Forums IMPORTANT: PLEASE READ PhotoReading, Memory Optimizer Book Memorization

Hi there,

I think Eliff you are greatly misunderstanding the issue.

You are saying that you want to memorise the Quran to be blessed. This is NOT a purpose. I think that you are trying to find a short cut to memorise this book (and AKB your true intention). The act of memorising this book is to struggle and sweat and spend time, a long, long time, in this act of devotion. I must also correct you - a muslim woman (or man???) does not memorise this book in 10 days and never has. There there never been such a case. It takes years and years for a Hafiz (a person who has memorised this book) to complete this arduous task, but never 10 days, 10 weeks or possibly 10 months. There are about 78,000 words in the Quran and with the grammatical and diacritical combinations, I would go further as to suggest that PR will never be able to give someone the ability to do what you are asking but in can be used a tool to help.

I think that you are trying to impress people with the goal of what you want to do (notice I say goal and not purpose). The true goal of memorising this book is not to impress people but to do this as an act of devotion to God.

I would strongly disagree with you on specifying this particular book's title - it would be sufficient to say Arabic Text. I would also disagree with you (this is a forum!) with the aim of what you are doing and suggest that PR should be used as ONE tool to achieve your goal of memorising the Quran, the purpose of which is to bring you closer to God through struggle and endurance or the correct term for these 2 words is 'jihad'.

Also, why can't religious scholars be called holy men? 'Holy' means religious and the term holy men in any part of the world is a term used, in general, to refer to religious scholars. This is not a theological forum but a discussion forum and it is irrelevant about using the exact word as long as the general meaning is indicated.

But I digress - I would advise anyone that is PRing, to think about PURPOSE and not get this mixed up with goals.

Finally, A K B !

How do you distinguish a goal from a purpose?

I have been photoreading the photoreading book at least 3 times a day for a little over 2 weeks now. So far I've only had one spontaneous experience, it was an awesome feeling. But it was only for a short while. I have read the whole book the old way, but it feels like I'm still missing something.

This is what I usually say to my inner mind when I state my purpose.

I desire the information in this book Photoreading Whole Mind System by Paul Scheele (picture the cover page) to accomplish my purpose of "Learning how to photoread by understanding the techiniques within this book and be able to apply them into my daily life. This book will shift me into a new paradigm of reading."

Is the aforementioned a goal or a purpose?

Also I notice that when I'm photoreading I adjust the speed of my chant by how fast I flip the page. Am I suppose to keep the same speed for every photoreading session?

Alex, If you don't mind, could you please elaborate more on how to make your mantra? This sounds like an intriguing technique.

If you folks don't mind, I would like to share my experience with photoreading a chapter in my textbook. I did the five day test on this chapter. Although it is not recommended for beginners to photoread educational books, I did so anyways because I had to. I would photoread the previous chapter and the following chapter atleast twice a day. I followed the five day test iterinary. When I would super read I noticed that i'm dipping into the bolded letters which are the key definitions. I don't know if I was doing it right because it was the bolded text that was the one popping up. When I tried skittering I would read the first sentence and move my eyes everywhere on the paragraph, it was weird but for some reason i was understanding the paragraph. But not fully, it as if my mind was close to understanding the content but it felt really unorganized. This would work on some paragraphs and some not. I reviewed my trigger words after every session. Nothing was coming up though, but I still answered them and guess what they meant. I checked my answers later and realized that most of my answers were correct. There were some that were close but just didn't hit the spot. I don't really know if it was the photoreading system that answered those trigger words correctly or just my logic.

I rapid read the sections I wasn't certain of, the last section of the chapter, which I didn't have enough time to super read and skitter. I noticed rapid reading was easier it felt like I read the section already. After rapid reading I notice that this section didn't have anything to do with my purpose.

As I'am writing this i have to realized that i have met my purpose. My only doubt is did the photoreading work or was it just me going through the chapter multiple of times?

I apologize for the long story, I just wanted to share and hopefully get some feedback.

Thanks,
Braxton

Dear Braxton,

What were your questions when you super read and dipped?Mind probe is Pivotal for photo reading.See the entire idea of photo reading and the steps are balanced on the mind probing questions.The first 3 steps expose you to the text the other 2 steps give you comprehension.Say ,imagine a see saw on the right is photo reading and on the left is comprehension.The point of balance or a pivot point is your purpose and questions.Ask questions either from your trigger words or by post viewing .For example you can start with one chapter on making photo reading a part of your daily life.Your question may be ---how do i use it on newspaper?or for some other chapter it may be on what are the steps of syntopic reading?What is mind mapping all about?.Do you own the classic course.If you do, please read through the material given.Paul talks about what questions do to you when you read.Questions involve your analytical mind and promotes forward thinking,and by going back to the book you find answers,so it forms a loop.This is how your comprehension grows.Once you do this ,try reading the normal way and try reading the book by the 5 steps of photoreading,you will observe the difference.What i was also not doing until now is that i was avoiding mind probe.Mind probe is critical.It will help you unleash all the information absorbed by the photoreading step.If you have the classic course,read the manual Paul talks about questions and especially on 4 stages of reading.So ask your self questions, start of with 3 or even 1 and see how quickly you will find answers.Ask questions that will help you with your purpose.Your purpose is like a filter it will help you focus on what you want from the book.As you activate you have to refine it and then you wil know what the book will really offer.you can then choose to continue or not.Enquiry is pivotal.Hope this helps.
Regards,
Adarsh

Hi Braxton,

I wish you good luck with your reading. I'm struggling with activation and will persevere.

With regards to your question on the difference between goal and purpose - this link, I hope, should explain or rather, explain better than I could.

http://www.differencebetween.net/miscellaneous/difference-between-purpose-and-goal/

Maz

Thanks for the site Maz. It really got me pondering. My purpose is leaning more towards a goal according to the site, but in the book Paul mention something about visualizing the outcome, doesn't this contradict what is said on the site?

Thanks for the tips Adarsh. I have the Photoreading whole mind system version 3 book. I also have some of the paraliminals. I've been listening to Personal Genius everyday. I have read the whole book the old way and have photoread it multiple times. I did the five day test on chapter 2 of my Psychology textbook. I post viewed and mind probed on day 2, as instructed. I just realized that they wanted me to mind probe on day 3 and day 4 as well. When I was mind probing though, I guess on my answers about the trigger words. I got most of them correct but it wasn't one of those aha moments; I used logic to answer them. How do you go about activating a chapter on a textbook which contains a lot of important materials?

I've only had 2 spontaneous activation and it was only for a short moment and I haven't had any luck with manual activation. I haven't given up and I'm willing to do what ever it takes to learn this skill. It's just a little discouraging when things doesn't work out as plan. I feel like I'm close to learning this skill and that I'm just missing one piece of a puzzle that connects everything together.

Dear Braxton,
Im sharing what im practicing ,so dont treat this as advice as im no expert at the same time i have the joy of sharing my experiences.THe more i take time to explain the ideas it gets crystalised in me and i see that i use my skills better that way.So thats the real joy im in this forum for and im picking up related articles where im building my skill.Do read on my friend...
My idea for you:Notice it,Own it ,Play with it and Stay with it.
NOPS
Photo read Natural Brilliance.
Use the concept of release,notice ,respond and witness.
Read 2 important articles on photoreading by Paul Scheele in the 3rd edition of the photo reading book.
1. Written after Paul introduces mind mapping.An article on how our mind creates memory
2.The spirit behind Photo reading.He talks about a pioneer on Accelerative learning and how paul has used the same model to design photo reading.
It reinforces what you can expect by photo reading and the principles it is structured on.
Alex advised me dont worry about spontaneous activation,thats a good advice.Just be with the process and keep improving your comprehension so that you keep applying the system.
Make small course corrections---->just as Paul advices in natural Brilliance on how to come out of the spin!!!.If you dont have natural brilliance its worth buying.
I think every ones experience on photoreading is unique so you will not get a ready made model on what kind of results you should expect.

I have set up the game in the following way:
"If i am getting the spirit of the book very fast---then im improving my skill"

so my rules of the game is simple,i dont bother if i get down to normal reading at times, and i also observe 2 to 3 super reading sessions of any book i have photo read along with the mind probe questions and mind maps...i observe that i have chunked down the whole book into ideas that supports my purpose...im enjoying it .

The beauty of the process is chunking the whole book into a group of ideas that support a main idea and all these ideas are supporting my purpose.My questions either build or reinforce this structure i have created about my book!!!


Paul also talks about studying with the whole mind in the 3rd edition of the Photoreading book.Use it its wonderful and there are many suggestions by Alex in the forum...activate the text chapter wise ,build on,chapter wise!!!And if it contains lot of important material what is your purpose...how and what level do you want to use the concepts ,get clear if you get a purpose read everything...Photo reading complements regular reading,i believe its not an escape route ,but what happens is you condition your brain to be super effective with written text.Have you built on a structure of an idea in a book the way paul explains with the example of a train...say you are looking out for an answer for a question ,once you find the relevant passage ,build the structure while super reading,what is the main arguement,what are the supportive ideas,what is the authors style of explaining,by doing this on all other ideas pertaining to your purpose you build a structure and easily build comprehension.Do this conciously until it becomes second nature.
Hope this helps too.

Have a nice Day,

Regards,

Adarsh

Hi there,

I'm sorry but I don't have the book to hand and I wish I had.

But I also like to think of as this - I have a purpose, an end in mind and I use goals to achieve that purpose. So if I want to visualise that purpose I realise that sometimes it is very difficult to do this because a purpose is usually intangible. SO I use goals as a way of visualising that purpose but I always have the 'end in mind' and that is my purpose. As an example, let me say that I have a purpose to, say, help the unfortunate. This is a difficult thing to measure and so I use goals and indicators to help me do this. For example, I will give to charity, I will do voluntary work x times per week, I will help an old lady (or man) across the road, etc. All of these goals are tangible and help me to achieve my purpose. So I can hopefully visualise my purpose "to help" through these tangible actions.

Another example - I want to teach. Is this a goal or a purpose? Before I answer, I can think of it as this. I see knowledge as a wonderful thing. I love reading. I love explaining things and watching 'the penny drop' when someone suddenly understands something. I love imparting knowledge. Therefore I think I will study subjects XYZ and be accepted as a teacher, and get a job as a teacher, and teach people whatever, so that I am able to impart knowledge. Therefore, is "I want to teach!" a goal or a purpose? I believe it to be a goal. The purpose, FOR ME, would be to impart knowledge and feel happy when people understand something etc... The former can be measured, the latter is very difficult to be measured (but it can be recognised very easily by the individual whose purpose it is).

I hope that I have explained what I believe to be the difference or at the very least, given you something more to think about, so that you can try and see that there is a difference, however small, between goal and purpose.

Also, if you think about it, someone sitting an exam has passing that exam as a goal or one of their goals, but for each individual, there is a (PERSONAL) purpose.

Purpose is more individual whereas goals are usually not.


Maz

BraxtonJr,

I need to leave explaining my mantra for another time. Perhaps start a new thread for me. Makes it easier for everyone to find later.

Your comment about using logic to find answers is interesting. How did you know you knew it or not before PhotoReading the book? I find that one of the major challenges. I have been fortunate in having a brilliant before and after experience. It was in hindsight that I realised just how challenging it is to tag and prove how we acquired our knowledge. Simply, we cannot.

There was never a moment when we knew how we understood that 2+2=4 and it isn't just an idea. Or the moment that NO! became a word that meant "you might think I'm going to bed but I'm not." Around the age of two... think about it. How did you work that out?

Have you ever noticed that no one can explain how you stand up and walk yet we figured it out, or riding a bike or skates? Sure some things we can be taught to a degree yet it's something we aren't conscious of that finally figures it out.

So logic? Where did it come from? Can you guarantee it wasn't there before?

Like I mentioned I has a unique before and after experience and I didn't recognise it at the time. It was only the next day that I remembered the before.

Back in 2002 someone asked me to help them with their homework assignment. Scanned a copy of the instructions from the teacher and said, "What does the teacher want to know from me?"

I read the assignment and my mind screamed, no way, No I'm not doing this. I left school ages ago I don't have a pinky clue what this assignment is about. And back out the door it did.

"Um, you know I have a dinner appointment and I haven't got the time for this right now. I've got a couple of books on the subject someone left behind, I'll PhotoRead those and get back to you about it."

So there you have it I freaked and didn't have a clue how to address the question, no clue what the teacher wanted and lucky I did have a dinner date to meet my brother for his birthday dinner. Phew.

I got back and grabbed a book from the bookshelf that seemed to fit the subject. Put the book next to me at the computer and waited for my friend to get back to me and throw some questions at me (mind probing questions don't only have to come from you so textbooks often have good questions thrown in.)

Four hours later it was midnight and my friend decided it's too late to start on the assignment which was due that day. Fine by me. After finding out I was waiting for him the last four hours he asked, so what did the teacher want. I looked at the question again and started writing. Answering a couple of minor questions but mostly the ideas the teacher wanted covered from the assignment. In 40 minutes I provided enough information for him to write the 1000 word essay. I learned it scored 17 out of 20 he lost marks for not having the format the teacher instructed but content was brilliant. (no way I wrote the 1000 words in MSN for him he had to elaborate and went the opposite direction I would have taken.)

It wasn't until the following day I noticed the before and after snap shot of my experience. It seemed like I was answering questions from my personal knowledge base. And I was. It just wasn't there before I PhotoRead the book. To me my answers seemed logical and to boot. I never did open that book again. I just started answering.

What I'm saying is, don't knock it. Your logic is yours, how you acquired it? Who knows.

Purpose versed Goals

Goal is a destination or ultimate outcome. Usually takes some actions and time to get there.

Purpose is the method and why you chose that way to get there. The choice of actions and directions you'll take in order to get to your goal.

For example a goal/destination to get to Timbuktu.

Purpose is why do you want to get there? You might also have some sub goals along the way to see some points of interest. Seeing those points of interest become part of your purpose. What route will you take to satisfy those whys to reach the sub goals and then the ultimate goal?

So your ultimate goal might be to be a teacher.

Your purpose, So that I can teach... [what it is you want to teach] And since you cannot jump from being a teacher of significance from one day to the next there are going to be sub goals [learn x to get qualifications, do z for experience for example] which are part of the greater purpose and probably have a purpose.

Your purpose is simply your reason why you are doing something this way instead of that to reach your goal.

Alex

Would OM'ing be a good idea while photoreading?

If that is a chant you prefer Magickdoggie. I prefer to chant my reason for PhotoReading as it keeps my mind on the purpose. I feel that OM'ing could be disadvantaged in that it's purpose is to empty the mind of external and yet it has potential because it connects one with the all that is.

Give it a go and see what happens. If after a few books you find it helps great, your trigger works for you. If it doesn't go back to what is taught because we know that works. Then explore again.

Alex