Abby Marks Beale – Supercharge your reading speed and comprehension

Would you believe me if I told you it’s possible to permanently improve your reading speed by at least 20% in only a few days? I just did this with the help of a great book by Abby Marks-Beale called “10 days to Faster Reading”. I can tell you that, not only is it possible, but it’s fairly easy to do and there is virtually no loss of comprehension in your reading.

The positive impact this has made to my daily life has been significant to say the least. (see below how you can get the first two chapters for free!)

Let’s face it – most of us haven’t really given much thought to our reading, yet it’s something we do every single day. For many of us it’s our way of life and we rely on being able to identify and process vast amounts of information to make a living. Whether you are studying for an exam, doing research for work, writing a report or just kicking back with a good book, improving your reading speed can make a huge difference in your life.

Abby’s book “10 days to faster reading” was introduced to me through Josh Kaufman’s Personal MBA website – where it is 1^st on his list of must-read books. When I started the book I was reading English (not my first language) at about 300 words per minute (pretty average, I know!) After completing the first few chapters I was up to 340wpm with no loss in comprehension, and my final reading speed settled in at around 360wpm. You may already read faster than this, but nonetheless I still think it’s a very respectable achievement – especially from a book that is easy to follow and only costs $10 on Amazon.

There are a number of simple (yet very effective) techniques we can apply to our reading to ensure we get the most value from our time. This is why I simply had to get Abby on the phone and learn these secrets directly from her. She obviously knows what she’s talking about!

In this interview you will learn:

• The common mistakes we make as readers and how to avoid them –passive regression, poor comprehension, subvocalisation… it’s all in there
• Detailed techniques for improving comprehension and speed, especially with dense, technical content you are not familiar with
• How to stop your mind wandering when you read once and for all
• A simple exercise for your eyes which will supercharge your reading speed
• How to effectively prepare for meetings that require a lot of pre-reading
• How to be “in the know” yet waste little time reading news articles
• Much, much more…

I’m also very excited to share with you an exclusive release of the book just for Nicheinterview subscribers. Abby was very kind to allow me exclusive rights to the first 2 chapters of this book and now I’m giving it away to say thanks for your support. All you have to do is:

1. Follow me on twitter
2. Join the nicheinterview mailing list

You’ll be on your way to faster reading in no time!

Big thanks to Abby for the chat and her generosity with the eBook – I’m sure anyone listening to this interview will rev up their reading speed for sure!

Resources mentioned in the interview:

• 10 Days to Faster Reading – Abby Marks-Beale
• Rev It up Reading – Abby’s professional 9-part reading course that shows you how you can double or even triple your reading speed. I haven’t completed this course yet, but if Abby’s book is anything to go by then I’m sure this will be worth every penny.
• Link to Josh Kaufman’s reading list (highly recommended) – http://personalmba.com/best-business-books/
• Online speed reading software - www.spreeder.com

Thanks for listening,

Jurgen

Jenn Morris – Lessons from an olympic gold medalist

Before I begin this post, I wanted to share with you a quote from Theodore Roosevelt that Jenn mentions in our interview. Even if you don’t listen to the whole conversation, at least take a minute right now and think about these words:

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again, because there is no effort without error and shortcoming; but who does actually strive to do the deeds; who knows great enthusiasms, the great devotions; who spends himself in a worthy cause; who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly, so that his place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who neither know victory nor defeat.” -Theodore Roosevelt

It’s very easy to criticize but it’s much more difficult to get out there and challenge yourself despite the odds, risks and your internal fears. I know it sounds cliché but those of you who’ve done this will know it is absolutely 100% spot on and that the journey is much more rewarding than the destination. Read that quote again, then continue below to hear some inspiring thoughts from Jenn.

We often look at successful sportspeople and think they must be really ‘lucky’ to have the talent to do what they do. We tell ourselves “surely they were born that way”, but we seldom think about the blood, sweat and tears involved behind the scenes; countless hours of intense training and the collective efforts from all those involved in the team, the game and the industry. In sport the destination (win/loss) is what gets measured and publicized, and for most that’s where we leave it. However, it’s only when we look at the process that we understand the hard work, dedication, collaboration and personal drive required for achievement. I believe it is their journey where we can take out the most valuable insights and lessons to apply in our own personal and business lives.

In this interview you will hear the fascinating insights from someone that has won 2 Olympic gold medals and is today recognised as a top leader in her field of business – Jennifer Morris.

So, who is Jennifer Morris?

Jenn was a star athlete in Australia’s national hockey team – the “Hockeyroos” – for over 10 years. She has 2 Olympic gold medals under her belt, has received the Order of Australia medal and is currently working as a Director in the world’s largest professional services firm, Deloitte. In addition to her duties she also sits on a number of boards and is a sought-after public speaker with many big-name clients.

In this interview with Jenn we talk about what it takes to be a professional athlete and what’s involved behind the scenes. You will hear how “a girl from a small country town” came to represent Australia twice in the Olympic games, and what it takes to devote your life to sport, the challenges it presents and opportunities it provides.

Jenn also shares her insights into the nexus between sport and business and what you can learn from the hockey field to build, inspire and motivate a winning team.

You will learn how to develop a sense of responsibility, belonging, commitment and discipline to achieve as a group, how traditional corporate hierarchies can be a barrier to innovation and why it is essential to foster a culture where all members of the team are comfortable to contribute.

On the face of it there are many parallels between sport and business:

• Teamwork essential
• Performance culture
• Split-second decision making
• Governed by rules and constraints
• Measured on outcomes.

What I didn’t realise was how much we can learn about building a business by looking closer at the team dynamics and culture of a sporting team. If you are trying to build a business that embodies knowledge sharing, continuous improvement, collaboration and collective achievement then you absolutely have to put aside 40 minutes and listen to what Jenn has to say.

I also get my nerd on and ask Jenn to explain some concepts us consultants often throw around such as “operating model design” and what she enjoys about her role at Deloitte.

My key takeaways are as follows:

• Be humble
• Stay curious
• Have a genuine interest in those around you and be open to learning from everyone
• Challenge yourself at all times and never give up
• It’s better to fail and learn than not to try at all
• Learn to recognise opportunities and grab them when you can
• Life is short, don’t hold back!

I want to thank Jenn for the very inspiring  conversation, and I hope that everyone listening to this interview will take away some thoughts to help them live better, stronger and with more life than ever before.

Jurgen

References discussed:

Management Consulting: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Management_consulting

Deloitte Centre for Collective Leadership – “As One”: https://www.asone.org/asone/

Theodore Roosevelt speech: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Citizenship_in_a_Republic

Australian rules football – “Footy”: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Australian_rules_football

Josh Kaufman – Is an MBA worth it?

Is an MBA on your agenda? Don’t commit before you’ve listened to this interview with Josh Kaufman, founder of the PersonalMBA.com.

MBA Programs come in a wide variety of flavours, and it’s often difficult to assess whether or not it’s worth pursuing them (especially due to the potentially large financial investment required to do so). Do they pay off? Where should you go? Is it worth the money?

Josh was faced with these questions as he approached his second year at Proctor and Gamble (P&G) in their graduate program. His peers were experienced and possessed MBAs from the top 15 programs in the country, whilst he himself had entered the organisation through a cooperative education program half-way through University. He felt that he needed to obtain the same knowledge they appeared to have - did he need an MBA to be successful? He did extensive research and his findings disagreed. When considering the cost (and earning potential afterwards) it simply did not make good financial sense to pursue the program. There was no return on investment in his particular situation.

His parents were heavily involved in academic fields – his dad being a science teacher and his mom a librarian. It thus makes sense that Josh has a passion for reading, immersing himself in books on a variety of topics from a young age.

So he started reading.

Estimates are that there are roughly 11’000 business books published every year. That’s ~30 per day. If each book is 150 pages, that’s 4500 pages of business content published per day (a stack of paper as high as your knee).

It seems like an impossible task to sift through that much content and extract meaning from it, but for the last 6 years Josh has made it his commitment to try and identify the essential sources of business knowledge that yield the highest return on the time you invest. He founded the PersonalMBA.com to share his journey with the world.

The idea is simple – apply Pareto’s law (80/20 Rule) and identify the resources out there that provide you the maximum return on invested time and teach you almost everything you need to know to be proficient in a variety of business subjects.

In short, the PersonalMBA aims to:

1. Isolate the essential principles that every working business person should know about what businesses are, and how they work
2. Distill the thousands of resources out there into a manageable library of content that focuses on the essential principles (with resources that are EFFECTIVE at teaching).

It is essentially a carefully-prepared reading list (with a social network attached) that contains the essential business books that actually deliver on their promise. Read these books, apply your learning by doing real work somewhere (either as an employee or by running your own business) and you should be able to obtain the vast majority of knowledge taught in an MBA program (but at a significantly reduced cost to you).

At the time the interview was recorded I was on the hunt for a good MBA program. Lucky then I was introduced to Josh, and lucky for you – you get to hear the conversation as it happened.

Stay with me for the next 60 minutes and you will learn:

• How to obtain a similar level of theoretical education for a fraction of the cost.
• Josh’s story – The mindset, the process and the philosophy behind the PersonalMBA
• What they don’t teach in traditional MBA programs, yet it’s essential for business success
• The importance of research when considering enrolment for a MBA program – especially if you’ll be doing so on a student loan in the United States
• The 5 stages a business goes through to be successful

It should be mentioned that traditional MBA programs have some advantages over personal study. There are social aspects to consider – being in a class with other like-minded people and face-to-face interaction – These are elements  that are difficult to replicate online. However, it is certainly possible to create value without it (this website is produced and managed by people in 4 countries, without me ever meeting anyone face-to-face).

It’s also very possible that paying tuition and attending class in-person may not ever provide you with a return on your investment (which could be a very large sum of money – equivalent to a mortgage in some cases).

No-one should make a life-changing decision like that without doing their research first. For this reason I believe you will not be doing your due diligence if you don’t at least consider looking at Josh’s material.

I agree with Josh that perhaps the answer is to read the books, get real working experience and learn like that. In my personal situation, what I did was finish University and then joined a consulting firm. Greatest amount of experience in wide variety of industries, in the shortest amount of time – it’s all 80/20.

Unless you are going to apply for a job where the MBA is a prerequisite to entry, you should seriously think about the cost and your earning potential before- and after the MBA. A book costs $20 and if you read attentively and try to apply the concepts, you can’t really lose anything. Incurring $50k-$250k student debt for a $10k payrise is an entirely different story. Everyone’s situation is different though, so it means is that you have to arm yourself with knowledge and consider whether or not it is the right thing for you.

I thoroughly enjoyed chatting to Josh, he has a very engaging personality and it is clear that he loves teaching and sharing ideas. He is passionate about business, and his knowledge is diverse.

If you would like to know more about Josh and the Personal MBA program, please head over to the PersonalMBA website and get involved.

Josh’s links:

• Personal MBA website
• The Personal MBA: The Book
• Twitter: @joshkaufman

Other links on the topic you may find interesting:

• http://money.cnn.com/2010/10/04/pf/jobs/business_school_waste.fortune/index.htm
• http://www.businessweek.com/bschools/content/sep2009/bs20090928_592028.htm
• http://www.nytimes.com/2011/01/09/education/edlife/09books-t.html?_r=2
• http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704723104576061953842079760.html?mod=WSJ_hpp_sections_personalfinance

I would love to hear what you guys think of the interview and Josh’s ideas. If you have specific questions you’d like me to ask Josh, send them through to me via email and I will do my best to follow up with him at a future date.

Thanks for listening,

Jurgen

Steve Gillman – Maximise your brainpower

If you’re anything like me, you can probably benefit from a little increased brainpower now and then. How often have you forgotten the milk, bummed out on an exam or forgotten an anniversary or birthday?

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was a way that you can keep your mind fresh and your brain active so that you don’t forget things like this? It turns out there are a number of easy and effective ways in which you can train your brain to remember pretty much anything. Not only that, but you will be much better at solving problems too!

That’s why I called Steve.

Steve’s the brain guy. He runs a website called increasebrainpower.com and today we’re chatting to him to dig deep into the topic of brainpower and what we can do to utilise our minds to the fullest.

In this interview you will hear how Steve uses his mind to ‘peg’ objects he’s familiar with to the things he needs to remember. This simple technique is so effective that it’s actually difficult to FORGET after you’ve done it.

Steve shares with us his top brain exercise techniques, study tips and what it takes to keep your mind healthy and strong (including types of foods, exercise etc). He also provides his thoughts on how to tackle complex problems, and his methods might surprise you.

Steve is a very successful entrepreneur. He runs a number of websites (20+) and in this interview we talk about his ventures, how he got started and what he’s doing today to earn a living. You’ll hear how Steve grew up and left school at 16, and how he currently lives very comfortably in Colorado with a solid stream of income earned entirely online. (Steve was generous enough to share with us the 4 methods in which he achieves this – listen now to learn all about it)

Would you like to publish a book? Read on…

During my chat with Steve, we somehow got onto the topic of publishing. Steve’s written 2 books and busy with a 3rd. Did you know that you can ‘self-publish’ a book for less than $1000? You may have considered going to a publishing house… but are you sure you understand the pitfalls of this approach?

We delve quite deeply into this topic and I was very surprised to find out how easy it is. With some of these hot tips, you’re sure to have your book on amazon.com in no time.

If you solve complex problems on a daily basis, or simply need to remember anything at all, then you can not afford to miss this interview. For those budding writers out there, I hope this information on publishing your own book was also helpful.

As always, I love hearing from you guys so please send any feedback or questions my way. If you would like me to ask Steve a few specific things, let me know and I’ll see if I can organise it.

To your success!

Jurgen