Typing has become an important part of work and study these days. You can increase your productivity by learning how to improve your typing speed.
Ultimately, your typing speed will improve over time as you type more often. However, if you want to speed up the learning process, there are many tips you can use. Let’s take a look at some of the best.
start learning to write with touch
This is by far the most important step you can take to improve your typing speed. Touch is the ability to type without looking at the keyboard. Blind typists are so proficient in keyboards that they don’t even need to look.
This is useful for your typing speed because your fingers will already know exactly where to go when you continue typing. It’s not so much about not looking, but about creating a fast and fluid typing speed because you know your keyboard like the back of your hand.
So how do you learn to touch-type? It’s all about practice and mastering the keyboard. To achieve this, you can play typing games on websites such as Typing Club . Sites like Typing Club have fun exercises to help you learn the position of each key.
In these games, you will take hands-on lessons to help you master the keyboard better.
write first, correct errors later
One of the biggest hurdles to typing quickly is typing accuracy. When some people try to type quickly, they end up losing keys or accidentally hitting the wrong keys. Sometimes people start fiddling between the return keys and the keys they are trying to press.
To solve this problem, there is an additional tip: type everything first, and don’t even use the Backspace key. Then you can go back and read to correct any mistakes you made.
This tip is good for two reasons. First, every time you stop to use the Backspace key or correct an error, you stop typing – this interrupts the stream. Secondly, if you do not use the Backspace key, you will have to read your notes carefully afterwards.
It might be tempting to just publish your work as it is, without proofreading, but this advice makes you read it because chances are that you’ve made at least one or two mistakes.
It’s not always lightning fast typing. Instead, focus on the flow of your letter. Building a stable, consistent flow is the key to being able to write consistently over time.
play the right kind of music
When you really learn to type, you will have one major hurdle in your typing speed – your ability to think. If you practice enough, you’ll get to the point where you can’t think fast enough – your hands will type faster than you first think about what to type.
I’ve personally found that one of the best ways to improve your thinking skills while typing is to choose the right music.
Music with a lot of words can distract you from your ability to process your thoughts clearly. Many people prefer to listen to music that is soothing and not too difficult. These genres include classical music, Lo-Fi, jazz, and even movie soundtracks.
Obviously, all people are different, and this is just a general consensus. You should try typing in different genres of music and see how your typing skills change.
You might even weirdly find that something out of the ordinary, like a fast-paced rap song, can help you reframe your thinking, or it can help you type faster.
Also, you may find that the music doesn’t help at all. In this case, a good white noise application can be a great solution. Or even just a YouTube background track for ambient noise like a river or a thunderstorm. Many people report that they personally find white noise and ambient noise to be the best way to help them concentrate.
Experiment with different sounds and music until you find what works best for you.
buy a more suitable keyboard
The first thing you are offered is to go out and buy a fancy mechanical keyboard. It is well known that mechanical keys have fast response times – you really feel the press of each key, which means you can move to the next key faster.
I agree that a mechanical keyboard can help, but you should think about it when you master the basics of blind typing. I would argue that getting to know your own keyboard outweighs the benefits of changing hardware. I would recommend sticking with one keyboard first so you can familiarize yourself with its layout before moving on to anything else.
Once you feel confident enough, you might want to consider switching to a new mechanical keyboard. Just remember that it can take a while to get used to, so in the first few days or weeks you may have an even slower dialing rate than usual.
conclusion
This concludes our overview of some quick tips on how to improve your typing speed. I hope that the information I have provided will be useful to you. As a final walkthrough note, just remember that like everything else, improving your typing speed will take time and practice.
Do you have questions about typing? I’ve been writing professionally online since 2011, so if you have any other questions, post a comment below and I’ll be happy to help.
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