How much are you worth?  If I could show you a way to increase your value (and therefore, your worth) by over 20% would you use it?

An effective way to improve your worth is to improve your reading skills.  Most people do not read at speeds of 1,200 wpm (words per minute), as Bill Clinton does.  

The average adult reads at a rate of less than 250 wpm.  Using the tips I recommend below, you can easily double that speed.  Considering most people in clerical and executive positions spend at least 1/3 of their day reading (2.6 hours), then this improvement in reading will result in an increased value to your income potential:

You can significantly improve your reading skills by utilizing the following techniques:

1.  Stop reading one word at a time.  Instead, read entire sentences or several words at a time - joining words is one way to quickly improve our reading skill.

   Groupings help:  Our reading skill.  instead of reading as our (pause), reading (pause), skill (pause), we read as "our reading skill."

2.  Be an active reader.  Look for ideas, rather than individual words.  Read material more rapidly (especially if newspaper or business journal).  This does not apply as much to leisure reading, such as a classic book.

3.  Avoid lingering or re-reading text.  Going back over text we've read is the #1 way we burn time when reading.  If this habit is hard to break, hold another paper, or index card, over what you've read.

4.  Skim material first, then read by paragraph.  In skimming, if anything looks simple to grasp, we can limit reading time, and, by reading the key message of each paragraph (often contained in first sentence) we may grasp the meaning and move on.  

5.  Review.  What did we just read?  We should understand:  topic, information, opinions - the writers and ours in reading it, and differentiation - what sets it apart?  

The questions to ask ourselves are:

 

What did I learn?

What was it about?

How/What did they think?

How/What do I think?

Why does it matter?

Why not improve our reading skills?  Historically, those with the best command of their language rise to the peak in their profession.  Reading is one way to master those skills.

Scott Andrews is CEO and Founder of AspireNow (www.AspireNow.com), a leading business productivity and personal development firm based in California. AspireNow helps organizations launch new products and services, maximize sales, and innovatively change businesses through  cutting-edge and empowering business models and processes. For more information, contact Scott@AspireNow.com, or visit http://www.AspireNow.com.

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