PoweReading®: Read Faster, Save Time, Increase Efficiency

Introduction

Before we start we would like you to know three things:

1) We recognize that you are willing to challenge yourself more than most other people, and we greatly respect that. How do we reach this conclusion? Even if we most likely have never met before, through the purchase of this book you have shown you are willing to invest time and money in acquiring a new skill. Many people do not take as much initiative when it comes to personal development beyond what’s absolutely necessary (preparing for exams, prerequisites for jobs, etc.). Even the small percentage that reads books about new skills completes on average no more than a quarter of the book.

You are currently reading a book that will open new perspectives to you. We have done our best to make this book exciting, informative, and profitable. Now it is your turn to take the next step. We firmly believe that you deserve to have your dreams come true. For us, taking those few steps farther than absolutely necessary has become a way of life. Often it’s the last few steps that help not only individuals but also companies and even entire countries to reach their goals.

2) Through your investment of time (and maybe also money) in the topic of PoweReading, you may be missing out on something else, time you otherwise might have spent with your family or friends, maybe pursuing hobbies, or working on important tasks for work. We realize that. That’s why it is so important to us that this book help you advance your personal goals as well as be entertaining.

The techniques in this book are extremely effective. How do we know that? Because they are based on the study of many of the best and most effective readers the world has to offer. Our studies have covered countless seminars and books on the topic of speed reading, as well as audio programs and worksheets on the Internet. The resulting conclusions, as well as Zach Davis’s experience as a speed reader himself, PoweReading instructor, entrepreneur, and author have been condensed into this book.

You will very shortly be introduced to the most effective tools in the realm of reading capacity. With these tools you will reach faster results and reduce your frustration.

3) The following statement might come across as exaggerated at this early stage of the book, but we’ll venture it anyway: the knowledge you will find in this book has changed our lives. We are of the firm conviction that it will change your life, too, if you let the information in. Books can, in a relatively short span of time, provide you with detailed, condensed information that the author has often spent years, if not decades, researching. You will find a list of extremely useful books at www.peoplebuilding.de/booktips. And now we wish you not only increased efficiency but also much enjoyment with the rest of the book!

One last small note: The most common phrase used for efficient reading is speed reading. PoweReading is a protected term owned by Zach Davis, meant to distinguish his work from that of other people and organizations.

Chapter 1:

Your New Possibilities

What Can PoweReading Do For You?

Why do you want to be able to read faster? The most common reasons we come across are of a business nature. Managers spend an average of about four hours per day on written information – starting with the newspaper, emails, and professional journals, all the way to contracts. For people with specialized jobs, the volume of reading varies from people who hardly read at all to those who do hardly anything else during a normal workday. Studying for university or preparing for any type of exam is also often a motivation for improving your reading efficiency.

You will notice, beginning right in this first chapter, that you are holding a workbook in your hands. You have the goal of personal improvement, and reaching the best possible results will require your active participation.

Now and then we receive inquiries as to possible side effects of PoweReading. We are only aware of three risks (don’t take this too seriously):

1) Back pain. The more expert you become at PoweReading, the heavier your suitcase will become due to the increasing number of books you carry on, say, a one-week vacation.

2) Shining wisdom. We sincerely hope it is not a problem that you will in the future come across as (even) more informed and qualified.

3) Annoying interruptions. You will more often get questions such as, What are you skimming so fleetingly this whole time? Recently Zach received that question from the man sitting next to him on a plane. Since Zach was reading a book quickly on a topic he knew quite well, it appeared to the other man that he was merely skimming the material. At least it was a pleasant icebreaker…

But seriously, the ability to read faster improves the quality of our lives. The knowledge and experiences we have been able to absorb thanks to PoweReading are visible in all areas of life: working as an instructor, relationships with customers, private life, health, and the enjoyment of life in general. We don’t know your life and business conditions or your motives for what you do. Let us nevertheless work together to reach your goals. That is why we will ask you repeatedly to take part in the many exercises described in this book. Exercises are not only numbered but they are also marked with a thumbs up like this:

Whenever you see this thumbs up icon you will be asked to participate actively in the exercise. The reward will be getting closer to your personal goals; that’s why the thumb is pointing up. Therefore we hope you will recognize the active portions of this book as an opportunity for more improvement.

For your success it is important that you know why you are targeting a certain goal. Take a moment to imagine yourself having the skill to read at double your current speed - naturally with the same level of understanding. This is a completely realistic vision. What use could this skill have for you personally? An answer we get often is, I can manage the necessary amount of reading in half the time and then have time to spend on other activities. Other people give a similar yet opposite answer: they are thrilled to take in double the information in a given time. Yet others give answers we wouldn’t have come up with. Some PoweReading users, for example, find they have a great advantage in meetings when they can quickly finish reading documents that are distributed and have some time to think about them.

Common Misperceptions

There are two common but unfounded assumptions that can engender doubts when people come into contact with PoweReading for the first time:

1) Reading speed cannot be increased, meaning you reach a certain speed while you’re at school, and that’s the end of the road. That, however, would be like saying it’s impossible to become a better swimmer once you’ve learned to hold your head above water. Naturally, if you don’t change anything in your technique or effectiveness of your practice, then you will never get better. If, however, you imitate better swimmers, get a good trainer, and try to implement what you have learned, you will get better over time. In fact, with the right strategy, improvement can hardly be avoided.

2) If you read faster you take in less information, meaning that the level of text comprehension necessarily goes down. Our answer to this is clearly… yes and no. It is true that each person reaches a threshold after which a continued increase in reading speed leads to a decrease in text comprehension. If you suddenly try reading at five times your normal speed you will probably not understand very much. Well, there are two pieces of good news. First, the point at which your text comprehension decreases is usually higher than the speed at which you are used to reading. How to use that potential to the fullest will be the goal of chapter 2 , Enthralling Glances. Second, this threshold can be pushed higher and higher. This topic will be dealt with in detail throughout chapter 4, Achieving Turbo Speeds.

Realistic Potential for Improvement

How much of an increase in your reading speed is realistic? We won’t promise you that you will be able to take in one page per second and understand it completely after working through this book. There are people making such promises; and, without meaning to be overly critical of competitors on the market, we find such promises contribute more to frustration rather than to enjoyment of the process of making progress. Maybe there are techniques out there that reliably lead to one page per second but we have yet to come across them.

Your actual improvement potential depends on:

1) your current speed, measured in words per minute (wpm)

2) your training. This book provides high-quality exercises in the following chapters. The quantity of practice, however, depends on you - meaning how much time you want to invest into the exercises and how quickly you want to work through this book.

You will find more about additional practice possibilities in our final chapter, Keeping Your Eye on Your Goals.

When you want to reach a goal it is essential to know your starting point. Even a high-quality map combined with the