Introduction
Imagine this…………
- Imagine what your life would be like if you could read 2 or 3 times faster than what you are reading right now.
- Imagine you could read faster than ever before and with better comprehension.
- Imagine you could read a book a day.
Would your life be much better than your present situation?
Of course yes.
Are the above things you just imagined possible?
I will answer it for you. YES, it is possible.
How can I be so sure of that?
I am sure of that because I have trained myself to actually do what you have just imagined. I was introduced to the concept that, I can train myself to read faster from the age of 13. It was a life changing concept for me then. Over the years I have trained myself to read faster and have read 1000s of books. I did a lot of research on improving the reading speed and learning skill. I am going to share with you, some of the best ideas I have learnt in past 8 years.
Promise of this blog post
In this blog post, I will share with you some tips and exercises which will help you INCREASE your reading speed by at least 50% with better comprehension. I am giving a conservative figure of 50%. I have had students who have increased their reading speed by over 100% or 200% after doing what I’m about to teach you.
When I say, you will increase your reading speed; I am in no way implying to neglect understanding what you are reading. I give equal importance to understanding and reading speed.
The research has found that the average reading speed is between 150 – 250 Words Per Minute (WPM). Very few people read over 400 wpm. I want your reading speed to be beyond 400 WPM. It is a wonderful feeling to read at faster rates. That feeling can’t be expressed through words adequately.
What you will need to do the exercise mentioned in this blog post.
For doing this exercise, you must have the following materials:
1. A light fiction or non-fiction book. Don’t do the exercise on technical books now. Keep them for later.
2. Pen or Pencil
3. Timer. (Your mobile phone has one.)
4. Willingness to spend 21 minutes and do what I ask you to do.
Get the above material right now…………
You MUST follow the following guidelines to see a significant change in your reading speed. (Remember I said MUST and not should). It is very important that you follow all the rules.
- You must follow all the instructions given in the book without questioning. You may not believe everything I say; you can question the method later. All I ask is to have an open mind when doing the exercise.
- The exercise/ drill is divided into 3 sections namely:
A. Test your present reading speed.
B. Do the exercise as mentioned
C. Test your new reading speed
Of the three sections, the 2nd section is more important. It will take approximately 21 minutes to complete all the action steps.
You must do the exercise in one go. For getting the best results, you shouldn’t take any break while doing the drill and you must do it daily.
- After testing your speed in the end, record your experience and send me an email. I have shared my email in the end. I would be able to help you even further.
Section 1: Test your reading speed.
Before we start working on increasing your reading speed, it is important to know what your present reading speed is. Your present reading speed will help us know how much you have improved in the end.
I always get strange looks when I ask people what their reading speed is.
Here are the steps for calculating your reading speed:
1. Read the book for 3 minutes.
Take the book you have selected and set the timer for 3 minutes. Read the book for 3 minutes.
2. Count the number of lines you have read in 3 minutes.
After you finish reading for 3 minutes, count the number of lines you have read.
Let’s say you have read 20 lines.
3. Calculate Average words per line.
A. Count the number of words in the first 3 lines.
B. Divide the total number of words by 3. You will get an average number of words per line.
Let’s say there are 37 words in 3 lines. So, it comes to 37 words/3 lines = 12.33 i.e.12 words per minute (WPM).
4. Calculate your reading speed
Your reading speed = Number of lines you have read X Average words per line.
In our e.g., your reading speed is 20 lines X 12 words per minute = 240 WPM.
Action step:
1. Read the book for 3 minutes
2. Calculate your reading speed
We will revisit this reading speed at the end.
Most of my students are in the range of 150 WPM to 250 words per minute (WPM).
What does this speed actually mean and why it is important?
Let’s say your reading speed is 150 WPM.
To keep it short, that is the average number of words you read in one minute. It is just your average reading speed. Your reading speed would be different for different reading material.
If the book you are reading has 45,000 words. With your reading speed, you will finish reading the book in approximately 5 hours. (if you read at the same speed throughout)
If you train yourself to read 2 times faster. You could finish reading the same book in approximately 2.5 hours or you can read 2 books in the same period of time.
Imagine how much time you can save reading faster. It is an invaluable skill to read and learn faster.
Section 2: Increase your reading speed
In this section, I will help you train your eyes to read faster.
To increase your reading speed you must do the following:
- You must eliminate Re-reading same thing again and again. This is called Regression.
An average reader spends a lot of time in re-reading the same thing again and again. It is unproductive and useless.
What you must do instead
Once you start reading, read from the start to the end. Once you have finished reading the line, don’t come back to it again without first finishing the entire chapter/section.
If you want to read the line again for whatever reason, revisit after you have finished the chapter.
- You must train your eyes to move faster while reading and increase peripheral vision span and number of words you read in one fixation.
Fast readers move their eyes faster while reading and their eyes move smoothly across the page. Whereas, slow readers get stuck while reading and move the eyes slower and their eye movements are erratic. Average readers see fewer words in one go when compared to fast readers. If at the moment, you look at 2 words in one fixation. Your reading speed will double if you start looking at 4 words in one go instead of 2 words.
2 Main techniques/ you will learn in this blog post to improve your reading speed instantly are:
1. Use of Pacer
2. A special exercise/ drill to train your eyes.
Technique 1: Using Pacer
Regression and other bad reading habits can be reduced or eliminated by using a pacer. We use pacer naturally.
Imagine the last time you were looking for a phone number in a book- did you use a pen or a finger to guide your eyes?
Did you use a pen or finger when counting the number of words or lines in section 1?
I am sure you did. Your pen or finger was a pacer and it helps as a guide while you are reading. It will help you with reducing your regression habit and other bad reading habits.
For the purpose of doing this drill, you can use either finger or pen as a pacer. Use whatever is comfortable to you. If you are using a pen or pacer, then hold it in your dominant hand.
How to use Pacer
1. Hold the pen in your dominant hand,
2. Start reading from the first word and use the pen as pacer.
3. Keep your eye fixation above the tip of the pen while you are reading.
- Practice pacer technique for 2 minutes
Practice using the pen as pacer for 2 minutes. I want you get used to using pen as pacer. Underline each line, focusing above the tip of the pen. At this point of time- read at a speed which you are comfortable with.
1. Practice reading with pacer for 2 minutes.
Till now we have set the foundation for increasing your reading speed. Now lets jump straight to increasing your reading speed. I am going to share a special drill for this.
Technique 2: Drills
Using drills will train your eyes to move faster and read faster.
Keep this in mind while you are doing drills.
When you are doing the drill, don’t focus on comprehension. Give maximum attention to speed. We will give more attention to comprehension when you are reading. At the moment you are doing a drill and not reading.
Understood….
Lets jump to the drill now. Here are the instructions for the drill:
1. Read at a speed of one line per second.( for 4 minutes)
Remember, You are giving more focus on speed and less focus on comprehension. It is ok even if you don’t understand what you are reading. Just read a line per second.
Tip: Use Pen or finger as a pacer
2. Read at a speed of one line per 1/2 second.( for 4 minutes)
Use Pen or finger as a pacer. Read the entire line in 1/2 second. Now, you are reading 2 lines in one second. It is completely ok if you haven’t understood a single thing while reading. Speed is more important now.
Action step:
1. Read one line per second for 4 minutes.
2. Read one line per 1/2 second ( 2 lines per second) for 4 minutes.
Repeat the above steps once. The total time you will spend on drills is 16 Minutes
DO the action steps NOW
What you have done till now.
- You have started with calculating your reading speed.
- You have practiced reading with pacer for 2 minutes.
- You have done the drills for 16 minutes in the following sequence.
- Read one line in one second for 4 minutes
- Read one line in ½ a second. (i.e. 2 lines in one second) for 4 minutes
Repeat the above steps once more.
- Read one line in one second for 4 minutes
- Read one line in ½ a second. (i.e. 2 lines in one second) for 4 minutes
So, you have spent 21 minutes in total doing all the action steps till now. Don’t proceed ahead if you haven’t done all the action steps. It is very important that you do everything I have shared above to see results.
Section 3: Calculate New WPM Reading Speed
Once you have done all the action steps as mentioned above test your reading speed again.
1. Take the book you have selected to read and come to a new chapter.
2. Set the timer for 3 minutes.
3. Close your eyes and take 2 deep breaths.
4. Start reading at your best reading speed for 3 minutes.
After you have finished reading, calculate your new reading speed by using the process I have shared in the beginning.(Multiply the number of lines you have read by average words per line )
Has your reading speed increased? I am sure it did.
Once you have calculated your reading speed, write down the experience you had when you were testing your reading speed for the second time.
Send me an email at srinivasvakatix@gmail.com
Please include what was your reading speed in the beginning, what is your new reading speed and what was your overall experience. Also include if you have faced any challenges during the process.
I would be thrilled to read about your improvement in reading speed and solve any challenges you have.
I look forward to reading your email.
Thank You for reading the blog post and doing the exercise as suggested. I am sure you have increased your reading speed. It is just a beginning. With the right training you can improve your reading ability even further.
For now
Action steps:
- Follow the exercises in the blog post.
- Check out the online course I have created – Become an expert learner where I share with you techniques to 3x your reading speed and finish entire books at a rapid rate
Click here to know more.
