LoboLinks | How to Improve Your Typing Speed

How to Improve Your Typing Speed
Date Added: June 14, 2008 05:22:00 PM
Category: COMPUTERS
How to Improve Your Typing Speed By Sarah Borroum In today’s fast-paced world, the old “thirty words per minute” typing standard just isn’t good enough. Today’s bosses love to see secretaries and other employees type about twice that many words a minute, if not more. And if you’re in college, you know the value of fast typing – especially if you use a laptop to take notes in class. Improving your typing speed will make your life easier. These tips will help you make your fingers fly over your keyboard.

· Adopt a proper posture and typing position. This reduces fatigue, improves your accuracy and decreases your risk of carpal tunnel syndrome. Put both feet flat on the floor, keep your wrists elevated, and put your fingers on the home row.

· Invest in a decent keyboard. Ergonomic or standard? This doesn’t matter, actually. You just need a keyboard that is in decent shape. Old, worn-out boards are difficult to use – especially when keys stick, or don’t register at all. Part of typing speed is the ability to lightly tap each key. If you have to hit your space bar two or three times to get one space, you won’t be able to go very fast at all.

· Work on touch typing. Looking at your fingers will only slow you down. With practice, your hands will soon learn where each key is located. You’ll be able to hit the keys without checking your hands at all if you practice long enough.

· An ergonomic layout will help you a lot. If your keyboard is easy to reach and your computer screen is just below eye level, you’ll be much more comfortable. This leads to faster typing.

· A typing-tutor program for your computer is usually a great investment. Many of these programs work on one element at a time. One day, you’ll learn the home-row keys. Later, you’ll work on the number keys. Learning to touch type one “section” at a time will take a bit of time, but you’ll pick up all of the lessons if you practice often.

· Aim for accuracy, not speed, at first. If you have to backspace over several characters to correct a typo, you’re losing speed. Work on typing accurately and the speed will come.

· Learn keyboard shortcuts, especially in your word processor. If you can keep your hands off the mouse, you’ll finish that document a little faster. This tip is not directly related to typing speed, but it’s helpful when you’re trying to finish your work as quickly as possible.

· Practice, practice, and practice some more. “Use it or lose it” definitely applies to typing. Take a month-long break from the keyboard and you will notice the difference. Practice does not have to be boring, either. You practice typing when you e-mail a friend, send an instant message or reply to a post at your favorite online forum.

Soon, you’ll be typing almost as fast as your thoughts run through your head. This might not seem possible, but many typists do exactly that every day. You’ll finish your work faster, impress your friends, and gain some confidence because of your newly-learned skill.