How many hours do you work a week? Does your work involve a lot of paperwork? You can increase your productivity with speed reading!
Speed reading is the process of rapidly identifying and capturing phrases or sentences on a page all at once, rather than recognizing individual words.
There are many brilliant people you may never get to interact with but whose books are widely available. If you want to be successful at work, it is important to read books by successful people in your field. With speed reading, you can also increase your productivity at work significantly.
Speed Reading tips to Increase your Productivity
Speed reading is typically within a rate of 400-700 wpm. Anything above 500-600 wpm means sacrificing comprehension, though this varies from person to person. Speed reading does not have to mean missing out on important information. Use the strategies listed below to read faster while also capturing important details.
Concentrate
Reading quickly with good comprehension requires concentration. When you lose focus, you are more likely to re-read sentences rather than move on. Many readers read a few sentences without concentrating, then reread them to ensure they understand. This habit, known as regression will significantly slow you down and make it difficult to gain a broad understanding of what you’re reading. If you approach a text carefully and attentively, you will quickly comprehend the information and will not need to re-read sections. To stay focused, reduce external noise, distractions, and interruptions. And be aware when your thoughts wander while working.
Preview Documents
Knowing the gist of a material can help you to read it within a short period. This is because it prepares you to quickly comprehend what you’re about to read. To preview a text, scan it from beginning to end, paying close attention to headings, subheadings, boldened or highlighted text, and bullet points. Also, skim the introductory and concluding paragraphs. Try to spot transition sentences, look over any images or graphs. This will help you read with speed and increase your productivity.
Use your peripheral vision
You can also use this type of vision to improve your reading speed. Most readers can scan in 1.5-inch chunks, which usually contain three to five words depending on the font size and type of text. Rather than reading each word individually, use your peripheral vision to scan the page, jumping from one chunk (of three to five words) to the next. And speed up at the start and end of each line, focusing on word blocks rather than the first and last words.
Practice
Before something can become a habit or skill, you need to do it repeatedly. Consequently, speed reading does not happen overnight, you need to practice, practice, practice! Pick a reading goal, set a timer on your smart device and practice till you reach that goal. Then, you can set another goal until you become a pro speed reader!
Measure your work output before starting this exercise and let us know how well these speed reading tips have helped to increase your productivity!
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