Speed Reading Faster: Maximize Your Success in Business & Study

START HERE: Read This First

This book tells you how to read it. You can use the speed reading techniques right away.

Read the first few pages sequentially, but only read as much as you need to start using the techniques.

• Each technique is explained briefly in HOW TO sections; followed by TO DO suggestions. MORE … information follows – only read it if or when you need it.

• Read the Principles and Articles when we tell you to. Look for the grey text at the top of these (and other) pages – this tells you their purpose and what to overlook.

• Each technique improves your speed reading, and you can combine them into a flexible approach that you can use on any text.

• There’s lots of additional information that will help you improve. We’ll look at this once you know the system.

• If you like to work things out for yourself turn straight to the GO FOR IT section (p.5). Get started now – you’ll pick up more information as you go.

How fast are you reading now?

To find out your current reading speed, start with the Speed Test (p.146). Do it again once you’re using the techniques to see how much faster you are.

MORE Introduction

… if you need it

If you have read the previous page you probably don’t need this traditional introduction now. You can always come back to it.

Speed reading means getting the information you want from a text as quickly as possible. Many think that means reading faster, and this book includes techniques to help you do that. In addition, our approach (developed over 25 years working with thousands of students) offers techniques that help you absorb more information much faster. Having the fastest car is a good start, but knowing the short cuts to your goal can be equally important.

Each technique works alone, and the more you combine them, the more effective and efficient your speed reading, and the more flexible you can be using different techniques in different situations. It’s OK to read slowly for pleasure, but it’s really useful to be able to speed up, to get whatever information you need in the time available.

You don’t have to read everything in this book (or most texts). People are different; texts are different. Only read what you need.

Techniques

Each speed reading technique follows the same basic pattern: a name and subtitle, a short summary and/or introduction, a HOW TO section with brief instructions and a TO DO suggestion for putting the technique into practice – usually within the book itself. This gives you experience with the techniques and helps you get extra information from other parts of the book. The MORE … if you need it section gives additional suggestions or information – you choose if and when to read this.

Other parts of the book

Additional articles tell you more about speed reading, how to remember more of what you read, or how your eyes work, plus the principles underpinning the techniques (which are also useful in other contexts such as business and study). We recommend you skip these sections first off and read them when directed to use the techniques, in the Quizzes for example.

The book has been written sequentially, but we encourage you to read it in whatever way you choose. The Contents and Index help you find things quickly. The Index is combined with a Glossary, where all the speed reading terms are explained.

Grey text near the top of the page indicates what some sections are (Technique, Principle, Summary, Introduction) and when you can skip pages until you need them.

We use the word text to mean any digital or print reading material, including books, documents, case studies. We assume you’re reading to get information from a text for business or study. Later, we explain how you might approach pleasure reading, and a variety of other texts such as contracts or scientific papers.

You’ll find out more as you go. Whatever your purpose in choosing this book, we hope you’ll enjoy building your skills as you become a successful speed reader.

GO FOR IT: Speed Read This Book In 20 Minutes

Before you read any suggestions from us, you might like to try speed reading this book in 20 minutes. You may well be able to work out some techniques for yourself.

WHAT TO DO

Quickly flick through the whole book (in any order), looking for any ideas (ideally 6) you think might help you. (We suggest you focus on the Techniques.) Take notes as you go. Set a timer for 20 minutes – and start.

MORE … if you need it

Have you done it? Well done if you have. We want to validate things you’re already doing well and encourage you to try things out. It’s quite probable though that you haven’t – yet. But please do, at the first opportunity. It will give you an overview of what is involved in speed reading and help you identify information relevant to you. Reading about a subject builds your knowledge. But if you want to gain a new skill you actually have to put it into practice. (Would reading a book called Learning to Swim be enough for you to jump confidently into the deep end of the pool?) If you want to save time, just read through the Techniques and follow the TO DO instructions to give yourself practice. (They’ll also guide you to additional ideas that might help you.)

If you’ve read this book in 20 minutes …

… why would you need to spend any more time on it? Maybe you don’t. If you’ve got from this book all you think it has to offer, then well done.

But if you think there might be more techniques you haven’t worked out for yourself, other ways of getting more from your reading or remembering more, or you’d like to know how to approach particular types of reading (print vs digital, contracts, novels, textbooks, history, case histories, computer manuals …), then start with the techniques. If you feel it would be helpful to understand why you’re doing these exercises and how to apply them to different materials, read the MORE … sections and additional articles.

Remember:

• It’s useful to have a range of skills and speeds you can use with any written materials.

• You’ll always have the freedom to snuggle up with a good book and savour every word at your own pace. You’re now gaining the additional skills of getting information quickly – or reading quickly through the boring bits so you can get to the good stuff. Read at whatever speed is appropriate. Our suggestions are designed to give you more understanding and help you remember more of what you read.

• If you have more skills to use when you’re reading, you have more choices, more enjoyment and ultimately more time to spend as you want. More is good.

We want you to be in control of your reading. It shouldn’t be the texts that control you.

EVEN MORE … if you need it

Below are more detailed instructions for how to go through this (or any) book in 20 minutes.

You need

• this book

• timer

• paper and writing implement to take notes

• no interruptions for 20 minutes

Preparation

Read through all the instructions before you start:

1. Set your purpose …

which is to find 6 ideas in the book you can put into practice straight away

Note that as you find ideas, you can …

• notice but overlook anything you already do

• notice but ignore anything that just isn’t you, that you know you’d never actually do

• notice and jot down 6 ideas that you think will help you improve your reading and that you can and will put into practice

2. Get into a good state by …

• breathing in, breathing out and relaxing

• smiling (just do it – we’ll tell you why later)

• planning what you’re about to do (you’re going to read through the rest of the instructions and then follow them)

3. Set your timer for 20 minutes and press start.

Method

4. Find ideas and take notes

Flick backward and forward through the book, stopping at different pages completely at random – when you stop, look quickly through the page to see if any ideas jump out at you. If they don’t, stop randomly at another page. When you see something that looks interesting, read that bit as quickly as possible, just long enough for you to evaluate the idea. If it’s something you will put into practice, jot it down and move on quickly to stage 5.

Note: Don’t get sucked into reading more because it looks interesting – you can always come back later.

5. Repeat stage 4 until you have 6 good suggestions – or until your timer pings.

6. Stop after 20 minutes when the timer pings. That’s it. What you’ve got, you’ve got.

(If you’re still reading all the instructions so far, stop reading, go back to point 3, and begin your 20-minute speed read now.)

Afterwards

7. Evaluate how much information you got. One idea? 6? Somewhere in between?

• Ask yourself: how long would it have taken you to get that much information if you’d read the whole book slowly? (3 hours? More?)

• If you had read the book that slowly, would you actually have written down ideas you could put into practice immediately? (Be honest here. How many self-help books have you read? How many suggestions did you actually put into practice?)

TIP

While you’re learning, always evaluate after speed reading. How much more time would it have taken you in the pre-speed reading days to get this much information? What will you do differently next time? What did you learn?

TECHNIQUE

Preview – see the whole thing

SUMMARY Previewing is a quick look through a text to see what it’s about before reading in detail. Look to see where to find the information you need. Previewing builds familiarity with a text, making it easier to understand how the details fit together. It takes 2–5 minutes.

Note: Previewing is for texts from which you want to get information. For pleasure reading, just look at the blurb.

HOW TO … preview

• Spend 2–5 minutes. (Set a timer.)

• Flick backward and forward through the text, looking quickly at pages to see how it’s written, what it’s about and where to find the information you want.

• Don’t get sucked into reading (unless you only need one small bit of information).

• You’re looking FOR …

– information you need

– what’s missing – information you need to get elsewhere

• If you realize you do not need this text, stop and do something else.

TO DO

If you haven’t already, preview this book. Decide what information you need as well as how you will