“Don’t subvocalize while reading as your speed of thinking is greater than your speaking speed.”
This concept is so simple, yet so effective. In fact, I had never thought about this concept until I started to practice speed reading (thanks to the man of the hour Jim Kwik). Every lesson from Jim Kwik is full of these types of small but actionable tips that you can use to boost your reading capabilities.
Before we get to the review, I wanted to throw this quote out there. Even if you decide not to enroll in the course, I hope you’ll remember this one concept so that you can save a few dozen hours of reading time during your lifetime.
Table of Contents
My background in reading
Ever since my childhood, I have loved reading. But, as I have grown older, I have found progressively less and less time for reading. And, for a book enthusiast, there is nothing more frustrating than a constantly growing “unread” list on Kindle.
So, what’s a poor bookworm to do? One of the solutions to make more time for reading is to just read faster. A lot faster. For the longest time, I was skeptical about speed reading. After all, I do not want to make something as enjoyable as reading a sport. However, according to specialists, speed reading not only makes you read faster but also massively boosts your comprehension and engagement.
After hearing this, my curiosity finally got the best of me. I decided to enroll in Super Reading by Jim Kwik and Mindvalley. The Super Reading Quest is by far the most popular and acclaimed online speed reading course, and we ranked it #1 for the very best of its kind in that review.
This time, however, I wanted to dive deep into Jim Kwik’s “Super Reading.” The Super Reading Quest promises to at least double my current WPM (words per minute) while also improving my comprehension 3x. All this in 21 days.
One of the main reasons I am so excited about this class and review is the fact that I can MEASURE the results right after finishing.
So, is speed reading the real deal, or is it yet another online personal growth fad?
Let’s find out in this detailed review of Super Reading Quest by Jim Kwik.
What is “Super Reading”?
“Super Reading” is a popular online speed reading program from Jim Kwik, the world-leading brain coach of celebrities, top entrepreneurs, and high achievers.
The curriculum of Super Reading takes 21 days to finish in full.
And, as with all the Mindvalley online courses, the curriculum uses the Quest system.
For those of you who are entirely new to Mindvalley, allow me to quickly explain how the Quests work.
Quest is a term used by Mindvalley to describe their online classes. All the Mindvalley Quests are spread into small daily chunks of content. Video lessons together with the practical exercises will usually take approximately 15 minutes of your day. Sometimes more, sometimes less, but never more than half an hour.
This innovative structure is rooted in human neurobiology and ensures that the students will fully absorb everything taught in the Mindvalley classes.
Who is the man behind "Super Reading"?
We already covered Jim Kwik and his background in our review of Superbrain, but here’s the quick rundown. Jim Kwik is:
- one of the leading memory experts in the world;
- entrepreneur;
- author;
- international speaker.
However, these awe-inspiring credentials were not the result of genetics or an academically superior background.
In fact, the reality is quite the opposite. During his schooling years, Kwik was the polar opposite of academic excellence. He even struggled with learning and absorbing the simplest of materials.
After yet another frustrating experience with young Jim, one teacher called him “a boy with a broken brain.”
Luckily, as he got older, he made it his mission to prove to the world that human intelligence is not fixed. And, he succeeded.
These days, Jim Kwik is one of the top brain coaches in the world. He is revered among the Hollywood elite, Fortune 500 CEO’s, and even top athletes. Oh, and he can supposedly read 64 000 words per hour.
Not bad for a “broken brain”, that’s for sure.
To get a better idea of Jim’s capabilities and viewpoints, check out this YouTube video where he teaches three “hacks”” for daily life:
Who is “Super Reading” best suited for?
This is a speed reading class. This probably makes you think that the class is only for people who need to read and process a lot of information fast. Well, this is not the case.
The lessons and exercises presented here will not only improve your reading skills but your overall brain plasticity as well.
This means that Super Reading Quest will also improve your critical thinking skills, memory, and even creativity.
In a nutshell, if you own a brain and want to level it up, this course will help you.
How much does “Super Reading” cost?
Starting in 2022, Super Reading is only available through a Mindvalley All Access membership. The good news is that the cost for a year of membership, at $499, is approximately the same as the previous cost for just the Super Reading course, but it comes with access to the full Mindvalley course catalogue, which is a huge value to anyone interested in personal development.
You can also buy monthly access to Mindvalley for just $99 per month, which can be a great value if you intend to complete the course in 30 days and then end your subscription. Just note that this also ends your access to the course – I have found it very valuable with an annual subscription to be able to go back to the course over time for a refresher.
If you are still unsure, I would recommend that you give the course a try – Mindvalley has a very straightforward no-questions-asked refund policy for 15 days, so you have plenty of time to tell whether the course is for you.
I also recommend you check out Jim Kwik’s free masterclass before committing to a full purchase. It’ll give you a good idea of what to expect from the full-length “Super Reading” course.
How does “Super Reading” work?
“Super Reading” uses proven, science-based methods to teach students the skill of speed reading. To give you a sample of how this process works, I will share some tidbits from the curriculum of “Speed Reading.”
Have a look at the first week’s worth of lessons on Super Reading:
These are some of the more “introductory” natured lessons throughout the entire course. But, they serve as an excellent introduction into the best practices of speed reading.
According to Kwik, everyone already possesses the mental and visual tools to be a super effective reader. So, a big part of mastering speed reading is actually UNLEARNING how you have been taught to read in school.
According to Jim Kwik, these are the 3 major obstacles to effective reading:
- Lack of education (98% of the population has never re-learned reading, they still use the reading system taught to them when they were 6 or 7 years old.)
- Lack of focus
- Regression (an unconscious habit of mentally repeating material you already read. This was a surprisingly big stumbling block for me.)
“Speed reading” will teach you how to reverse these habits one by one. And, by removing these obstacles, you will already be reading much faster than most people.
The best way to remove bad reading habits? Replacing them with new ones.
In “Super Reading”, Kwik finally upgrades the reading skills you learned when you were in the first grade. And, he never asks you to trust him blindly. He also explains the science behind everything he teaches.
The course is also supported by workbooks, practical exercises, and reading drills.
I’m sure that you are excited to see how “Super Reading” affected my personal WPM. So, let’s get a little before/after going and see how this class affected my personal reading speed.
How did “Super Reading” affect my WPM?
At the start of this class, you are asked to calculate how many words per minute you read. This is your base reading rate. Just so you know, the average reader goes through 200-250 words per minute.
At the start, my WPM was 312. This was without any prior training in speed reading. So, slightly above average. But, nothing to write home about.
This is a great chance to give you another taste of this class. One of the very first exercises Jim Kwik teaches is using a visual pacer.
A visual pacer is an object that you can trace while you read. A finger or a pen being the most common weapon of choice. You can try this trick right away. First, measure your reading speed as you normally read. After this, try visually tracing the words with a pen or a finger. You will feel as if you were sent back to the first grade. But, lo and behold, your reading speed WILL increase.
I saw my WPM go from 312 to 350 by using a visual pacer. And, this is what sold this class for me. I couldn’t wait to see what else Kwik had in store for me.
Broadly, this class can be divided into two parts. The first half of the class is about boosting your reading speed through brain exercises and practical drilling. The second part of “Super Reading” is all about boosting comprehension by various advanced memory retention techniques.
So, how many words per minute did I read a month after taking this class? Drum roll, please. I started at 312 and ended up at around 700 WPM.
[Update 16 September 2022: I have continued to practice these techniques in my everyday life since I first took the course in 2020, and even though I have not actively worked on maintaining my reading speed, my WPM has remained at about the same high level as after I completed the course]
The numbers look good, sure. But, has increased WPM affected my overall learning proficiency? Let’s see in our final verdict of “Super Reading”.
Final verdict: is “Super Reading” worth it?
All things considered, “Super Reading” is the best Mindvalley course I have taken thus far.
Jim Kwik has done a good job of boiling the concept of speed reading down to the essentials. So, not a single lecture or an exercise felt like a waste of time.
One reviewer wrote that “this class does not take time, it gives time”. This sentence perfectly captures my experience with “Super Reading”.
At first, the techniques of Kwik feel uncomfortable or even useless. But, I stuck with it. And, a month in, I have more than doubled my reading speed. Plus, I can memorize and comprehend the material much better than before.
This, however, is my personal experience. This is a class that has a well-defined goal. To make you absorb information as fast as you can. So, by no means am I advising purchasing this course “just because”. If you are not interested in accelerated learning, this course will not be life changing for you.
However, if you work with your brain and want to improve your mental skills, this course works. Kwik has been a memory expert for 28 years. By now, he has developed a proven roadmap to mastering learning. So, whatever your starting point, you will read and absorb faster after finishing this Mindvalley course.
To summarize, if you put in the effort, you get exactly what you pay for. And, this is the highest praise I can give to an online course.
If you are interested in taking this journey yourself, feel free to check out the Super Reading quest here.
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