Monday, January 23, 2017

Expert Advice On Fast Reading

By Betty Fisher


Speed as you read enables you to cover more work within a short time. At the beginning, it appears difficult to understand the content, but with practice, everything becomes clear. Fast reading could mean skimming through, thorough coverage or scanning. Each has its uses in different scenarios to deliver the results expected. How do you achieve speed as you read?

Avoid talking to yourself. Most people sub-vocalize sentences and words as they read. This slows you down since the mouth reacts slowly compared to the movement of eyes. While sub-vocalizing may assist in memory, it affects the speed at which content will be covered. Consider holding your finger against the lips to avoid movement. You may also hum a song or chew a gum to keep the muscles occupied.

Conceal the areas you have read. The idea is to prevent your eyes from revisiting them and concentrating on the section you are currently reading. The returns are short and may be viewed as harmless but their have a great impact on speed. The mind also pulls back to words and sections it did not understand. Movement may therefore be a signal that comprehension is limited. Slow down and pay attention to the content.

Speed is directly related to eye movements. You will never read while your eyes are in motion. Reading takes place when you stop. As such, make the stops as short as possible and endeavor to read as much and as fast during the stop. Do not skip words since this will distort your understanding. However, give more attention to those that are important.

Why are you reading? There are different reasons people read. Some want to understand the content while in some instances you are looking for certain words, phrases or figures. For academic purposes, you need to understand and think through the content. To gather facts, figures or phrases, skimming will help. If you intend to get an idea of what the writer says, you are allowed to scan.

Speed while reading is a skill. This means that practice will be required. Consider the need for speed. You may want to make a presentation faster, vocalize the text more articulately, or internalize the content. All intentions require practice. Use a timer to ensure that content is covered within a particular period of time. It will take time to master articulation, comprehension and speed.

Avoid all distractions. Concentration is important if speed is to be achieved. Choose a quiet place with the least distraction. Music, a movie running, a messenger in sight, conversations taking place, etc will affect how fast you read. Ensure that your mind is calm before you begin reading. This enables you to concentrate on the text you are covering and thus increase your speed.

There are numerous apps that purport to assist in increasing speed. The most important aspect is to improve your reading and comprehension speed. Whatever method you use should sharpen your skills to enable you apply the speed in different situations. All attempts require practice in order to improve the results.




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