If you cannot comprehend at high reading speeds, it is not reading! There is a mistaken notion "out there" that if you speed read, you will not fully comprehend. That is a myth!

Many of my students come to me after having failed some other training. A recent new student said to me, "I bought a software program that got my speed up to 2500 words per minute (wpm), but I don't comprehend anything." If he didn't comprehend, he wasn't reading! It was a waste of time. What he didn't learn in that program he bought was how to comprehend at high speeds.

Is it possible?

You can learn to read many times faster than you do now and still fully comprehend. I know because I have done it and I have taught it to thousands of people from all walks of life. The secret lies in re-training your brain to respond to printed material differently.

Will it happen in one lesson? Probably not.

If you are not a speed reader, you probably take reading comprehension for granted. Because you have been reading for many years, you probably cannot say what really happens that gives you the sense of whether you understood some reading material. When you learn how to monitor your understanding, you will in fact improve your comprehension.

Comprehension at high speeds needs to be taught directly. True speed reading is not merely speeding up how you already read. That would be terribly stressful and reading would not be enjoyable.

Reading comprehension means s understanding what the print says. "Understanding" is a function of your brain/mind. As the eyes absorb visual stimuli, the brain naturally associates (connects) the printed symbol to something you have experienced in the past and signals your mind that you recognize the combination of symbols. If you are not a speed reader, this happens at a slow enough speed so that the brain/mind does not become overwhelmed.

If you are not a speed reader, you take the words in individually and build one piece upon another. Usually you are taking in a fact or detail here, and a fact or a detail there. Because of the slowness of the speed not much time is spent in reflecting. Eventually you get the ideas and concepts.

To comprehend at very rapid rates however, requires a perceptual shift in the mind as to what we normally perceive comprehension to be. In fact, to speed read and comprehend well requires the reader to consciously look for the concepts and ideas first in order understand well at high speeds. This process can be learned, but requires direct teaching. Because of our ingrained habits of comprehending, it does not happen magically or immediately. The good news is that the brain is an incredible learning machine, if we take control by learning how to train and redirect it.

To comprehend well at speeds in the thousands of words per minute range, you need to learn how to direct and monitor your mind to actually comprehend. Once trained properly, you will not take your reading understanding for granted. You will know with certainty how much you have understood. Again, this will probably not happen immediately, but will transition with proper training.

There is a real learnable process that requires a re-training and a perceptual shift. The "secret" is to retrain your brain, not just your eyes. Your willingness to understand that your brain can be re-trained while it resists the training is all part of the fun while learning and mastering these essential skills. You will be amazed at what your brain does while speed reading.

Now that you know this secret, I invite you to learn more with our free tips and ebook at http://speedreadingtactics.com/speed_reading_newsletter.html

Author's Bio: 

Ed Caldwell is the creator and publisher of the "Masters Online Program: Dynamic Reading, Memory, and Recall" and other live and web-based learning programs. As former National Director of Instruction and Certification for the world famous Evelyn Wood Reading Dynamics program, Ed has 30 years experience teaching and testing new strategies to help people from all walks of life learn to read more efficiently. Trainer, speaker, and writer, he can be contacted at inquiry@productivelearn.com. He is the creator and president of Productive Learning Systems, Inc, and ProductivElearn.com, Inc. You can learn more at http://speedreadingtactics.com/speed_reading_newsletter.html and download the free eBook, "The 10 Top Mistakes When Learning Speed Reading."

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