| Speed reading is vital in today's business and | | | | you should you consider just eliminating some of |
| academic world, with the vast information that | | | | these problems. The answer is most likely |
| the internet offers, and the huge amounts of | | | | dependent of what you need, no matter what |
| reading tasks an average manager or student | | | | you problem is, you need to address the problem. |
| faces, there is really no choice but to try and | | | | To try and read faster, here are a few tips that |
| increase the intake of information. | | | | would get you going. Think of reading as a 'pick |
| In the last forty years there has a been an | | | | and choose' activity, where you can choose to |
| explosion of information, we are living the | | | | read the words and phrases that are critical to |
| information revolution and that requires a lot of | | | | comprehension, and skip over the connective |
| young professionals a great deal of effort in | | | | tissue. |
| digesting this information and making good use of | | | | One major key in speed reading is filtering out all |
| it. | | | | the words that has nothing to do with the subject |
| Most of the people who attend speed reading | | | | and naturally, there a lot of them. All the |
| courses and classes have some kind of problem, | | | | connecting words, basically words that are there |
| or believe they have some kind of problem, with | | | | to connect one word with the other to make a |
| their reading, here are a few of these potential | | | | sentence (TO make A sentence) the "and" "it's" |
| problems. | | | | and "and's" have got to go, just make yourself |
| Lack of concentration or partial/impaired | | | | blind to them, go over these words and do not |
| concentration is an obvious problem for speed | | | | dwell on reading or noticing them. |
| reading, the effects of the environment on ones | | | | Practicing time reading is also good, set up a timer |
| reading rhythm and the general tendency of | | | | and see how much you read in one minute, and in |
| some people to be able of acceptable reading | | | | five minutes. Try and honestly estimate how |
| rate only in ideal situations. This problem is one of | | | | much did you get from the text (make sure this |
| the basic speed reading problems and is usually | | | | is something you read for the first time), and try |
| dealt with in most courses. | | | | to beat yourself at this over and over again, until |
| Poor eye movement may cause some readers | | | | you start to feel that you have moved up one |
| to shift their eyes to other directions and than go | | | | level. Experiment with different texts, and try to |
| back to the book or paper to relocated the last | | | | find books with text that has some questions |
| point read. This problem also correlates with poor | | | | about what you just read so you can apprise |
| mechanical skills, which can be a real problem in | | | | your understanding. Evaluate your situation every |
| speed reading. | | | | time you do this, reading faster sometimes mean |
| Short attention span is a clear problem, almost | | | | that you will make more mistakes on |
| everyone knows this problem, you start strong | | | | understanding the subject, you should start |
| and begin to slow down as you read on. This kind | | | | making "mental notes" while reading so you will |
| of problem typically creates a situation of going | | | | not fail answering the questions. |
| back to re-read some lines over and over again, | | | | Train yourself to read more quickly by forced |
| or a need to read the same sentence a couple of | | | | timing. If you are a runner, training for a race, you |
| times for lack of understanding or loosing the line | | | | go out and run every day and you try to |
| of thought altogether. | | | | improve your time or your distance. |
| Reading by heart, when a person reads to himself | | | | Set a timer and run a reading race every day for |
| (muttering the words or even reading out load) is | | | | two to four weeks. You do not have to spend |
| an obvious problem since speed reading is much | | | | more than five minutes on this exercise. You may |
| faster than talking, the reading out load inhibited | | | | become frustrated, at first, by the fact that you |
| the ability to read fast and also regulates a slow | | | | cannot read as fast or remember as much as |
| input of information into the cognitive. | | | | you would like. |
| Delayed reaction to information and material - | | | | Practice makes perfect, and this is the most basic |
| This delay often comes from inattention, reading | | | | thing you can do to increase your reading speed, |
| ahead or distraction. Desire to remember every | | | | in two weeks you should see some improvement, |
| word - This is loosely related to the tendency to | | | | and you should work on the weaker aspects of |
| re-read or slow down. | | | | your reading skills. This is the start of speed |
| So what can you do to increase your reading | | | | reading, and once you master the basics you will |
| skills? Do you really need to try speed reading | | | | be on your way to becoming a speed reader. |