If you’re consistently writing – and especially if you’re writing for deadlines – you might have found that you’re hitting a certain wall. It’s not that you’re out of ideas. You’re limited by how quickly you can get the words out of your head and onto the page.
It is especially irritating to have an idea on the tip of your tongue (or fingertips) and lose it because you didn’t get it out in time. Good news: If you’re here, then you’re at least getting words on paper – good on ya! That’s the hard part. As for the rest: It is possible, no matter your current skill level, to improve your typing speed.
Why is it important to take a typing speed test?
If you want to improve, you need to know where you are now. If you’ve reached this juncture and still haven’t taken a typing test, believe me, I get it. Getting an actual assessment somehow makes this a real issue to tackle instead of a question or a feeling.
Unfortunately, there’s nothing we can do about it. If you don’t know where you’re starting, you can’t know or appreciate when you’ve reached your goal. Fortunately, typing is a skill that is easily measured. There are myriad sources that allow you to do so for free.
One thing you’ll also want to ask yourself as you progress is how fast is fast enough? Depending on who you ask, the average typing speed is somewhere between 34 and 40 words per minute (WPM). Those who have learned to touch type can easily reach 60 and 70 WPM. Some of the fastest typists exceed 120 WPM.
The important thing for you here isn’t these statistics, but the impact that improving your typing can have on your writing output. Naturally, when you improve your typing speed, you’ll gain time as you get more words on the page faster.
Going from 34 WPM to 70 WPM means more than doubling your typing speed. In other words, by the numbers, this means cutting in half the time you spend in front of a computer.
More than the numbers, it’s important to consider the gains in your flow. As you improve, more of your actual thoughts will make it on the page. As this happens, you’ll experience a sense of ease in your writing. It may even exceed the numerical gains you’ve made in typing technique.
What do I need to do to improve my typing speed?
Regardless of your present typing speed, you’re going to want to slow down as you practice. I know that’s the last thing you want to hear when you’ve come here hoping to see significant gains in your time spent. It’s especially challenging when writing anxiety flares up. You might have a looming deadline, and being “bad” at typing just makes the feeling of failure even worse.
Remember that you’re learning a new skill. The classic platitudes that come with that process hold true.
1. Perfect practice makes perfect
Focus on accuracy, the speed will come in time. Thinking about this another way, errors are costly – both in time and in the loss of your flow. Especially as you start out, pay close attention to your accuracy ratings. If your accuracy is below 90%, it means that you’re interrupting your flow one-tenth of the time. Your fingers may be moving a lot, but you’re not doing yourself any favors. Aim for above 95%. It may seem like a high bar, but faster typists tend to also be more accurate.
When you’ve surpassed your current typing speed, you may not celebrate each accurately-hit keystroke. But you’ll definitely kick yourself if you find yourself losing time to errors after all that work.
2. Keep it simple
Touch typing can be summed up very simply.
1. Hands at “home”
With your index fingers, find the F and J keys, each should have a raised bump. The “home” position is having one finger each on the A S D F and J K L ; keys. Your right hand and your left hand stay to their designated sides of the keyboard. Getting used to having your fingers in this starting position is essential to learning to touch-type.
2. Clear responsibilities
Each finger handles a specific set of keys. Whichever site you choose will show you which finger to use to strike which specific key. Even if it feels slower at first, avoid moving your hands across the keyboard. The goal is to build muscle memory for each keystroke. Take your time to avoid developing bad habits.
3. Eyes up
Look at the computer screen, not at the keyboard. This will be a difficult habit for many to break. It requires you to start in the proper position at the home row keys. At first, this will involve some memorization. Practice will steadily shift this burden away from your active memory. Looking at what you’re writing in real-time also allows you to correct errors as they happen.
3. Practice regularly
For many of you, improving your typing speed will mean using a completely new approach. Going from “hunt and peck” typing to “touch typing” will involve growing pains. The same is true even for people like me, who use some form of “touch typing” but have hit a wall because we don’t use it in its perfect form.
At first you’ll find that you type far slower using touch typing. This is perfectly normal. When I took a test using my long-held habits and style, I cleared 75 WPM with 96% accuracy. And when I started practicing proper touch typing I dropped way down to 35 WPM, with accuracy at 95%.
Patience and consistency are key to seeing your new style outpace the old. You don’t need to think of this as a 10,000-hour investment. Still, it is essential that you stick to a daily regimen if you want to see improvement.
The more time you can put into practice, the better. But pace yourself. It’s far better to spread your practice out into 15 – 30 minutes a day, rather than set aside 3 hours once a week.
After all, we’re not just learning information. Our goal is to develop keyboard skills and muscle memory using all 10 fingers. This isn’t a process that can be rushed. We also don’t want you to burn out before you see the fruits of your labor.
You’re in luck. Many online resources make it entertaining to both practice and track your progress. Some even have competitive games, which can help you get and stay motivated to practice.
What system should I use to learn to type faster?
You know yourself better than anyone. Be sure to take advantage of what different websites have to offer.
The best place to start
My all-around recommended starting spot for most people is keybr.com. It has a clean, straightforward user interface. Keybr also boasts a dynamic algorithm that tracks your strengths and weaknesses. This will ensure that you’re always improving. Budget time to consistently use it and you’ll see steady improvements.
Helpful resources
Typing.com, Ratatype.com, and Sense-lang.org are heavy hitters in online typing skills. Their sites are more robust and each apply a more regimented approach to learning to touch type. You’ll begin by familiarizing yourself with the home keys two at a time. Then you work your way up to more difficult usages of your fingers.
Both Typing.com and Sense-lang.org have a wide selection of games – some of them competitive – to choose from. Ratatype has a “game mode,” which adds fun elements to their courses. These may make a good change of pace if you’re sticking to the more sterile keybr practice.
Pro tip: Avoid memorizing instead of practicing
A common trap that many people fall into is practicing the same text over and over. This can skew your results, falsely inflating your scores. In this case, you’ve gotten very good at reproducing one passage. This doesn’t necessarily translate into true touch typing skills.
In time, you’ll reach a moderate comfort level keyboard’s layout. Once this happens, make sure that you practice typing words that have meaning. Take advantage of keybr’s ability to input custom text. You can search for and use quotes from any media you like. Also look for different exercises on the other sites I’ve recommended.
In the end, the trick to typing fast on a keyboard is putting the time in. You can without question become a fast typist. 100 WPM is attainable in the long run – if that’s your goal. You just have to make it over the hump. After a few weeks of consistent practice, your touch-typing speed will start to catch up to your freestyle speed. Once they’re nearly the same, take the leap and give up our old style. You’ve made it.
