Photoreading

[Steve Roh]

I'm about halfway thru the course (deluxe ed.) and have been doing the exercises. I think it's been worthwhile so far, even if I don't become a super-reader. It's motivated me to pickup books which have been lying around for months. It's changed the way I think about reading. The techniques and concepts are not rocket science, but for me at least it's more effective to have them presented in a systematic way rather than just a blog post or article.

The way i look at it, with the Pavlina discount this course costs about the same as a business-related non-credit course at a local college. Even if results are just "OK", reading is a highly leveraged skill to improve.

As far as the comments like: "the only people who have positive things to say about Photoreading, are those who have a financial interest"... I think this is a case of people only seeing what they want to see. If you read people's comments in this thread you'll find people who believe they have benefitted from the system. Maybe not life-changing experiences, but on balance a positive outcome.

Since this kind of product is the epitome of "your mileage may vary", I'm not sure how disappointment among some people could be avoided, except maybe by disclaimers in the marketing to reduce expectations since the majority of casual users will not achieve astounding results (though some people may). I think their excellent return policy should be emphasized since results are naturally unpredictable depending on individual situations.

[gberardi]

I ordered the deluxe package, and if I have to say anything bad about it (I'm only on disc 6 now), it is how confusing it is.

I have a workbook. It's pages are numbered. Yet, for some reason, I have to jump from page 12 to page 41 to page 23 to page 39. Why not just order the pages differently?

Also, when I received everything, what was I supposed to do first? Watch the DVDs? Read one or both of the two books? Pop in the first disc? Read the workbook? It wasn't very clear at all. Just the other day, I finally read the first page of the workbook (because I had popped in an audio disc first which took me to page 12 or 13 or something), and it seemed to mention some guidelines.

Yesterday, I was doing the photoreading exercise using the Photoreading book. This morning I was going to activate it. The disc talked about the questions I might have, using the questions in the workbook as a guide, but then never asked me to fill in the answers. I don't recall being told that we'd come back to it or to do it, so I was left wondering if it was an exercise to do on my own or if it would get covered later. The disc ended by talking about activation, and then just ended. The next disc has me photoreading the second book, so I guess I am supposed to answer the questions now. Or maybe I am supposed to leave it until later to allow it to incubate? I don't know.

As far as the positives: I think I have already benefitted from the relaxation exercises, the tangerine method, and, as Steve said, the idea of having a purpose when reading. I used to just read something because it seemed like something I should read, but now I make a point to have a purpose before reading, even if I don't try to photoread.

As for any kind of amazing things happening, I can't say for sure. I do know that I did find a single line in a book that was very interesting after doing a postview. My purpose was fairly weak, I thought, and yet here was a line that pretty much gave me an insight into software development, which is what I was looking for.

I am looking forward to applying photoreading to software development. When I read that question about the programmer who could more easily debug code after photoreading, it definitely made me interested in finishing the course as soon as I could. B-)

[Minstrel]

I have been seeking to improve my reading speed for several years. I have used Howard Berg's method, and faithfully completed the drill every day for three months. I have used the EyeQ program, faithfully, for six months. I have dabbled in Evelyn Wood's rapid reading, using the Reader's Edge program. This last I used for only two weeks.

Unfortunately, the results have been, exactly, zero. Hmmm. I am still eager to improve my speed. But given my record in the past, I have some questions.

Is Photo-reading really likely to make a major and lasting difference?

What are some impediments to speedreading that I need to address? In other words, what are the possible reasons I have been the exception to the rule when using these other programs?

Thank you for any input.

Minstrel

[RT Wolf]

I've got a question about the activation step. In the video on the Pavlina site, with the news reporter, he seemed to describe a flash of insight into what the whole book meant. Is that what I should be looking for? Right now, I'm activating the third book I photoread and I'm still superreading & dipping (about two hours of superreading and dipping so far) and although that I'm getting a sense of the book, but it still feels a lot more like skimming to me. Is that how it is? Slowly building up comprehension of the sections, or is there like a flash of insight and you suddenly know something? Any help would be appreciated.

In the meanwhile, I'll just keep trying to photoread other books, I suppose I'll really get it around the tenth book.

Edit: Hmmm, after some perusing of the learning strategies forum, it seems that my purpose is probably not motivating enough. I'm still interested in knowing what the activating step is supposed to feel like. Perhaps I should ask there, too.

[acko]

I bought the Photo Reading course about a month ago solely on Steve's recommendation. The marketing tactics they use (Learning Strategies) is something I dislike and the e-mails they send end up in the Spam
folder. Would not have bought the package if not for Steve...

I have tried the couse, I am now on to the last CD. So far I was not able to 'photo read' a book. I am having trouble seeing the blip page. I did learn a few things out of the book so I am on the verge if I should send it back for refund or not.

In my opinion, photoreading is a learning strategy. I personally do learn a lot about a book just by previewing and activating it. I believe that doing 3-4 times a preview/activation which indeed takes maybe two hours will give you a basic idea what the book is about. You don't even need the photo reading phase.

I also use the rapid reading/skimming quite succesfully. Helps to quickly get the ideas you need in a short time.

I was using some of the tactics before, although I wasn't aware of them and its far better now that I know they exist.

I keep on being optimistic and believing photoreading works, as per Steve this is important. I will let you know if it works. So far, I am reasoning that not seeing the blip page is my issue with it and keep on trying (never succeeded with the dictionary game).

I guess the reasons I am not returning the package for now, are these:
1. i believe Paul Scheele that learning takes time, so its normal if I can't pick up so early.
2. i tend to trust Steve and he says it works...

I would appreciate if return policy would be 6 months instead of 1. That would give me more time to decide if it did really work or not.

Acko

[gberardi]

Originally Posted by acko

I would appreciate if return policy would be 6 months instead of 1. That would give me more time to decide if it did really work or not.

I believe it was mentioned earlier in this thread and on Steve's blog and I believe in the package you received, but you can send a request for an extension to six months.

[Alex w/Learning Strategie]

Originally Posted by RT Wolf

I've got a question about the activation step. In the video on the Pavlina site, with the news reporter, he seemed to describe a flash of insight into what the whole book meant. Is that what I should be looking for?

The short answer is no. If you're into NLP or Accelerated Learning think VAK. Your dominant preference will be the first one you get signals from. So if you are a visual then you might have a visual signal. Auditory the little voice with in Kinesthetic then it can be a feeling. Buzzing or tingling in the finger tips a feeling in the gut. While learning observe your experiences rather than trying to analyse them. If you're too busy analysing your experience you take yourself out of that experience.

Notice whatever prompts you to read, go back pages, the intuition that says I missed something they are all correct. It's a personal thing and you'll notice it faster if you look without expecting it to be something that someone else has talked about.

The PhotoReading step is the no-brainer. You just look at the pages with a soft gaze as you flip them. Don't worry about seeing the blip page. If you have problems with your eyesight like vision in only one eye it's physically impossible to see the blip page but you can still PhotoRead. Use the Imaginary X-technique Notice the four corners of the book and look at the pattern of white on the page as you turn the pages. The text will have a slightly fuzzy appearance. Switch off your conscious mind while you flip the pages. Thoughts like is this right? Am I getting it? Arrrgh these negative thoughts are in the way.. don't help but it's not the end of the world. Just return to the chant when you notice them.

One purpose I find useful when starting out with any book I think might be interesting but I'm not sure what my purpose would be, is I want to learn what this book has to offer that is new and useful to me. So my first mind probing question during a post view is WIIFM (what's in it for me?). Purpose may be refined with each activation session. Since the more you understand from the text the more you can relate to it's usefulness.

AlexK

[Trustme]

this may be a little off topic but one of the reasons why I would like to take a closer look at photoreading is that I am some kind of perfectionist. Perfectionists have the problem that they don't do certain things unless they do it in a perfect way. For me this means for example I start a book about programming and I walk through it and do every single exercise and want to understand every single concept.

This kind of linear behavior is of course disastreous and I know it. It's smarter to grap the general concept and pick out the stuff you need. It is much more efficient this way. Right now I really struggle with this and I feel like this is one of my flaws that are really holding me back from reaching my full potential.

Anyway, I am waiting for some more reviews here in this forum before I decide if I am going to buy it or not
Regards
Volkmar

[Stephen]

Originally Posted by Yynatago

I brought the deluxe version myself. It is currently sitting next to my "Do It Now" book I haven't read yet.

Regards,
From Shannan

LOL Nice one!

[Steve Pavlina]

Originally Posted by Trustme

this may be a little off topic but one of the reasons why I would like to take a closer look at photoreading is that I am some kind of perfectionist. Perfectionists have the problem that they don't do certain things unless they do it in a perfect way. For me this means for example I start a book about programming and I walk through it and do every single exercise and want to understand every single concept.

I used to have a similar problem. I felt if I read a book, I needed to read it cover-to-cover and understand every detail of it.

What helped me, even before PhotoReading, was to go to a library or bookstore, pick out a book, and use timeboxing to spend a certain amount of time with it, maybe 30-60 minutes. This worked especially well if I had an appointment afterwards and couldn't extend the time. Timeboxing helped me focus on extracting value instead of reading every word, and after a while it became like a game.

This practice probably made me more receptive to PhotoReading, which I see as an advanced version of timeboxed reading. I use timeboxing for each step of the PhotoReading process, and it helps me focus on getting the value from the book quickly. If I have a spare hour, I'll sit down with a book and use PhotoReading to get as much out of it as possible within the allotted time.

[Bruce Achterberg]

Since a lot of people in this thread seem to be curious about what those without some sort of affiliation to Learning Strategies (monetary or otherwise) think about PhotoReading, I may be able to help out.

It's been just over 20 days since I ordered the PhotoReading Deluxe Course, and while I'm yet to receive my order (I live in Australia and it was coming from the United States, so that isn't a big surprise to me), when I eventually get it, I'm thinking I may do some sort of write up/review of my experiences with the course and share my opinions, experiences, etc.

Depending on how much time I have, I may even do something like what Steve (Pavlina) did with his Polyphasic Sleep Logs that he posted on the blog on his website (instead I'd be posting it here on Steve's forums, not on a blog, although I won't rule out that possibility). I think that’d be pretty cool since I’ll be able to provide you with a highly detailed and completely unbiased recount of my experiences as I progress through the course (and since I'm posting it on Steve's forums instead of some obscure blog that no-one knows about, I'll be reaching a WHOLE lot of people and people can even discuss it, ask me questions, etc.).

And yes, it would “completely unbiased” because the whole reason I would do such a thing would be to provide other people with legitimate information (I despise it when people spread inaccurate, bias, and generally unhelpful information, so you won’t find me doing such a thing). I sure as heck wouldn’t be making any money by making a log, and I'm in no way affiliated with Learning Strategies, so you've got nothing to worry about there. If I really wanted to make some cash out of it I’d post it on a blog and load it up with Google Adsense ads, and while I won’t rule that out as an option for later, for now my main interest would be to share my experiences with others (I strongly believe information should be made available for free whenever possible).

Now I can’t guarantee that I’ll be able to post a log (or at least one where I make a new entry every day) since I am pretty busy at the moment, but since I’m feeling somewhat inspired to do this, I’m fairly sure I can make it happen. What I'd probably do is make one thread for my various individual logs, lock the thread (you know, with my "1337 hax0r" Moderator powers), and then include links to each individual log entry (which would appear as a new post within the thread) in the first post within the thread. The reason I'd want to lock it would be to keep it clean and increase readability. I could easily create a second thread for discussion about the first thread (the one with the logs entries in it), so worry not, you'd still be able to discuss the log entries to your heart's content.

If you have any specific requests, ideas, or anything you’d like to see me cover in such a log, send me a forum PM and I’ll take them into consideration. Additionally, any suggestions, hints, tips, or any other information that you think would be helpful to me before I start the log, that would also be appreciated. My aim would be to make this log reasonably high quality (which by my standards would mean very high quality since I'm somewhat of a perfectionist), so if you feel you could improve upon that by making a suggestion (or something), don’t be shy – send me a PM.

Note: I may or may not respond to all PM's, but if you give me a really good idea or information that I can use to improve the logs, I'll probably give you credit somewhere when/if I make the logs.

[gberardi]

Wow, I just learned that my CD playing software didn't update the number of tracks when I switched CDs. I was on disc 3, with 8 tracks, then went through discs 4 through 6, wondering why it seemed to drop me off in the middle of nowhere. After talking about activation, I never did the activation exercise because that track was missing! Doh!

Now that I've reloaded the CD in the software each time, I think things will make a LOT more sense. Yeesh. I have to go back to disc 4 and figure out what I missed. And I thought I could finish disc 6 quickly tonight. B-)

[M13]

I've been trying the photo reading system for a few weeks now. I'm on disc 6. One issue that I am running up against is that I am not comprehending enough of the material after using the process. Consequently, I have been using the process as best as I can but then I go back and read it at my normal 240 wpm.
Maybe I shouldn't be trying to photo read material I need for meetings or discussions taking place that night or the following day or two. Perhaps value reading using the photo reading system is just to get the general idea and concept but not really for consciously understanding names, dates or specific items. I don't know yet. I believe it can work, and if other people can do it I know I can. I'm going to keep trying.
In the mean time I feel like I'm sending my brain conflicting signals. How can I improve my photo reading skills while at the same time needing full comprehension of timely reading material.

[yagazuzy]

I ordered the deluxe version through Steve's recommendation, and I have completed it. If I were to sum up all my lessons into one word, it would be:

Trust

The course is teaching me to trust my intuition or inner mind or whatever you want to call it because it knows what will take me to my goal. Analyzing too much and second-guessing myself causes me to read a bunch of irrelevent passages or just more than will practically serve me.

Learning to use the technique well is still a challange, but I have noticed some definite results, and I hope this will be something I can apply to my school work.

When I was previewing a book, it felt like I was flipping through it randomly, and I wasn't getting too much. After photoreading the book, I super read and dipped (which turned into rapid-reading), and I felt like I could grasp the main concepts of the book effortlessly. It felt as though my eyes knew where to look. I intuitively read specific words and sentences that made the overall meaning of the book's message clear even though I only read about one sentence every 5 pages. So far, this is the only book I've met so much success with.

Seeing as I'm loaded with tons of school work, my next step was to power photoread (syntopic) 5 books for school and make a mega mind map. This has not been very easy. I over dipped on one book, and another book seemed so thick and complicated that I wasn't understanding any of it. I got overwhelmed and stopped the whole thing.

One interesting thing happened though. I wanted to find the steps for syntopic reading before I started, so I picked up the photoreading book with the thought that I was going to open it up to exactly the page that I needed. And that's exactly what happened! I open the book to the exact page that contained step 1! I think that this sort of intuition is the essence of photoreading (along with purpose, of course). It has only happen sporatically though.

Perhaps the key to connecting with intuition it to just relax. When I was photoreading that book I was very successful with, I was relaxed and open to the information that would come to me. When I tried out syntopic reading, I was so bent on extracting everything from the books because I needed to know the information to write my papers that I placed too much pressure on myself.

Learning to trust when doing my school work is going to be a real challenge I think. Relaxing my need to know everything for personal reading is one thing. Relaxing that need for school work is an entirely different ball of wax. Can I really trust myself to gather the information I need for my assignments so that I can write something intelligent? What if I miss something, and I sound like an idiot in my paper?

[Nico Kempe]

Due to forum problems I haven't been able to find this in the Leraning Strategies forum, so I'll ask it here:
what small excersises/tests can I do to get more confident?

I'm aiming at little things one could do for photoreading that can give you little successes which in turn boost your confidence which would propably help getting better at photoreading. E.g. I understand there is some dictionary excersise?

Right now I haven't had any succes with photoreading and I think trying some small tests might help get me on my way. I only have the book by the way.

[RT Wolf]

^ I keep hearing that Photoreading doesn't really work if try to "practice" it. Just do it when you need/want to. And remember, you can always regular read the book after photoreading if you'd like.

[JohnK]

Originally Posted by yagazuzy

I ordered the deluxe version through Steve's recommendation, and I have completed it. If I were to sum up all my lessons into one word, it would be:

Trust

The course is teaching me to trust my intuition or inner mind or whatever you want to call it because it knows what will take me to my goal. Analyzing too much and second-guessing myself causes me to read a bunch of irrelevent passages or just more than will practically serve me.

I agree completely. The first few sessions, I was all jammed up because I was worried that I wasn't doing it right. When I just decided that I didn't care what I got out of it, I was just going to do it anyway, I made a lot more progress. It's easier than I made it out to be.

JK

[Alex w/Learning Strategie]

For two recent post how to build it and see it working in stages and falling back into traditional reading speeds.

This will help both. There is a test you can try on page 76 of the book. Get yourself a book that's you are interested in but haven't read. 200 to 250 pages. With traditional reading, most people will take 10 to 12 hours to read a book that size some will manage it in 2. Do the 5 day test on this book. I suggest you reduce the time to 20-minutes and add a another activation layer before considering rapid reading. So it makes it a 6 day test which you could do in one day. Just take a break after each 20 minutes.

It's an effective way of seeing how comprehension is built in layers. And you get the same or even better comprehension in that 2 hours as 6 to 12 hours of traditional reading. Beginners often make the mistake of giving up too soon.

AlexK

[ScottLee]

I don't want to sound like a big testimonial in this course, but who knows? It might end up sounding that way.

I first learned PhotoReading when I was 14 years old, and since that time in, I think January of 2002, it was, I was a part of the Discussion Forums for PhotoReading and some of the other Learning Strategies Corporation courses over at their website. I was active there for a very long time, and became an avid supporter of PhotoReading. I'm still PhotoReading to this day, at age 18, after 4 years.

What can be said for PhotoReading is that the marketing for it gears everything towards speed, but this emphasis would easily be changed to something not quite so misleading if the culture was different. People care about speed, they care about getting through material. PhotoReading is not just a gateway for getting through reading material three times faster, it is an entirely different way to process information in general.

In order to be successful with PhotoReading, you've got to have something of a sense of zen, so to speak, in that you've got to throw away a lot of your old expectations about what you believe is possible, how you think your mind works, you've got to stop all procrastination as much as possible(easier said than done for a great many people). If you're going to pursue PhotoReading, it is important to understand that it is not some magic ticket to avoid giving effort to reading. On the contrary, it is designed to allow you to be dedicated, and competent in your study/learning skills.

The claim, when they say PhotoReading at 25,000WPM is different than reading at 25,000WPM. This is a bit of a misleading advertising claim, and I believe LSC has even admitted that can be misleading. Nevertheless, if you conduct yourself with the Whole Mind System correctly, you will be able to get done three times faster with any reading material.

Within my first year and a half of PhotoReading, I went through over 150 books related to general psychology, personal development, self improvement, neurology, and other general titles I just wanted to read for fun. I'm now pursuing a PhD dissertation in the field.

If anyone can attest to the power and effectiveness of PhotoReading, I am certainly one of them. =]

[gberardi]

Originally Posted by ScottLee

On the contrary, it is designed to allow you to be dedicated, and competent in your study/learning skills.

Thanks, Scott. I think that sums up what I've learned going through the course.

The claim, when they say PhotoReading at 25,000WPM is different than reading at 25,000WPM. This is a bit of a misleading advertising claim, and I believe LSC has even admitted that can be misleading.

Yep, it is stated in the book provided with the course. I don't have it with me right now, but I want to say that the line is somewhere in the second 25% of the book, on mid-to-lower half of the left page. Am I right? B-)