speed reading tips for attorneys

Katya , 02-21-2016

Speed Reading is a skill which attorneys avoid learning. They strongly believe that the increase in speed comes at an expense of understanding. If that is also your concern, try one of these techniques.

(A) Skim contracts and other legally-binding material twice before you read them.

Skim the first time to identify the negatives; this is because people often read negatives as positives (put a pencil check in the margins next to the negative words, such as don’t, can’t, won’t, no, and not). When you just look for the negatives, they’ll tend to jump out at you. Skim a second time to get the gist of the material, to see what the text covers, and how the various sections relate to each other. And then read at whatever speed you need to. You might find that when you’re already familiar with the terminology, concepts, and legal statutes, you naturally read faster.

(B) Skim a second time to get the gist of the material, to see what the text covers, and how the various sections relate to each other. And then read at whatever speed you need to. You might find that when you’re already familiar with the terminology, concepts, and legal statutes, you naturally read faster.

(C) Start jotting them down on a piece of paper as you are previewing. I like mind mapping on paper. I turn the notebook to landscape layout and draw away.

(D) To condition yourself to move faster on the page, set some time limits for yourself and skim large amounts of material. Use some fun reading for practice, then go back and read it after skimming.

After you practice skimming before reading for 10 -14 days, you can switch to the more meaningful material. Then when you return to your important reading, you still might not read at lightning speed, but you’ll probably read a little faster than before, and by following the guidelines above, you’ll be a more effective reader.