How to Read Faster and Remember More

Have you ever started reading something and found yourself reading the same paragraph over and over again?  Have you ever wished you could read faster and remember more of what you read?

Here is a simple way to do both:  Pace your reading with a pointer such as your finger or a pencil.

Why is that so effective?  Two basic reasons:

1)     When we learned to read as a child, we were taught to verbalize.  As an adult, we continue to verbalize internally as we read.  That means we can only read as fast as we verbalize.  However, our minds can take in information much faster than we can verbalize.  By using a pointer, we regulate the speed without verbalizing.  This forces our minds to skip this process and just take in the information.  As you continue to read, slowly start to increase the speed that you move your pointer.  Let your mind will adjust to the increased speed until you feel comfortable.  Then increase it again.  Many people have been able to double their speed within ½ hour by doing this.

2)     If you are familiar with the split-brain theory, you know that the right hemisphere of the brain is the creative/emotional side and the left is the logical/thinking side.  We can increase our retention by engaging both side of our brain.  Here’s how:

The right side of our body is controlled by the left side of the brain and the left side of the body is controlled by the right side of the brain.  When we look to the right, it engages the left brain.  When we look to the left, it engages the right brain.  The key to engaging both sides while reading is to move your eyes as you read and not your head.  It is a natural motion to move the head, so it will take a few minutes to get used to this. 

Now, what about that part where your mind starts to wander when you read and you keep re-reading the paragraph.  The key here is focus.  By reading faster, it doesn’t allow your mind to wander because you are focused on keeping up with your pointer.  The physical pointer also gives your mind something to focus on to help prevent wandering. 

If you have other things on your mind, this can still be a problem.   The best solution for that is the One Minute Relaxation Technique.  This will focus your thinking and let go of other thoughts.