| If you cannot comprehend at high reading speeds, | | | | you recognize the combination of symbols. If you |
| it is not reading! There is a mistaken notion "out | | | | are not a speed reader, this happens at a slow |
| there" that if you speed read, you will not fully | | | | enough speed so that the brain/mind does not |
| comprehend. That is a myth! There is a little | | | | become overwhelmed. |
| understood secret though. | | | | If you are not a speed reader, you take the |
| Many of my students come to me after having | | | | words in individually and build one piece upon |
| failed some other training. A recent new student | | | | another. Usually you are taking in a fact or detail |
| said to me, "I bought a software program that | | | | here, and a fact or a detail there. Because of the |
| got my speed up to 2500 words per minute | | | | slowness of the speed not much time is spent in |
| (wpm), but I don't comprehend anything." If he | | | | reflecting. Eventually you get the ideas and |
| didn't comprehend, he wasn't reading! It was a | | | | concepts. |
| waste of time. What he didn't learn in that | | | | To comprehend at very rapid rates however, |
| program he bought was how to comprehend at | | | | requires a perceptual shift in the mind as to what |
| high speeds. | | | | we normally perceive comprehension to be. In |
| Is it possible? | | | | fact, to speed read and comprehend well requires |
| You can learn to read many times faster than | | | | the reader to consciously look for the concepts |
| you do now and still fully comprehend. I know | | | | and ideas first in order understand well at high |
| because I have done it and I have taught it to | | | | speeds. This process can be learned, but requires |
| thousands of people from all walks of life. The | | | | direct teaching. Because of our ingrained habits of |
| secret lies in re-training your brain to respond to | | | | comprehending, it does not happen magically or |
| printed material differently. | | | | immediately. The good news is that the brain is an |
| Will it happen in one lesson? Probably not. | | | | incredible learning machine, if we take control by |
| If you are not a speed reader, you probably take | | | | learning how to train and redirect it. |
| reading comprehension for granted. Because you | | | | To comprehend well at speeds in the thousands |
| have been reading for many years, you probably | | | | of words per minute range, you need to learn |
| cannot say what really happens that gives you | | | | how to direct and monitor your mind to actually |
| the sense of whether you understood some | | | | comprehend. Once trained properly, you will not |
| reading material. When you learn how to monitor | | | | take your reading understanding for granted. You |
| your understanding, you will in fact improve your | | | | will know with certainty how much you have |
| comprehension. Comprehension at high speeds | | | | understood. Again, this will probably not happen |
| needs to be taught directly. True speed reading is | | | | immediately, but will transition with proper training. |
| not merely speeding up how you already read. | | | | There is a real learnable process that requires a |
| That would be terribly stressful and reading would | | | | re-training and a perceptual shift. The "secret" is |
| not be enjoyable. | | | | to retrain your brain, not just your eyes. Your |
| Reading comprehension means s understanding | | | | willingness to understand that your brain can be |
| what the print says. "Understanding" is a function | | | | re-trained while it resists the training is all part of |
| of your brain/mind. As the eyes absorb visual | | | | the fun while learning and mastering these |
| stimuli, the brain naturally associates (connects) | | | | essential skills. You will be amazed at what your |
| the printed symbol to something you have | | | | brain does while speed reading. |
| experienced in the past and signals your mind that | | | | |