How To Double Your Reading Speed Instantly
August 2, 2008
Sounds like a big call doesn’t it?
How could you realistically double your reading speed instantly, without serious losses e.g. comprehension.
Well, it is possible (depending on your current reading technique of course), and I am living proof.
Before I initiated these techniques I had a reading speed of around 350 words per minute. This is already above average, and likely due to my years of study (not finished as yet and I’m 29!), but I was able to make instant improvements.
Some of these techniques and tips will sound obvious, but many people still don’t apply them and as a result read much slower than they could.
Ok, without further delay…
Tip #1 “Always, always, always guide your eye”
If you look at any of the studies done on people’s eye movements during reading you will notice that they are rather chaotic. They eyes jump all over the page, and generally re-read the same lines and words over and over again. Worst of all - there is no benefit to the pattern. It is just a waste of time!
To overcome this, always guide your eye with something. Many people run their hand under the sentence, or down the page margin, or whatever. Personally, I use a piece of paper to effectively underline the sentence I’m reading, and move it steadily down the page. I find this very effective indeed, and as a standalone principle it significantly improved my reading speed.
Tip #2 “Kill Distractions”
This is one of the ‘obvious’ ones I mentioned earlier, but if you fail to do it, it will cost you. Your comprehension will dive just as much as your reading speed does also.
For me, this means that when I read - that’s all I do. I’m not also watching TV or chatting to my wife, or anything else. That way I get absorbed in what I’m reading, and my speed and comprehension skyrocket.
Again, obvious but absolutely necessary.
Tip #3 “Loosen Your Eyes Up Before Reading”
This is the one tip that is slightly esoteric. ‘Loosening your eyes’ refers to some speed reading techniques that are designed to do just that, and allow more free eye movement as you read.
Sounds a little crazy - I know, but it does work.
The best place to learn some of these techniques is in a short speed reading course, such as ‘Speed Reading Secret‘.
And that’s it - three simple tips that will, in my humble opinon, double your reading speed as soon as you implement them. This obviously isn’t true for existing speed readers, but these tips certainly worked for me.
