MY WORST CAREER MISTAKE
I don't mean this as a confession really, but it is true. I really (and I do mean Really!!) admire anyone who can type smoothly and effortlessly, because I can't type well at all.
Perhaps someone will pass my sad story along to a youngster, and save them 50+ years of frustration and countless hours of time spent finding and correcting, revising and retyping stupid errors.
I never learned to type correctly and efficiently. I can't look at a text and key it in without shifting my view to see where the specific keys are located. I envy those who can.
Every time I use a keyboard to enter text, I suffer enormous agonies and spend up to a third of my time discovering and backspacing to correct mistyped letters. The first key to wear out on my machines is that "Backspace" button. I am truly weary of this crippling weakness.
Kids, take an old man's advice: As soon as you are old enough and have the opportunity, take a typing class or diligently work your way through a typing program that will let you develop a error-free 40 or 50 words per minute, or more! Stick to it. Master each lesson and skill until typing becomes automatic and as easy as breathing.
Save yourself years of frustration and thousands of hours of tedium which you would probably spend in happier ways - like sleeping or eating hot fudge sundaes!
Learn to spell, too!
Cheers!
Labels: career advice, personal skills, typing
posted by Papa John @ 11:21 PM
4 comments
4 Comments:
Thanks for the post! I think nowadays it is a lot harder for the youth to not be pulled into typing because of the technology age we are in and all. You still seem to be a well educated man, which is very important. My grandmother is one of the wisest, brilliant people I have ever met, but if I put a computer in front of her, she would have no idea what to do with it. Anyway, dont worry too much about it, there are so many other things you can do that I am sure I can not!
Great typists I have known --
Sue Quigley - 120 words a minute;
Dwayne Sandefer - 2 words an hour
William Shakespeare -- never learned to type
John Wyatt -- speed unknown.
The agony is in the head of the typist,. The readers haven't a clue (if you don't tell them).
Thank you for sharing.
Besse Irene
Great career advice. The space bar is the one on my keyboard that's worn completely smooth. Does that mean I use a lot of short words?
I have to admit that of all the classes I had in high school, typing has proved the most useful in my daily life. I struggled to earn even a "B" in that class but while I'll still never be a speed typist, I get by.
While kids have the opportunity to keyboard early these days, I fear that they are likely to pick up bad habits long before they get a chance to take formal training.
Schools seem to realize this and are teaching keyboarding early. There are also many online typing programs ... many of they them FREE that could help you learn and practice QWERTY typing skills. Just google 'TYPING PRACTICE'.
In addition to typing and spelling, the other skill to develop is attention to detail in reviewing your own work. Regardless of your typing speed, it is even more important to check your own work before hitting that send button ... and that you do well.
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