April 26, 2008
Speed Reading - The Speedy Way to Reading Faster
Through my work, I have a deep interest in speed reading and being able to read faster and have now been a speed reading course provider for many years now.
When you start letting people know you have an interest in a topic and then maybe some experience in it, you start to have people ask you for their help (which is great for business). Sometimes it comes up in conversation at a meeting or social function. Often I am approached through recommendation from my other satisfied clients and occasionally I am approached through my website.
Recently I had this request via my website:
"Can u send me techniques of readind 1000 plus words/minute?"
That was it. No "How do you do", no introduction, no explanation just "GIMME THE ANSWER NOW!!"
It was "Tell me how to read faster, tell me right now and make sure it is easy".
Of course I am in the business of helping people and so here is my response to this person (who by the way did not even sign off with a name!)
Hi
Thanks for your question and my apologies for the delay in replying.
Michael
Now in a nutshell, that is how to read faster. In fact much faster than you do right now and once you know that it is quite straightforward to take your reading speed far beyond anything you can imagine.
What is missing from that explanation though is the reasoning behind the recommendation; the principles that make the techniques work; the exercises to help people realise what they are capable of; the understanding of why we currently read so slow; the practice regime to ensure your speed increases and stays fast and a whole host of other things to ensure the proper development of advanced reading skills.
Alongside being a better reader, the complementary skills of personal productivity, time management, prioritisation, goal setting, discipline, communication etc all have a place. Information overwhelm is a big problem today and many people think that reading faster will help.
Of course it will have an impact but it is really only putting a band-aid on an large open wound. As part of a strategy for personal effectiveness, it is a core component but on its own, it is not the answer, only part of the solution.
So if you want to read faster I can help you, but first of all take a look at the other areas of personal productivity and effectiveness because there are likely to be some major changes you can make in those areas that will be easier to implement.