A method that saved 100s of hours

Karthi Subbaraman -

In 2020, I had a peculiar context where I had to guzzle tons of information everyday for almost 180 days in a row. Speed was key. Necessity pushed me to do things differently.

I accidentally stumbled upon speed listening and ended up embracing it fully.
I started with 1.25X and pushed it all the way to 2.5X. It felt weird to even try but looking back that was the best thing that ever happened to me.  

I achieved 2x more than what I normally would. I was surprised how my brain handled the speed and comprehension at ease. Podcasts, Audible and YouTube became my go to learning sources. I strongly suggest you to give it a try with an open mind. Do not conclude even before trying.


Here are some tips for beginners:

  1. Start slow. From 1x bump it to 1.25X and slowy ramp it up. You will not even notice a difference because we speak slower than we read.
  2. Don't speed up in the beginning. Let speeding up be a gradual process.
  3. Use headphones and your focus gets better.
  4. Read and listen at the same time. It feels even better. I loved audible + physical book combination.
  5. Ensure you have minimal distractions during active listening. It gets difficult to concentrate otherwise.
  6. There is no hard and fast rule that you must listen everything at 2x. Depending upon the material adjust speed accordingly. Remember 1.25x > 1x.
  7. Comprehension >> Speed. The minute your comprehension suffers reduce the speed. Adjust on the go.
  8. Do it in chunks. Listen 10 mins at a time. Reflect and jot down key insights. Retention gets deeper.
  9. Our brains handle speed very well. When there is a challenge it works better. Push it and you will be surprised how well it works.
  10. Our human system is highly adaptable. In less than 10 days you will get used to speed listening.

When you embrace speed listening, you will feel a sense of acheivement because your consumption gets higher and time cost gets lower. The compounding is unreal.

I must warn you that you might not like slow speakers anymore 🙈 These days i ask for meeting recordings and save my actual time.

Your time is precious. Spend it wisely. We might not have more time but we can at-least try to utilise time better, isn't it?

🥂 to speed!