How to Read a Book Fast

I rather listen to audiobooks while I go about my day.

But some books just don’t have narration and plus sometimes – I rather read. But the 8 hour long periods of reading are a little too long for my taste.

Now, you probably think this post is about an unknown but effective way of speed reading. It isn’t. In this post, we will uncover 3 different methods to read a book fast. Heard about people who can read a book a day? This is what they use.

1. Speed Reading The idea of speed reading is simple – Read fast! If it takes you 2 minutes to read a page, make it one minute. There are all sorts of funny ways to do it – from doing a zig-zag to doing an infinity symbol while reading. For the sake of this post, we will cover the basics. While most speedreaders will suggest the need to remove sub-vocalization (the voice in your head) to speed up reading, I say keep it. As much as we want to get the reading over with, might as well enjoy it while we are at it.

Here’s what to do: 1. Get a pen 2. Drag it along as you read 3. Once you get used to it, let the pen lead the way. 4. Move the pen at the pace you can keep up with but faster than your ordinary speed. 5. Pace yourself from normal, fast to fastest. 6. Do it as a cycle (it gives you time to rest).

1. Photo Reading What on earth is that? Let me explain. Photo reading is the process of reading and flipping pages at a page a second. It taps into our subconscious minds. So instead of just reading word for word, you use your photographic memory to scan an entire page at a time. The results of this technique only shows later on when you have to apply it. Your subconscious memory will draw from what you read. The main drawback? I don’t know if I absorbed anything.
2. Smart Reading This is my favourite technique by far. The question to ask yourself prior to using this method is: "What is the one thing you want to get out of this book?" You got it obviously for a reason. Be laser focused on what you want to get out of it. Here’s an overview on what to read: 1. The cover (front & back). 2. If it’s a hardcover, the entire jacket. 3. The table of contents 4. The first chapter 5. Final chapter After reading this, you get an idea on how the book is laid out and what it is all about. Now, pick one chapter to read comprehensively on.

This chapter is why you bought the book for – the golden nugget. Now, there will be a voice in your head that says that if you buy a book, you have to read it cover to cover. Not true. Those are just rules made up by someone you didn’t know. Unless you intend to sell the book after reading it, you can read the book once and revisit it later for another chapter.

The time you have left reading one book can be used to read another. It’s a very smart way to read a book. Instead of digging up your entire backyard trying to find gold, you use a metal detector and then dig deep to get it. Books are the most versatile resource for knowledge ever created.

The fact that 40 years of experience can be condensed into stacks of paper no larger than a pancake and can be consumed for less than $20 and less than 6 hours speaks volumes on how fortunate we are to learn from the wise that lived before us. The only thing left for us to do is to read it.

• This article was written by Ben Sim from

iPrice Group.

This article was written by Ben Sim from iPrice Group.