Adarsh
Thank You. And well done. And you've definitely hit the nail on the head. You need to "prepare" That's where you connect with your purpose. understand your purpose and asking questions of the author makes activation come alive.
do you need it? Why do you need it?and what do you need from it?
then chapter wise do you mind probe?what is the chapter about?how many ideas has the author covered here?how does he cover or substantiate the ideas with?what arguments does he pose?on particular ideas you may decide to spend more time on ...so you may think further.
Those are some excellent examples that help you connect with your purpose as well. Once you have your purpose it's a choice whether you decide to look for the authors train of thoughts (hit look for the train in the PhotoReading book for more info)
Or... Ask the 6 precision questions. The 6 Ws.
Thank you very much Alex..! your replies are life saver..
Many previous posts on the forum made me wonder, why do many beginner PhotoReaders get tough time despite following the system correctly?
Oh that's too easy. Because we as humans are essentially lazy and would rather find a short cut or easier way. Because the steps seem too many things to think of and remember.
It's like first learning to drive, all the things you had to think of when you get behind the wheel. If it wasn't necessary to getting a drivers license, more people would be avoiding the steps there as well. However if you need a license to drive sooner or later you're going to follow those basic steps and then, with experience, you'll be like a pro, and seem to skip the steps. SEEM to, you still essentially follow them, are aware of them.
That said, even in learning to drive there are some who take take longer to get their license because they like to spend more time looking for the easier, faster way [they put a surprising about of energy into that]. Mentally doing everything type of research to understand the fastest way to learn and paradoxically, take way, way, way longer than if they "Just Do It."
and, why the system later starts working for them when they keep on doing it? Is this a habit or a new skill that takes time to learn and get used to?
Usually they just include the steps they avoided because it seemed too much work. They stopped skimping. It's one of the reasons why people in my seminars get it faster than those going on their own. I don't let them skimp on the important step which is Step one. Because that step seems all too easy and familiar newbies tend to gloss over that one. Yet if really look at and do the Star of Wonder exercise, you learn it's important not to take what you think you know for granted.
Usually people get it when they just give up and start over and pay attention to all the stes.
And, people who have got PhotoReading to work for them in just a couple of days, do they possess 'PhotoRead-friendly' traits to get this system work without any/much conflict?
Or learned it in the 2 hours it took to read the PhotoReading book? Like me?
We didn't care.
I didn't glorify the system or expect magic. I was just plain curious if something like this worked. So after reading the PhotoReading book as explained on the front cover. I thought so all the other books don't have Einstein telling me the important bits I should read. So the PhotoReading system is the way to "put Einstein in those books for me." Cool I though.
Then I just PhotoRead the PhotoReading book. Didn't get much into the chant, just said to myself, so this is PhotoReading, just flipping the pages as I see the pages? Interesting.
Then I went to a book shop and just playfully experimented with what I learned. I figured I haven't done the course yet so I had no expectations, Just applied what I understood from reading with Einstein and (I didn't know it at the time, my preconscious processor, working with what I PhotoRead). And walked out of the bookshop thinking now that was cool. I saved myself money on that book, from PhotoReading it I gathered it was an advertising book not a self help book really. And to think I could have been reading books like that for the last 30 years. I went into shock and nearly started crying in the middle of the shopping centre. All that time and money I wasted and I just got everything I needed from a book in 5 minutes?
Brings me to another paradox. The realisation I wasted so much time in my life "slow reading" when I could have been doing it the PhotoReading system way was not a happy blow to my ego. I first had to forgive myself for not learning of the system first. And I'm pretty sure everyone has a bit of self-preservation and wants to avoid feeling like a fool. So in that way it was almost easier not to do the course and forget about the system. (Yep I almost did that too. Took me 2 weeks to get over the guilt of lost time and money from reading the old way to allow myself to let the system work as I knew it could because I chose not to ignore my very first successes within 20 minutes of PhotoReading the PhotoReading book and only having spent 2 hours reading a book which normally would have taken me 6 or 7 hours to read.)
I am re-reading the chapter on activation again. The phenomenon of 'activation' seems very unearthly and enigmatic to me...can a couple of trigger words make comprehension of an entire paragraph/idea come alive!?
And if you really think about it. Traditional reading is much the same, an enigma. Why do some books come alive and others feel like moving through mud that takes off your Wellingtons?
And the answer lies in the readers curiosity or affinity with the subject the author is discussing.
The trigger words, and questions in tandem with your purpose are the map that helps you to avoid the muddy bog of reading. That's why it's important not to skip prepare and take the 6 or so minutes to Postview with a sheet of paper so you can record your trigger words and questions for the author.
Just thinking of this gives me butterflies in my stomach. But then at times it feels, naah!!..it can't possibly be that powerful!.. maximum you may get is a sense of familiarity and a general idea, that's it!
When you activate and I mean activate with purpose and do enough layers, you can enjoy better comprehension than with traditional reading and still have only spent 1/3 the time with the book from traditiona1 reading.
Since most people never really look at how much time it actually takes to traditionally read a book they don't realise the beginner short changes themselves by not applying enough layers.
Assuming average reading speed I recommend beginners apply 6 x 20 activation layers to a 200 to 250 page book, before they resort to rapid reading the book from beginning to end. {And consider adding another 20 minute activation layer for each additional 80 pages) Do that for 5 to 10 books, you'll probably start discovering you are getting all you need without rapid reading and even start cutting down the number of activation layers.
Why?
1. You develop your superreading and dipping and skittering skills.
• It comes in handy if you can apply it to stuff you consider a quick read or too short to PhotoRead first.
2. It improves your activation skills in the fastest way.
• It's actually the shortcut everyone is looking for. Getting the system
• you're building the body mind muscle for superreading and dipping and skittering.
Yes instead of spending say 6 to 12 hours with a book the beginner is already cutting it down to 2.
The thing to remember the first activation layer can be boggy. It can be like it makes no sense, you're getting nothing. Persist. N.O.P.S (See the PhotoReading book on the topic.) Add a second, third and fourth layer. Then you'll see you were getting it all along. And if your not starting to see progress...
Check your purposeDoes this sentence in the book ''during activation you are attracted to text relevant to your purpose'' also imply that, if we are interested in each and every word about the book, then each word should attract our attention? is it so?
Nope, each. word. on. it's. own. has. little. meaning. in. this. sentence. The words with more meaning attract your attention.
Words on a page are just a group of words. You give it meaning by what you read into it.
Don't get caught up analysing, everything you read, everything I say. Analysis paralysis is what stops progress.
In superreading, dipping, skittering, does it mean that; what we read/see/hover eyes over, only gets alive and comes into conscious memory and what we do not touch, doesn't come up from our other-than conscious mind?
Lets get one thing straight. You've PhotoRead the text before you activate it right? So none of the words disappeared since you've PhotoRead it. So it's
already in your memory. What you're doing when activating is zeroing in to bring to
conscious comprehension the information that, you, working with your preconscious processor would would like to be aware of. You're pulling it up to create a conscious memory.
Again it comes alive because of what you put into it, in order to take something out of it. And what you need to put into it is simply .... a purpose. Give it a reason to come alive for you with a purpose.
Alex
