconds.
I've seen people do it in 4. All they have to do is make sure their eyes have SEEN the whole of text.The only reason to PAY for any practical skill is the need to have somebody ORDER YOU to do things. Its the money age, people's first priority is making money. With so many fools around its only natural for others to offer bullshit services. Its a shame to have internet and to pay for such things that are openly and even legally available. Do you think your self that stupid that you need a coach?
You forget than a coach just needs to THINK - he/she CAN coach, doesn't mean the person actually has the skill or efficiency for it.If you persist on it you could probably have good results in 1-3 months of spare time training.
Keypoint being that you use allot of unfamiliar text.
Since your mind is atrophied and lazy IT WILL take time.
And don't argue with me our minds are atrophied, the majority of people train their body parts rather than their minds.... How many people ACTUALLY have reading as priority...
If you let DOUBT stop you for anything its your own refusal to actually put an effort in accomplishment and not a fictional IMPOSSIBILITY.
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I don't know whether the online courses are worth paying for - I like to read (which may be a factor) and "took" a speed reading course years ago by reading "how to master faster reading" by Harry Bayley - I still have the book. The tricks are: don't vocalise; don't sweep your eyes from word to word, or even line by line, start at the middle of the top of the page and go down to the middle of the bottom; learn to take in a page width at a time; and c*o*n*c*e*n*t*r*a*t*e on what you're doing. Takes practice, but I always found it useful - you can read a page in one-tenth the time anyone else takes to get the content and use all that time figuring out your next move. Good for interviews and exams. The only downside is - novels take about 3 hours max, and I belong to two libraries - which are both running out of interesting books. Any authors out there? Write faster! Faster I tell you!!
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