Some lessons from learning to touch type as an adult
One of my goals for restarting my blogging habit, was to improve my typing speed. I first learnt to touch type as an adult only last year. Previously, I didn’t need to type much, so I stuck with seek and peck for years, as I was comfortable with 35wpm using only 4 fingers. I started spending more time at the keyboard and realised that I could save myself a tremendous amount of time if I learnt how to touch type.
The biggest challenge was that beginning period, when my touch typing was slower than my seek and peck speed. But I was motivated to get through that phase, as I knew my touch typing speed could only get faster. My current speed is 40 wpm which is just about passable. I’m building on that.
Here are some thoughts from my experience of learning to touch type so far.
Practice, practice, practice
It’s obvious, but daily practice will help you improve. You don’t need huge swathes of time. I’m currently doing 15 minutes a day and I’ve seen significant improvement, as it’s building a very good imprint of the keyboard in my brain.
When I started learning how to touch type, I stopped practicing consistently, once I got up to the same speed I had been at with seek and peck. This was a bad idea, as I stagnated. It couldn’t be helped, as work became intense and I had no spare brain space even for this. That’s my excuse. But I am now back to daily practice and I am aiming to build my speed up further to the 75wpm region. Learn from my error, don’t stop, keep practicing.
Aim for accuracy, not speed
I know you want to go faster. That’s the whole point, right? But I’ve learnt that, slow is fast. I’m always desperate to fly across the keyboard, especially as, until I build up my speed, my thoughts are faster than I type. It’s frustrating. I get it. However, the faster I try to type, the more mistakes I make.
Whereas, when I’m more deliberate, it feels slower, but it’s quicker in reality, because I’m not hitting the backspace key constantly to correct typos.
The ubiquitous advice I read online about focusing on accuracy over speed, was spot on.
Be patient
You will be slow before you are fast. There’s no way around this, so be patient with yourself. I found learning to type as an adult frustrating, and if I’m being honest, a little boring at the beginning.
When you’re used to typing fast, by seek and peck, it is very frustrating to go back to being slow. Hang it there. It gets much easier once you begin to progress. It also becomes fun. Once your typing is accurate, it is much easier to build up speed.
Keep your finger movements small
Try not to move your fingers and hands across the keyboard too much. It makes for more efficient and quicker typing.
Stiff fingers
Initially, my fingers felt as stiff and unwieldy as frozen sausages. As time went by, and with more practice, they became nimble. Just keep typing.
Use keyboard shortcuts
I try to use keyboard shortcuts without looking down at the keyboard. Aim to use all keys without looking down. Efficiency makes you a quicker typist.
Pace yourself
Don’t overdo it, else you’ll find the process punishing. I found it very tiring when I first started typing. It’s better to practice for say 15 minutes a day than to binge with two hours and do nothing for a while. Short, regular and consistent practice is best.
Experiment with apps
You may need to use more than one app to help you learn and practice. I used TypingTest.com and EdClub.com concurrently at the beginning. I’ve now added monkeytype.com and keybr.com.
I also dabble in TypeLit.io, where you can type classic books. It sounds like a good idea to type and read - two birds, one stone. But my experience is that I get so focused on typing, that the meaning of the text falls away.
Free sites abound that can help you learn how to type. They all have something different to offer, so find the one(s) that works for you.
Music might help
This one will only suit some people, but I found that music reduced my resistance in the early days. I dispensed with it as soon as I started having fun.
Scream If you want to go faster!
I really enjoy typing these days. As I improved, I began to love typing. I still enjoy observing my progress.
I was surprised by how much time I saved by being a faster typist. I find it endlessly rewarding when my documents come out tidy and already formatted, which makes it easier to make corrections.
I like being able to look at my work on screen as I progress, instead of staring down an my keyboard and developing neck strain. Side note: The irony is, before I learnt how to touch type, I bought an expensive keyboard with RGB lights, because amongst other things, I liked the colours. Now, I hardly ever look at it. I still love my RGB keyboard though, it was a good purchase.
Conclusion
Learning to touch type is tedious at the beginning, but if you persevere, it’s totally worth it. Not only does it save you time in the long run, it also makes work easier, faster and increases productivity. My only regret is that I waited so long, before I learnt how to. But, better late than never. Keep practicing. You’ve totally got this.