Time is limited, and work is unlimited. Productivity is the over-discussed topic. Today I’d like to share with you some practical tips and instructions for improving productivity: type faster.
“The workman who would do his work well should first sharpen his tools.”
Tip 1: “Sharpen your tools” – Keyboard
Take a look at your keyboard. What kind of keyboard are you using? A membrane keyboard, a mechanical keyboard, or your laptop keyboard. It’s time to change a typing mechanical keyboard! How can a mechanical keyboard make a huge change to your productivity? Keep reading!
The most featured difference between a mechanical keyboard and a membrane keyboard (including laptop keyboards) is each key having a mechanical switch. Keys work separately, having no effect on each other. Tactile mechanical switches (brown switches) provide your fingers reaction every time when you type. “Clicky” mechanical switches (blue switches) offer you the feedback through sound. Unconsciously, your typing speeds up, and the accuracy increases. Generally, brown switches and blue switches are better at typing. Only blue switches are somehow louder, not so suitable used in an office.
Tip 2: Practice Touch-Typing
Typing is a skill that needs some practice, so as touch-typing. Touch-typing means that you don’t have to look at the letters, and you rely on the muscle memory to type. Without watching the letters, your typing speed and accuracy will improve a lot eventually.
Some people may suggest you use a blank keyboard from the start. In my opinion, it varies from people. Some people already have a good typing habit, whereas others don’t. I suggest you use a normal keyboard at first. Once you are used to the correct finger position, and you can change a blank one to train yourself. A blank keyboard can help you to resist the temptation of looking at the letters, forcing you to type through finger memory.
Tip 3: Use Shortcuts
We spend plenty of time to practice, and sometimes we forget the easiest and most effective way: remember some shortcuts. It wouldn’t take you much time to learn some basic keyboard shortcuts, whereas they really help.
Tip 4: Ergonomics
People pay increasing attention to ergonomics, including those who want to improve their typing skills and those who spend plenty of time in typing, working or gaming. Ergonomics has covered the keyboards, the chairs, and the desks. All these elements could affect your typing speed and typing fatigue. However, investment in those ergonomics equipment is not necessary. You can improve typing speed and reduce typing fatigue according to the following instructions.
Instruction One: Check Your Typing Position
A proper typing position not only can avoid some workplace injuries, but also enhance your working productivity and typing speed.
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Sitting position:
Are you sitting posture correct? Compare your sitting posture with the standard sitting posture shown in the left image.
- Keep your hips close to the back of the chair.
- Adjust the chair height until your feet can reach the floor naturally.
- Adjust the chair back to make sure your upper and lower back are supported.
- Adjust the armrests so that your shoulders and arms are relaxed. If your armrests are in the way, remove them.
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Monitor position:
- Center your monitor. It’s the best position for most users. The central position can reduce neck and shoulder pain in some ways.
- The ideal viewing height is about 2’’-3’’ below the top of the monitor.
- The angle of the monitor should be about 10 to 20 degrees.
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Finger position:
The proper finger placement on the keyboard helps you type faster and accurately.
- Place your fingers like the image shows, and always return to the starting position of the fingers”ASDF-JKL;”. Keep your hands and fingers close to the base position.
- When you are typing, you need to imagine the letter location on the keyboard and establish your typing rhythm.
- Only move your hand and finger when it requires to press a specific key.
- Place a keyboard pad that helps reduce stress on the hands and relieve fatigue.
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Keyboard position:
- Place your keyboard directly in front of your body.
- Adjust the tilt of your keyboard via keyboard feet or a keyboard tray.
Set everything in its position, and then type. Typing should never be a boring or hard activity. Take a short break every 20-30 minutes. Rest and relax your hands, your fingers, your shoulder, and your eyes.
A fast typing (over 100 wpm) is a progress requiring time and practice. Don’t rush, and take your time. You can practice typing two or three times a week from easy to difficult. Typing Games help!
Talk so much about fast typing. How does typing speed measure? What’s WPM? WPM (words per minute) is used to measure the speed of typing. To standardize the measurement, one “word” in WPM is five characters, including spaces and punctuation. For example: “university” would be count as two, and “a tip” would be count as one. According to surveys, the average speed of professional typists is between 50 to 80 wpm. The highest speed could reach above 120 wpm and more.
You truly need a highly-qualified typing keyboard if you plan to practice your typing skills. Velcocifire entry-level typing mechanical keyboards (wired/wireless) are what you are looking for:
Brown switch – silent and perfect pressing force for typing, which is one of the best typing mechanical switches;
80% layout – compact design fits typists best, providing you with more space for a mouse;
Build to last – over 50 million keystroke, laser-engraved, and double shot injection keycaps.
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