If you have been practicing for 10 minutes or so a day since your workshop, you may be feeling somewhat at ease with some of the new techniques. If not, don't worry. These behaviors take some time to move into your comfort zone.
YOU DON'T HAVE TO BE COMFORTABLE WITH THE TECHNIQUES YET TO REAP THEIR BENEFITS.
This is important. Your brain needs the speed reading techniques you learned to operate efficiently, but it will still try its best to hang on to old behaviors. Don't worry. Keep at it and trust that it works.
During times of doubt, remember those moments in the workshop when it felt like it was happening for you.
1. Remember the book of questions that proved that you can "see the words and know them" without thinking.
2. Remember during the practice when you were doing the Overview step and I asked you what you got. You were able to tell LOTS about what was happening in the book even though you had not read it yet. You can see the words and know them.
This week, practice noticing that during the Overview step, you are able to understand quite a bit about what is going on in the chapter. Also notice any resistance you feel to believing it!
Sometimes you will notice that you glance at a phrase or sentence and a part of your mind totally knows that you get it. But a parallel part of your brain will sometimes be there as well saying, "come on, that's ridiculous - you can't know that - you didn't read it." When that happens, just acknowledge the thought and let it pass with a gentle: "yes, I know it seems that way, but I really am able to see the words and know them instantly."
This inner struggle will fade for some in time. In my case, it is often there, in the background, even after all these years, but it doesn't bother me. I just smile to myself and note how curious it is that my brain is always challenging me.
Be sure you invoke the reading process with each book:
1. Start by assessing how accountable you are going to be held to this book (is it an assignment, background reading, something you have to know for a test, or something you have assigned to yourself to bring into your life?).
2. Look over the book and get a feel for its layout and the table of contents. Look through the index if the book has one. Be thinking about what you think you need to get out of the book (or article or report).
3. Think about how you are going to lay out your notes. What would be the best approach to
accomplish your objective? Your objective might be to know the whole book for a test, to get a feel for the author's ideas for general background knowledge for a project you are doing, or to search for information about a particular topic that interests you.
4. Have that thinking result in a preliminary plan for your notes (Chapter by chapter, by theme, or whatever).
5. Conduct the Overview phase. Don't spend more than 3 or 4 seconds on a page. KEEP MOVING. You will be back! See the words and know them. Be sure you are RELAXED. Just let the words wash over your eyes in a smooth, sweeping motion. Use your pacer. Notice what ideas jump out at you. Don't worry if they are accurate. You will be back!
6. After this overview, you have a pretty good idea of the general content of the chapters of the book or whatever it is you are reading. You know enough at this point to make some choices.
a. Decide if you need the book at all. Maybe it isn't really what you need right now. Shelve it for later.
b. You may decide that something in Chapter 4 is what you were hoping to find and just focus on that chapter, leaving the rest of the book for later if at all. There is no law that you have to digest an entire book to get what you need from it right now.
c. If it is a pleasure book, you might decide that it isn't something you want to get into right now. Shelve it for a few months and come back and see how it feels then.
7. Go back, chapter, for the Gist stage. Here you are going line by line, taking in half of the line at a time. Do this in a relaxed state. Practice seeing the words and knowing them. Let the meaning build. Take notes if you are being held highly accountable for the book.
8. If at any point you feel like you aren't getting anything, stop, take a breath, and start again. You will be fine.
9. Go back, chapter by chapter, for the Details stage. Here you are also going line by line, taking in two or three (or more) words at a time. The details will eventually come through at this stage. Keep adding to your notes.
If the book is really dense, you might go back for another pass. If the book is really easy, you might be done after the Gist stage. You control the process.
Don't forget to RELAX and ENJOY the learning process!
Good luck!
Thursday, August 20, 2009
Friday, August 14, 2009
What is the future of reading in the electronic age?
NOTE: If you are a speed reading workshop graduate, read this using your new techniques! Either use the cursor as a pacer or if on your laptop, just lean over with your pen. Remember to always start with the Overview, always work toward just "seeing and knowing" the word. Go for it!
There has been considerable talk lately about the future of reading. Google's recent announcement that it is contributing to the digitization of libraries by converting millions of books to scannable, digital format has fueled this discussion. Will books fade from our lives? Will they be replaced with computers and hand-held devices? How will this effect speed reading?
First a word about speed reading. There is much that is misunderstood about it and recent speed reading graduates often find themselves questioned by family and friends. But it is difficult to argue with the results. Speed readers remember nearly all they read, they go through ten or fifteen articles while a slow reader barely finishes two, and they are comfortable with being surrounded by mountains of information. They confidently know they can go through it any time they want to.
How fast does a speed reader read? Slow readers, taught by well-meaning teachers in elementary schools around the world, barely read 150 to 250 words per minute with 72 percent comprehension at best. After a 2-day workshop and a few weeks of practice, speed readers replace their slow reading behaviors with a suite of skills designed to match up their information intake with the way their brains want to see it. Speed readers don't fall asleep while they read, a sure sign that your brain is bored. They don't find learning a chore. Learning is exciting, easy, and is done without fear or stress. They can read anywhere from 500 words per minute to thousands.
I have been around computers since the first computers hit workplace desks. I spent 20 years working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory on space exploration missions, so computers have been part of my entire adult life. Even in high school, back in 1971, I was privileged to take a rare computer class where I learned computer programming and typed out my lines of code on paper tape and punch cards. It took a week before I saw my results, but it was exciting!
I have worked off of 3-inch orange and green CRT screens right up to the modern, super high resolution LED screens like on the 17-inch laptop screen I am looking at as I write this. And for part of my week, I give tours of the Microsoft Home, a home of the future with technology that might be available in the next five or ten years. In the Home, I am surrounded by displays that appear on the kitchen counter, on the bulletin board, and on the wall of the dining room.
But in spite of it all, I prefer books. Books are special and so far, no electronic format has been devised to take their place. E-book readers are a start, but they have none of the attributes that make a book special.
When I hold a book in my hand, I know I have the entire treatise of the author right there. I can feel the weight of it, the smell of it, and most importantly, I can look through any part of it easily. Having the entire piece right in front of me is important and I think it may be the critical element missing from electronic formats. There are many times when I read something that gets me thinking about something else, maybe something that is 50 pages away from where I am in the book. I know it is there because the first step of the speed reading process is to look at every page in the book before I start reading. That way, I get a truly holistic sense of the book and where it is going.
Part of the beauty of speed reading, and why our brains like it so much, is that it gives you that powerful ability to look at the book as a whole. No longer are we constrained by reading one word at a time, hoping that the author's ideas will build up by the time we reach the end. They rarely do.
Electronic formats so far give you one page at a time, locking you in to the old way of reading. I want to be able to flip through, skim, and bounce around in a book. Not all books we need to read are novels where you often want the story to unfold. Many books we need to take in are complex collections of an author's beliefs, discoveries, and conclusions that don't always need to be digested in order. Speed reading gives you that power, but current e-book readers take it away.
I don't know how to solve that problem in e-book readers. Even the Star Trek universe shows people hundreds of years from now with small format screens digesting one page at a time. I am concerned that young people growing up in our electronic age will lose the ability to examine problems holistically, will fail to see the big picture, and be content with only the partial story that is in front of them in the moment.
But I love it when I am writing and find a digitized book online that I can search, making my writing deeper and richer because of all the perspectives I can include. The digital world can be an important place. I recently sent the two books I have authored to Google for inclusion in their digitization effort.
But I will be collecting books as long as they are available and I will be guarding my precious collection of books from the last century while the digitization machine that is evolving all around us. There are many things that our devices are good for. I have a touch screen phone, a Zune music and video player that I carry around with 120 megabytes of storage space, and most of the time you will see a bluetooth ear bud hanging out my ear. I read millions of words online each week and that is great, to be sure. But the most important collections of ideas in my life are still on paper, bound together with glue, and sitting on a shelf, all there for me whenever I need them, even if the power goes out.
It is a comforting thought.
There has been considerable talk lately about the future of reading. Google's recent announcement that it is contributing to the digitization of libraries by converting millions of books to scannable, digital format has fueled this discussion. Will books fade from our lives? Will they be replaced with computers and hand-held devices? How will this effect speed reading?
First a word about speed reading. There is much that is misunderstood about it and recent speed reading graduates often find themselves questioned by family and friends. But it is difficult to argue with the results. Speed readers remember nearly all they read, they go through ten or fifteen articles while a slow reader barely finishes two, and they are comfortable with being surrounded by mountains of information. They confidently know they can go through it any time they want to.
How fast does a speed reader read? Slow readers, taught by well-meaning teachers in elementary schools around the world, barely read 150 to 250 words per minute with 72 percent comprehension at best. After a 2-day workshop and a few weeks of practice, speed readers replace their slow reading behaviors with a suite of skills designed to match up their information intake with the way their brains want to see it. Speed readers don't fall asleep while they read, a sure sign that your brain is bored. They don't find learning a chore. Learning is exciting, easy, and is done without fear or stress. They can read anywhere from 500 words per minute to thousands.
I have been around computers since the first computers hit workplace desks. I spent 20 years working for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory on space exploration missions, so computers have been part of my entire adult life. Even in high school, back in 1971, I was privileged to take a rare computer class where I learned computer programming and typed out my lines of code on paper tape and punch cards. It took a week before I saw my results, but it was exciting!
I have worked off of 3-inch orange and green CRT screens right up to the modern, super high resolution LED screens like on the 17-inch laptop screen I am looking at as I write this. And for part of my week, I give tours of the Microsoft Home, a home of the future with technology that might be available in the next five or ten years. In the Home, I am surrounded by displays that appear on the kitchen counter, on the bulletin board, and on the wall of the dining room.
But in spite of it all, I prefer books. Books are special and so far, no electronic format has been devised to take their place. E-book readers are a start, but they have none of the attributes that make a book special.
When I hold a book in my hand, I know I have the entire treatise of the author right there. I can feel the weight of it, the smell of it, and most importantly, I can look through any part of it easily. Having the entire piece right in front of me is important and I think it may be the critical element missing from electronic formats. There are many times when I read something that gets me thinking about something else, maybe something that is 50 pages away from where I am in the book. I know it is there because the first step of the speed reading process is to look at every page in the book before I start reading. That way, I get a truly holistic sense of the book and where it is going.
Part of the beauty of speed reading, and why our brains like it so much, is that it gives you that powerful ability to look at the book as a whole. No longer are we constrained by reading one word at a time, hoping that the author's ideas will build up by the time we reach the end. They rarely do.
Electronic formats so far give you one page at a time, locking you in to the old way of reading. I want to be able to flip through, skim, and bounce around in a book. Not all books we need to read are novels where you often want the story to unfold. Many books we need to take in are complex collections of an author's beliefs, discoveries, and conclusions that don't always need to be digested in order. Speed reading gives you that power, but current e-book readers take it away.
I don't know how to solve that problem in e-book readers. Even the Star Trek universe shows people hundreds of years from now with small format screens digesting one page at a time. I am concerned that young people growing up in our electronic age will lose the ability to examine problems holistically, will fail to see the big picture, and be content with only the partial story that is in front of them in the moment.
But I love it when I am writing and find a digitized book online that I can search, making my writing deeper and richer because of all the perspectives I can include. The digital world can be an important place. I recently sent the two books I have authored to Google for inclusion in their digitization effort.
But I will be collecting books as long as they are available and I will be guarding my precious collection of books from the last century while the digitization machine that is evolving all around us. There are many things that our devices are good for. I have a touch screen phone, a Zune music and video player that I carry around with 120 megabytes of storage space, and most of the time you will see a bluetooth ear bud hanging out my ear. I read millions of words online each week and that is great, to be sure. But the most important collections of ideas in my life are still on paper, bound together with glue, and sitting on a shelf, all there for me whenever I need them, even if the power goes out.
It is a comforting thought.
Monday, August 10, 2009
Online Speed Reading Practice Resources
Hello Speed Readers!
Lots of folks have created tools for speed reading practice and you can find lots of them online. There are some handy websites to help you expand your peripheral vision, practice "seeing and knowing," and taking in a number of words at a time. Of course, you don't need any of them to succeed, but they can be fun.
6. Program Yourself Video
This video, by artist Pete Moraites, is an interesting visual piece that is a great way to practice your peripheral vision, soft focus, and the idea of “seeing and knowing” the words. It has an interesting message as well. Relax your eyes, let your soft focus rule, and see what you can see.
Of course, the only thing you need is a book, your pacer, and your brain! Enjoy.
Lots of folks have created tools for speed reading practice and you can find lots of them online. There are some handy websites to help you expand your peripheral vision, practice "seeing and knowing," and taking in a number of words at a time. Of course, you don't need any of them to succeed, but they can be fun.
1. Ababasoft.com
These folks have a number of simple online tools that are also available for download that will help to widen your peripheral vision and practice your speed reading.
2. AceReader.com
AceReader is an interesting collection of tools to practice the elements of speed reading skills. The best one may be the TACHISTOSCOPE FLASH AND RECALL GAME which will help you practice seeing and knowing the words. Be sure to set the options so the words appear in the center of the screen or it is just too hard!
3. Speed Reader II
This is an interesting program that allows you to input a text file and have clumps of words displayed at the speed you choose. It is a handy way to practice your "seeing and knowing."
4. HypnosMedia
An interesting program used as a tool for hypnotherapy, this will help you with peripheral vision practice.
5. The Sharm
An program that lets you create your own relaxation music. Downloading the trial will do all you need. Create a soundscape that you would like to listen to in order to relax prior to a learning activity.
These folks have a number of simple online tools that are also available for download that will help to widen your peripheral vision and practice your speed reading.
2. AceReader.com
AceReader is an interesting collection of tools to practice the elements of speed reading skills. The best one may be the TACHISTOSCOPE FLASH AND RECALL GAME which will help you practice seeing and knowing the words. Be sure to set the options so the words appear in the center of the screen or it is just too hard!
3. Speed Reader II
This is an interesting program that allows you to input a text file and have clumps of words displayed at the speed you choose. It is a handy way to practice your "seeing and knowing."
4. HypnosMedia
An interesting program used as a tool for hypnotherapy, this will help you with peripheral vision practice.
5. The Sharm
An program that lets you create your own relaxation music. Downloading the trial will do all you need. Create a soundscape that you would like to listen to in order to relax prior to a learning activity.
This video, by artist Pete Moraites, is an interesting visual piece that is a great way to practice your peripheral vision, soft focus, and the idea of “seeing and knowing” the words. It has an interesting message as well. Relax your eyes, let your soft focus rule, and see what you can see.
Of course, the only thing you need is a book, your pacer, and your brain! Enjoy.
First Day of Practice
Hello new Speed Reader!
As you contemplate your speed reading practice, here are a few thoughts.
1. Remind yourself that you are making a choice to bring these new skills into your life after seeing their potential this past weekend.
2. Keep reminding yourself of those moments during our workshop where it felt like the new techniques were happening for you. Build on those moments and let them be your beacons of hope at times when you not feeling very connected to the process.
3. Each day, whenever you read, overview first, then go back and try the Gist stage (half the line at a time). Even if you go back and read in the old way, always be moving toward "seeing and knowing" the words. You DO know what they mean. The words are patterns - pictures - that represent a thought and you know it.
4. Pick a 10 to 15 minute time each day (at the same time would be ideal) when you practice the techniques. Either practice the entire process or pick a technique and practice it. For example, one day you could spend your practice time doing overviews, intentionally working to expand your peripheral vision, seeing and knowing the words, and noticing more. At another session, you could focus on the Gist phase and so on.
5. Journaling or blogging about your practice experience can be helpful in keeping you on track and motivating yourself.
6. Keep the notes going! Take notes in association matrix style in everything you do, whether it be school, business, or personal items. Planning a vacation? Use that form of notetaking. One line is the supplies you have, another is the ones you need to buy, etc. Shopping for a new car? Go with a form you made. One line could be colors, another options, etc. You see what I mean.
Before your practice, take a moment, take a deep breath, and relax! Learning a new skill is fun and exciting. Remember, speed reading has to be done in a relaxed state. Start out with an affirmation like "today I am going to become a better and better speed reader!" It works.
Good luck and don't hesitate to call or email me.
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