If one of your New Year’s resolutions is to keep up with your texts (hopefully without spending so much time that you completely lose contact with your friends and family) there are a few really easy, really simple things you can do to boost your reading speed.

Of course, if you are still taking your prenursing requirements you might look into taking a speed-reading course before beginning nursing school if you have the time and money (assuming both with be less plentiful once you begin with your regular nursing course).

If taking a speed reading course is not practical for you, often you can increase reading speed simply by paying attention to how fast you’re reading and making a conscious effort to read more quickly. It helps if you have an idea of how fast you usually read a specific type of material. It’s doubtful you will be able to read your pathophysiology text as quickly as you read Nancy Drew mysteries as a teenager.

Use this information to keep track of improvements in your speed. If your comprehension starts decreasing as your reading speed increases, you’ll have to slow down a bit, but you’ll probably still be reading faster than before.