Speed Reading Tactics - How Do You Read Super Fast and Comprehend?

The most often question I get asked is, "How canTo answer the question, Does speed reading
I read over 1500 words per minute and stillreally work," I say no! You work it! That means
understand, or comprehend the material?" Statedthere are ways to train your brain to respond
in another form, "Does speed reading reallydifferently as you accelerate your speeds. What I
work?" Without writing an entire course, thishave found to work best is to teach learners the
article will try to answer these questions.mechanics first with some level of comprehension,
When people question about reading fast and notbut letting them relax and not worry about
comprehending, there is a basic misunderstandinggetting(memorizing) as they go thru this initial skill
of terms. As I've written in previous articles,building stage.
reading is the mind's response to print. If yourAfter the learner is more comfortable with the
mind is not responding when you are applying anyphysical/mechanical skills, then we build
speed reading technique, then you are in fact notcomprehension in a purposeful manner. When the
reading. The word reading, then, always assumeslearner has broken out of the old habits they
some level of comprehension.have accumulated in the past, then they are
If you have been exposed to some program thattaught how to monitor what the mind is doing as
teaches you how to move through materials atthey don't have to think so much about the eye
very high rates in the thousands of words permechanics.
minute range and you are not comprehending,One of the keys to comprehension is preparing
then the program has failed you. Recently I gotthe mind for reading. There are a wide
an email from someone who told me they hadassortment of tools to help this phase of training.
been working with a computerized program andThe comprehension approach breaks the learner
that they had increased their speed to over 2000out from the traditional left brain approach they
words per minute but were not comprehendinglearned in early life and engage the whole brain.
much and asked if I could help. This was anOr, in other words they learn how to activate the
excellent example of bad, misguided training.right hemisphere as well. One way of helping to
There are two primary aspects of "speeddo this is looking thru the material in a manner
reading." The first is improving the mechanicalthat gives you the "30,000 foot view" instead of
aspect of reading. That happens with some sortthe word-by-word view you were taught when
of eye movement techniques. In fact, it isfirst learning to read.
possible to physically move the eyes and see allFrom that "high" view, you then learn to navigate
the words in the material at rates of 10,000 -at various levels depending on you needs and
100,000 words per minute. Naturally a speedpurposes. But remember, comprehension is you.
reading program will contain this aspect. ButIt's your mind's response to print. As your eyes
unfortunately, this is about all that is trained,are moving through the material, ask yourself,
leaving the user frustrated as I so often hear."what am I thinking about?" If it has nothing to do
The second aspect of speed reading iswith the print, you are not reading. You're doing
comprehension. Comprehension is the mind'ssomething else, possibly daydreaming, or criticizing
response to the symbols on the page. In effect,yourself. Bring it back to the print. Again, speed
then, reading is thinking. You can read as fast asreading does not work. You work it! Learn how to
your mind can respond to the print. So, to trulybuild better comprehension. Monitor what your
speed read, you need to learn how to move yourmind is thinking about.
mind faster as well.