March 17, 2010

Actual Client Success Rates with Reading Smart Workshop

speed_reading-01Our newest workshop, Reading Smart, has been receiving rave reviews from around the country. Professional, parents and students alike are increasing their reading speeds AND maintaining, or increasing, their comprehension. Here are some recent testimonials and actual before and after reading speeds. Numbers don’t lie!

From High School Senior, Rebecca Lenz:

“I hated to read because of how slow of a reader I was. After taking this workshop, I now am not dreading reading. My WPM [words per minute] has improved tremendously and I’m still comprehending Read More...

February 17, 2010

How to Create a Business Book Club

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeCreating a Business Book Club to Make Your Business Reading Easier

Don’t you just marvel at people at work who talk about the books they read and what they learned? You think, “Good for them, they’ve got time to read. . . but I don’t.” Yes, time is certainly a factor but what’s one of the best ways to make time? Make a commitment to others and meet regularly.

In other words, create a business book club!

Being a member of a business book club is the easiest, most fun way to get you to read while infusing your brain with usable information. (You can also adapt this information for starting a casual book club with your friends.) Setting one up is easy if you follow these simple Read More...

February 3, 2010

Tips to Read Faster – Keep Your Eyes Moving Forward

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeUse A Blank White Card to Push Your Eyes Down the Page

A common problem all readers have is passive regression, or unintentionally going back over material previously read. The habit typically stems from a reader’s insecurity about their comprehension level initially instilled by our well-meaning reading teachers. Regression can be beneficial though if it is done actively with a purpose in mind, such as going back to check an unfamiliar word.

Try this: To reduce passive regression and to help you read faster, place a blank 3 x 5 white card ON TOP of the words covering the text you already Read More...

January 21, 2010

Test Where You Read Best

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeLearn How To Spend Less Time Reading More

I am not surprised when people in my reading smart workshops tell me they tend to fall asleep while they read, especially work or study material.

My first question to them is “Where do you read?” Many of them say they read in bed, others say they read on a comfortable couch or their favorite reclining chair. Well, hello?! Think about it! If you are reading in these locations, then you might just be TOO comfortable!

Reading work or study material in a comfortable place is not the ideal place to expect to get a lot Read More...

January 7, 2010

How to Read the Entire Sunday Paper

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeMyth –It is impossible to read a whole Sunday newspaper, on Sunday!  Did you know that a daily edition of a big city newspaper contains approximately the same number of words as a typical novel? And the Sunday edition contains the same number of words as four to six novels! No wonder you may feel overwhelmed by reading an entire Sunday newspaper!

Truth – You CAN read an entire Sunday paper, if you are very judicious with how you spend your time. Here is an easy-to-follow process:

1.  Get rid of the clutter

Start your process by getting rid of the unwanted circulars and sections that you don’t need or want to spend your time on. They get in your way and distract Read More...

December 21, 2009

How Fast Do You Read?

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 7:08 am

Abby Marks BealeYou May Read Faster Than You Think

In the past fourteen years, I’ve worked with thousands of individuals who, previous to meeting me, had no idea what their true reading speed was. But they all had their self-made perceptions.

Most consider their reading speed to be slow with only a few believing it is fast. However, if you can get a true gauge on your reading speed and compare yours with others, you may find you are better and faster than you think!

So, let me help you figure your reading speed. The easiest way to do it is to go to my website where I have just added an on-screen reading speed evaluation called How Fast Do You Read?. It is located on the right upper corner of this page. It takes a minute or Read More...

December 9, 2009

How to Improve Your Reading Attitude

Filed under: Attitude Management, Speed Reading — Tags: , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeMentally, quickly fill in the blank of the following statement with a word or words that best describes your reading ability:

I am a __________ reader.

Your response will most likely fall into one of two major categories: negative or positive. Some negative terms I typically hear from people in my workshops include “slow”, “lazy”, “overwhelmed” or “frustrated” while the more positive ones include “good”, “avid”, or “voracious”.

Whatever your attitude, it makes sense that those with a more negative attitude typically read less and find reading to be more boring and a chore. Those with a more positive attitude then Read More...

October 14, 2009

Speed Reading 101

Filed under: Speed Reading — Tags: , , , , — Abby Marks Beale @ 6:00 am

Abby Marks BealeSo I’m at a party and someone asks me what I do. If you’re like me, you could say many things! But when I choose to say “I teach speed reading,” the reactions vary though the most common is something like “Wow, I could really use that! Can you tell me how to do it?!” So I’ve gotten pretty good at condensing down the content of my books and 20 years of experience into a very short synopsis. I thought you might have interest, especially if you have always wanted to know a few “secrets” about speed reading.

Your Reading Stick-Shift

I begin by saying that readers really do have a reading stick-shift that consists of five gears with gear one being very slow up through Read More...

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