Expand Your Reading Vision

To make your speed-reading skills permanent, continue to expand

your reading vision by using the guidelines in Chapter 6. As

Chapter 3 explains in loving detail, your eyes fixate on words or

groups of words in the act of reading. As you read from left to right

across the page, your eyes take in 1 to 14 words at a time. The

more words you can read at once, the faster you can read.

Keep working at taking in more words at once. When you come to

the end of one line, don’t swing your eyes to the start of the next line.

Move to a place partway into the next line and start reading there.

Similarly, don’t read to the end of each line — try to take in the last

four to five words without moving your eyes to the end of the line.

Shush Your Inner Reading Voice

Because I can’t say it enough, I’m going to say it again: To be a

speed reader, you must silence your inner reading voice. You

must cultivate the habit of reading without hearing your own voice

recite the words.

Dropping the vocalization habit (discussed in Chapter 2) is the

first big hurdle you must cross to become a speed reader, and you

have to keep that persistent voice quiet for continued success.

When you’re actively engaged in speed reading and you hear the

voice, make a conscientious effort to suppress it. Focus on the

shapes of words. Try to process the words and take in their mean-

ing with your visual faculties only.