4 Ways To Improve Your Reading Speed And Focus

How can I stay focused and be fast when reading?

Dami Lare
ILLUMINATION
3 min readMay 21, 2022

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Photo by Seven Shooter on Unsplash

Focus is an important aspect of being a rapid reader. If you can improve your focus, you’ll be able to read faster and with greater comprehension. You’ll be more effective in your academic or professional career if you can improve your attention.
Here are four suggestions for improving your reading focus.

1. When reading, use your hand to guide your eyes.
Your eyes are drawn to movement by nature. Your eyes will naturally follow your hand as you create motion on the paper. Try moving your hand (or a pen) from left to right in a fluid motion. Make necessary adjustments. It’s either too slow or too fast.

It’s simply because you’re not used to reading with your hand that it feels strange at first. It will feel more natural the more you do it.

2. Remove Distracting Factors
If you are easily distracted when reading, you must determine which distractions can be removed. Diversions beyond your control will always exist, but we’re more concerned with distractions within your power.

If your smartphone starts ringing while you’re reading, for example, this is a distraction that you can regulate and eliminate. Simply turn off your phone for the duration of your reading session.

If you find yourself constantly checking your email or Facebook,
If you want to read while using your computer, try turning it off.
If you’re continually interrupted when reading, you might want to try reading somewhere else.
All of these are distractions that can be managed. We should eliminate them if they can be controlled to obtain a higher degree of focus when reading.

3. While reading, listen to music.
Have you ever tried reading while listening to music? It’s an excellent approach to aid concentration, especially when reading.

It depends on the genre of music you’re listening to, though. Classical music is usually recommended for reading to help you concentrate. Ensure that the music is instrumental (without lyrics).

4. Take A Break
If you’re going to be reading for an hour or more, you should take some breaks. Your break doesn’t need to be particularly long. If you like, it can be as short as 30 seconds.

Taking a little break from reading will allow you to gather your thoughts. If you like, you can utilize the break to take notes or simply glance away from the page.

You’ll feel refreshed when you resume reading since it will feel like you’ve just begun. You’ll notice a higher degree of focus if you read in 10–15 minute bursts with small rests in between than if you read for an hour straight with no breaks.

Your reading speed is irrelevant if you are not focused.
If you want to enhance your concentration, read with your hands, remove distractions, listen to music, and take breaks. These are four basic suggestions for improving your reading concentration.

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Dami Lare
ILLUMINATION

I'm a voracious reader and a passionate writer who enjoys sharing for the goal of personal development.