Ckerins posted this:
I first discovered PhotoReading through Win Wenger's book _The Einstein Factor_. About the same time that I discovered Dr. Wenger's book I had also seen the movie "Phenomenon" starring John Travolta. One of the experiences of the main character in the movie is a phenomenal increase in reading speed and retention, as well as access to previously subconscious material. This all seemed to dovetail nicely with my desire to accelerate learning and increase my overall intelligence. At the same time as all this I was also pursuing graduate studies in physics, working full time as a software engineer, and studying the martial arts - so there was a pressing need to be able to absorb more material in less time with greater comprehension and retention.
I called Learning Strategies and ordered a copy of the PhotoReading book. After reading through the book and playing with the system a little bit, I started using it to help in my studies at school. I found that I was getting my studying done in less time - no more nights until 1:00 AM trying to solve problems. The first powerful experience I had with PhotoReading was a case of spontaneous activation, where during an exam (I can no longer recall whether it was the final or the midterm) I looked at the problems in the exam booklet and was struck by the fact that this was material not covered in class or the assigned reading material - it was an extension of stuff we were doing, but only tangentially. I remembered what was written about taking tests with the whole mind in Mr. Scheele's book, closed my eyes, relaxed and then BOOM! a flood of information coursed through my mind and I could barely keep up as I furiously wrote everything that was coming to me into my exam booklet. I finished the test in 30-45 minutes and left - the next person to leave didn't finish until 2 1/2 hours into the exam. I got a 95% on the exam. I think this was a fortuitous series of events that culminated in a case of spontaneous activation for me - PhotoReading all of the books in math and physics, the need triggered by the exam, foundational knowledge of math and physics, the ability to relax and the ability to let go briefly to access the information.
After that I was hot to master the system in a more reliable manner. I ordered the home study course and diligently worked through the materials provided and practiced regularly. I found that I started putting too much pressure on myself to function and starting getting "PhotoReading performance anxiety" - I couldn't activate things effectively, I wanted instantaneous knowledge of all of the material that I PhotoRead, rather than letting comprehension build in layers, etc. I started to notice, however, that materials that I PhotoRead that I had a strong purpose in learning from, but not an urgent need to know immediately, became easier and easier to activate. I also discovered that if I moved away from primarily verbal techniques of activation and played with mind mapping, doodling, talking it out, etc. I got better results.
About this time I figured that I was getting results from the system, but that I was missing some core chunk of information that would allow me to really unlock it and shoot forward, so I signed up for the live seminar. The seminar helped to solidify what I learned from the book and home study course, as well as offered insights that I really hadn't thought of (such as - just what are you looking to get out of what you're reading? Perfect knowledge of the text? Global understanding of the concepts? Specific information? etc.) So, armed with new enthusiasm and courage I went forth and PhotoRead everything I could get my hands on, activating most of the books when I had time. Soon, certain patterns began to emerge for me - the more that I trusted myself and my intuition, the faster I went through the material and the more that I retained. When I really slowed down and would take an hour or two to activate a relatively short book (250 pgs), I found that I really wasn't getting anything out of the book that I wouldn't have gotten had I spent only 20-30 minutes activating. The better defined my goals were and the more specific the purpose in reading, the more I actually got out of the book. The more I was willing to make multiple passes and delay instant "understanding" of the text, the quicker I actually came to understand what it was I was activating - even though the initial passes left me frustrated because I wanted to know immediately what I was activating. Finally, the more I tried to talk to somebody else about what I PhotoRead, the more powerfully the information became locked into my mind.
I am at the point now where I can apply the system to a book automatically, and the activation time for a book, depending on my previous familiarity with the subject matter, complexity of the text, target audience of the text, etc. is pretty short - usually around 15 minutes for a 250 page book. This time includes mind probing, super reading and dipping, and mind mapping.
I haven't touched on things like the dictionary game, direct learning, or other things tangential to the main PhotoReading procedure here. If anybody's interested, I can. The best advice that I can give to beginning PhotoReaders is to simply play with the system and notice what works for you. What it's really all about is learning how your own mind works and how to tap into the abilities that you might not have been aware that you have - peripheral awareness, preconscious processing, natural techniques of learning (from whole to parts, in layers, etc.), different modes of internal (and external) representation of information that you are learning, etc. It doesn't hurt to push the envelop a little when you're playing with the system, and I think it's vitally important to acknowledge when you do enjoy success with the techniques presented - the more successes you allow yourself to be aware of and enjoy, the more you will have I think. I hope that this is useful. Feel free to email me if you want at any time - I do respond to emails.
Here's how: