digest
Short Summary
Main recommendation: improve reading speed by breaking three common habits (reading word by word, subvocalizing, and rereading unnecessarily) and adopting better practices like guiding your eyes, removing distractions, skipping small words, reading with a strategy, and practicing with a speed reading app. The speaker notes the average reader covers about 250 words per minute and suggests more than double that is achievable while still absorbing information. Comprehension should not be sacrificed for speed.
Key Points
- Stop reading one word at a time: take in groups of words per fixation, starting with about two words and working up to about five, with an eye jump of about an inch to an inch and a half each time.
- Reduce subvocalization (saying words silently in your head), which the speaker says limits you because the brain understands meaning faster than speech, allowing you to read twice as fast or more.
- Avoid unnecessary rereading, which slows total speed and breaks reading flow; go back only when you truly missed something important.
- Use strategies such as guiding your eyes with a finger or pen, removing distractions, and skipping low-importance words like "to," "the," "is," "and," and "a."
- Read nonfiction selectively by scanning headings and bullet lists first, then deciding which sections to read closely, skim, or skip.
- Do not sacrifice comprehension for speed, and be wary of speed reading gimmicks, since the speaker says it is very difficult to read more than three times faster than your current pace.
Details Worth Noting
- Concrete instructions:
- Expand your eye span: start by jumping your eyes about an inch to an inch and a half per fixation, covering two words, then gradually work up to about five words.
- Minimize subvocalization by practicing skipping small words as you read silently, and by enunciating less, moving through words more quickly as if skimming.
- Stop unnecessary rereading by consciously moving forward and resisting the urge to skip back; reread only if you believe you missed something important.
- Guide your eyes with a finger, pen, or bookmark end, and move it a little faster over time to train faster scanning and reduce backtracking.
- Before reading, turn off the TV, ask others not to interrupt, and make sure you are not hungry or needing the bathroom.
- For nonfiction, look over the whole piece first for headings and bullet lists, then choose which parts to read carefully, skim, or skip based on your needs.
- Practice with a speed reading app or program, using its exercises and, if available, importing your own reading material.
- The speaker says the first two habits (word-by-word reading and subvocalization) are the most important and will likely more than double your current speed.
- Skipping tip is limited to small words; the speaker advises against applying it to fiction for the strategy tip, since nonessential parts are hard to identify there.
Bottom Line
Faster reading comes from changing habits gradually and steadily, and the goal is to understand what you read, not just to finish quickly.
