SPORTS AND READING FASTER

Training yourself to read faster is just like a sport: you practice, push yourself, and then you get better. You have been reading the past few years, but who has been pushing you to read faster? Who has been training you to become a more alert, quicker reader? The answer is usually no-one. When I ask audiences who in the past few years has been reading, I usually get a few hundred, "yes's." Hardly ever any "no's." And when I ask who has gotten significantly faster or improved in their reading, usually no-one answers. People seem to accept their reading speed as it is, as if it were not changeable. If I'd ask, is there anyone who has been pushing you to play sports better, like friends, coaches, or yourself, the answer is usually, "yes." And when I ask if they have gotten better, the answer is always, "yes." Well that sounds interesting; push yourself to get better, and you do; don't push yourself to get better, and you don't. Don't be surprised people read as slowly as they do.

What usually happens when you play a sport with someone who is better than you? Do you noticed that you start to play better? When you play tennis with someone that is better than you, you start to play better. When you go running with someone that is faster than you, you run faster. When you read, you are on your own. Only you can push yourself to read faster. You can push yourself to read faster with the same or better comprehension. The way you accomplish this is by using your hand . . .