Reading Techniques
Use Your Hand to Pace Your Reading
Before we begin, here's a concept that you MUST understand about speed reading: shaving just a fraction-of-a-second off every page that your read will create a HUGE difference in your reading rate.
Even if you were able to shave just 1 second off the time it takes you to read a page that would still be FIVE minutes off a normal 300-page book!
So, it's not always necessary to aim for the spectacular. Just a little growth here and there will make a world of difference, even when it comes to something as basic as paging and pacing techniques…
When it comes to speed reading, learning to use your hands correctly and efficiently will require that you train yourself to accomplish the following 3 tasks:
1. Use your hands to guide and pace your eye movements through the text
2. Use your hands to force your eye to constantly scan through new information
3. Use your hands to prevent your eyes from repeatedly reading the same words
The Speed Reading Hand Motion
Although it may seem uncomfortable at first, the ideal use of the hands of a right-handed person would be to use your left hand to pace your reading and your right hand to turn the pages.
To begin reading, place your hand at the start of a line. Move your hand towards the right hand margin. Make sure to focus your eyes upon the text that your hand is pointing towards.
When you reach the end of the current line, move your hand to the start of the next line. Repeat this method to the end of the page. To make paging faster, make sure that your right hand is always positioned at the top right hand corner of the book.
Go ahead and practice this movement. You don't need to worry about reading any of the text, just practice the hand motion and paging techniques for now. Make sure that you are able to rapidly move through the pages of your book.
Believe it or not, you can reach the place where your reading speed explodes to the point that your paging and pacing hands will have a hard time just trying to keep up!
In my next part of this course, I will show you how you can begin improving your comprehension of text so that when you begin reading at the higher speed you will actually have a BETTER understanding of the text that you did at your lower reading speeds!
Here's something that you don't hear everyday… You CAN comprehend details better at higher speeds!
This is not a prank. In fact, if you will spend the next few moments reading through this email I'll teach you some valuable insights into how you can begin improving your comprehension by leaps and bounds within just minutes.
The key to instantly increasing your comprehension of any book and any topic is to get familiar with the following universal publication tips. (Yes, these tips apply to almost every publication and can be applied immediately)
1. The first and last chapters of a book introduce and summarize its contents.
2. The first and last paragraph in a chapter introduce and summarize the contents of that particular chapter
3. Some books (such as text books and even most translations of the Bible) contain topic and summary sentences within their structure with introduce and summarize its contents
4. The VERBS and NOUNS of a sentence offer the most important information.
5. Be aware and sensitize yourself (through practice) to the use of negative words. Negative words (such as 'not', 'no', 'can't'…etc) can reverse the meanings of large groups of words – so keep a lookout for them.
6. By the same token, you also need to keep an eye out for the conditional tense. Conditional tense words (such as 'could', 'if', 'should'…etc) can also affect or change the meanings of a large body of words.
The book's format
In today's lesson, I'm going to give you just a few more tips on how you can use a book's format to further increase your comprehension.
Don't skip over reading the front and rear jackets of a book. These can really give anyone valuable insights into why the book was written and thus give you some insight into what you can expect.
By the same token, always check out the book's forward and introduction. Oftentimes these overlooked segments can remove a lot of the confusion that arises when you have no idea about the authors intended direction BEFORE you begin reading.
ALWAYS read the table of contents. It's the author's outline and will prime your brain to his writing style and thus improve your understanding of his book's structure.
Don't just let the words ramble on in your mind. Make an effort to actively read the book. This means that you should continuously be asking yourself questions about what you've just read. Attempt to summarize the information you've just read at frequent intervals. By doing this you will soon discover your current level of comprehension and recall.
Devour charts and diagrams. If your book contains these features make sure that you stop and take time to actually understand the drawings and diagrams. Spending a few extra moments contemplating these features will ultimately increase your overall reading speed because you will have a clear visual representation of the information you've just read.
Make use of the glossary and index usually found at the end of most books.
The Art of Skimming
Today I'm going to show you an exciting part of any speed reading program. It's called skimming.
Although it doesn't actually involve 'reading' in the traditional sense of the word, it DOES allow you to experience some of the thrill of rapidly devouring vast amounts of information at blistering speeds.
If you are able to, it is always best to 'skim' any book before you read it. (Whether you will be reading it at high speed or normal speed)
When you are skimming, what you are really looking for is the format of the book you will be reading. It helps to give you visual clues to what you can expect and it allows you to compensate for some of those challenges.
At this point, let me take a moment to define what my definition is of skimming.
The process of skimming is nothing but the exercise of going through the ENTIRE book you plan to read (or speed read) at a rate of about TWO to THREE SECOND PER PAGE - MAXIMUM!
When you skim, here are some of the details that you are looking for…
Font and type sizes used
The presence or absence of chapters
The presence or absence of columns
The presence or absence of headings/sub-headings
Parts of the book
Diagrams and pictures
Any unusual or helpful features
Armed with the information that you acquire from skimming, you will be amazed at how DRAMATICALLY it influences your reading speed – even without using some of the other speed-reading technology out there.
Different Types of Reading
How would you like to know the secret techniques to master different types of reading? Well, that's EXACTLY what I'm here to show you today!
Are you just reading for pleasure? Do you need to study? Are you reading to develop a new skill? Here is a quick reference guide to how YOU can get the most out of your reading experience by using a few simple guidelines.
PLEASURE READING
Do not skim or review the materials. Simply read at a comfortable rate. :-)
HOBBY AND SPECIAL INTEREST
Perform a short skim, and review.
Spend the majority of the time reading.
STUDYING
Spend about half the time reading and half the time skimming and reviewing materials. Do NOT over-read.
Read once through a chapter at your best comprehension speed, (highlight areas of confusion by placing a light pencil mark next to them – but do NOT stop at this point) then skim and review the materials. Lastly, return to the areas that require a more in depth analysis and work through them.
MAXIMUM POTENTIAL READING
Spend 70% of your time reviewing materials, and 10% skimming. Only read 20% of the time. Use the reading skills that you've learnt during this email course to locate key information. Place your emphasis on taking notes and studying.
