Question on Speed reading...

OH Wow!

For a few months, I have been sort of mystified by this Speed Reading. My present speed is 350 wpm, higher than average i know, but i wish to raise it to 1800- the highest ever reached!

is it necessary i take up some course like that, no way could i do it with practice on my own?

I've never understood why anyone wants to Speed-Read. For me, part of the great pleasure of reading is savoring the words. Enjoyment and complete comprehension is everything, speed -- for me -- is nothing.

It's really more for studying purposes, when you have to sit down with 10 medical books for your exams, it'd really help if you could speed read.

But how much do you actually retain that way? It seems to me that reading a lot of words really fast would cause the mind to skip over a lot of meanings.

Speed reading is great! The last thing you want though is to lose comprehension. I don't know the specifics of the EyeQ program that you've mentioned, however I did use some software to help me read faster and comprehend more.

I think it's a misconception that if you are reading faster you will understand less. The basic premise behind "speed" reading is to simply remove old bad habits such as subvocalization. The mind can process and absorb information that you are reading much, much quicker than we can speak it. In my experience, I have found that I often comprehend more. When reading very technical information that uses a great deal of logic in its explanation -- or for that matter when reading anything that sparks a great deal of thought, my reading speed slows accordingly so that I can still fully comprehend the material. Despite this slowing down, I am still able to enjoy the information moreso, because I am not distracted by the need to subvocalize. This actually frees the mind up to think about the material, and can ultimately lead to a better understanding of it.

To avoid subvocalizing, you may want to try consciously relaxing your voicebox while you read. This, of course, takes some of your mind's focus away from the reading material, so don't be surprised if you still have trouble with your comprehension at such high speeds. As you begin to naturally read without subvocalizing, you will be able to pick up the faster speeds without any trouble.

I went from about 200 wpm to roughly 750 wpm with my comprehension at 95-100% consistently. As it stands now, I have begun to go back on my old bad habits though, so I am looking for some new software to work with (preferrably freeware). I always enjoyed building my "site phrases". That was the best part.