Touch typing

[Embarrassingstories]

I’m trying to teach myself to touch type in my mid 40s after typing using poor technique for my whole working life. I started off using the typing drills, but now I’ve moved on to typing day to day stuff to incorporate punctuation and capital letters. I think I have the hang of it then make silly mistakes. I know straight away when I’ve hit the wrong key. I get so frustrated with myself. I am trying to use touch typing at work, but I am conscious that it takes longer than my old style of typing. I do a bit then revert back to my old habits because I worry I’m taking too long. Has anyone learnt touch typing successfully in their 40s and use it daily in their working lives?

I learned it in my teens at college, Im now in my 50s and use it daily even though my job isnt an admin job (haha, with the amount of admin in it).

Im better on a keyboard than a laptop so make sure you have equipment that makes it easier.

I make mistakes all the time usually when for some reason I think Im on the home keys and Im not!

I also am not great at anything which arent letters, punctuation apart from full stops and commas needs me to do something different

I'm just starting (in my 50s!) with a typing programme I've subscribed to. I'm hoping to dedicate a bit of time to it over the Summer when work's less frantic.

Good luck! I'd say keep up with it and persevere - it's definitely a skill worth having. My husband learned to touch type as a student and I am very jealous of his blur of fingers when compared to my jabbing digits! 😂

I taught myself over 30 years ago with a computer CD rom (yes I'm that old!) called 'Mavis Beacon Teaches Typing'.

It was brilliant. A 'ghost' keyboard came up on the screen. The typist was a red car and the computer was a blue one. You'd type the words to make the car go faster and race the other one.

Not sure if there's a more modern version now but It was the best thing I ever did and I use my touch typing skills all the time at work.

I learnt from a book in my 20s. I can't believe I didn't have anything better to do! Has been v useful though.

I could never call myself a typist, I make far too many mistakes. Thank goodness it's all on screens and we can delete, use spell check etc.

I taught myself on a typewriter using DS Pitmans book many years ago. Both DC had to attend a Pitman’s course in order to gain vacation employment. DS says when he worked for the Civil Service people would gather round his desk to watch in wonderment. It used to be a compulsory class in USA, I’m not sure if it still is. Some doctors can do it too.

I learned on a typewriter in my teens many years ago from a book. It wasn’t really considered a skill that you’d need unless you wanted to do secretarial work, but I grew up in a village, so I guess I was bored! You had to tape a piece of paper over the keyboard with your fingers underneath it on the keys so you couldn’t see what you were typing. Your brain is much more malleable in your teens than it is as you get older, but with enough repetition, you should get there, good luck!

I'm 53 and wasn't allowed to do typing at school because it was only for those who 'weren't very bright' and who would end up in an office. (Ha! I was lined up for uni but dear parents knocked that on the head.)

I'll always thank my DM, though, who kicked up a ruckus saying it was a basic skill for anyone, school didn't back down, so she sent me to an adult education course (had to have school's permission, which they gave) when I was 14. (Probably because she wanted me to have a 'nice office job' instead of uni.)

I learnt on typewriters which weren't very forgiving. OP, have you considered learning on a typewriter? Maybe watch a YouTube tutorial on the TV at the same time?

Touch typing was essential for all the jobs I had until recently. I remember freaking out my bosses by looking at them fully as they were dictating a report, or whatever, smiling and typing, not looking at the screen.

It's a really important skill and I think it should be routinely taught in schools.

I'm so glad I learnt to touch type and I don't understand why it isn't taught in schools.

I say persevere with it Op. Maybe find more practice to do at home where you arent worrying about your typing speed and you can focus on just practicing.

I haven't gone on any course, but I was pretty good at touch typing from school age. I type a lot in my work, so I like to think I'm good at it now still. I make some odd spelling mistake, but I always proof read my work using spell checker.

"I'm 53 and wasn't allowed to do typing at school because it was only for those who 'weren't very bright' and who would end up in an office. (Ha! I was lined up for uni but dear parents knocked that on the head.)"

Same here except that I did go to uni and ended up a secretary anyway. Now typing 'badly'. I think ten figure typing would be more ergonomic and healthier, but I also think I'm too old to change now and there are probably more important skills to learn like how to use AI so it doesn't take my job.

"It's a really important skill and I think it should be routinely taught in schools."

I don't know. Those of us who don't type exactly correctly still get by in modern offices so it's not a requirement. Also, there are so many programmes these days that people who don't type fast enough can use to just talk and the computer types for them. I'm not sure it's something someone who won't be working for another ten years should be learning.

I know someone who used short hand for most of her working life, but she wouldn't argue that youngsters now should be learning it.

I also learnt with this! Though spent too much time playing the supermarket checkout game, so soothing…

I see old copies of the cd are available online, but there seems to be a few websites that offer lessons or practice plans too.

I did initially think what’s the point because AI note takers seem to be taking off. However, whilst I can see this being a great option for people working from home, I’m not sure if this would work when people are sitting in an open office. I don’t know enough about it though.

I learnt to touch type using a Pitman course in college back in the 70's. I'm so, so glad I can touch type. I'm fast and accurate (should be after all these years!) but OP, you need a good, old fashioned keyboard. I struggle to touch type on an iPad or laptop.

You may get by, but I guarantee that you are slower and less accurate. I find it slightly painful watching colleagues type when they don't touch type.

Despite dictation programmes having been developed over the course of at least 30 years, they still aren't that reliable. I've tried dictating using the programme on Microsoft computers and find I still have to spend a long time checking and correcting what it produces.

I learned to touch type at college 25 years ago and find that if I think about where the letters are I start making mistakes. I also know when I've gone wrong and find it really hard to carry on typing and want to fix mistakes straight away where others go back later.

I don't think age is an issue, just keep practicing and you will get better.

I learned to type in the gap between school and university. When I went into a professional occupation, I was warned to keep it quiet that I could type as otherwise everyone would be asking me to type for them. Once computers came into near-universal use in offices, I was so grateful to younger me for learning to touch type.

Stick with it, OP, the more you use it the easier you will find it.

I learnt from a book on a big heavy manual typewriter, years ago obviously! Like a pp, the course had you stick labels over the keys once you got to a certain point, and that definitely helped.

I did a course after university. It was without a doubt one of the most useful things I have ever done.

I learnt to type as a 6th form elective, despite being told, "girls of your calibre won't be secretaries." I don't know who they thought would type up all out dissertations and theses we were no doubt going to produce.

Definitely practice is key - a little every day is probably more effective than a big chunk once a week. We all do make mistakes - just be grateful you don't have to get out the Tippex!

You can definitely learn! You probably just need to unlearn a lot of stuff first

I got better using the kids touch typing thing from the BBC!!!

I found that using a click/clack type larger keyboard helped as well.

But mostly it was just consistency and practise. But I'm Def faster and better on all types of keyboard now.

I just need to get better as using predictive shortcut models now though! I still just type every individual word.

I learned to touch type at secretarial college from a big book on an enormous electric typewriter and got to be quite fast. My daughter learned with a Mavis Beacon CD in her teens and became a much more competent typist than I ever was. Being a good typist helped her a lot at university and I think all schools should offer it as a course in their IT module. So much easier to learn as a teen than later in life.

I would recommend Mavis Beacon to anyone, it really works.

"You may get by, but I guarantee that you are slower and less accurate"

Than who? Nobody in my office types 'correctly' as far as I know. Typing speed hasn't been particularly important in any of my secretarial/admin jobs. We do a lot of copy-pasting, formatting, answering emails, things like that these days. There's not much copy or audio typing.

"I find it slightly painful watching colleagues type when they don't touch type."

Depends what you mean by touch type. I can type without looking, but I don't do ten finger typing i.e. I don't use the right finger for the right key or use my thumbs for the space bar. I type mainly with my middle fingers.

I learnt to type at school in the 70's. If you know you have hit the wrong key while you are typing you have pretty much got the hang of it, it's just practice, practice and practice to get your typing speed up. Good luck OP you will get there quicker than you realise. I agree with using a proper keyboard rather than a laptop or ipad as per pp's.

I leant to type 40 years ago on a big old manual typewriter.
Like others, I know immediately when I have made a mistake and have to correct it at the time!
My young work colleagues always look amazed when I am talking to them and typing at the same time like it is some sort of wizardry.
Really it is just muscle memory.
Practice practice practice!