The Great Payoff of Improving Your Typing Skills

So what is this big payoff? While some will argue that it’s a time-saver, my reason for encouraging people to learn to type faster is slightly different.

When your fingers can keep up with your thoughts, typing becomes a very different experience. It feels more like an extension of your voice rather than a hindrance. And once typing starts to feel like an extension of your voice, you might be more likely to use the computer to express your ideas, to communicate them, and to use written language to achieve whatever goals you seek in this world. After all, typing is the gateway to communicating online, and if you’re a slow typer (or even a “hunter and pecker”), chances are your typing isn’t doing your thoughts justice.

When your fingers can keep up with your thoughts, typing becomes a very different experience. It feels like an extension of your voice.

I can still remember the first day of typing class in the sixth grade. After our teacher showed us where the letters a, s, d, and f were on the keyboard, she promptly walked around the room and taped a piece of paper to the top of each keyboard so that it was covering our hands. That method of teaching forced me to learn how to type without ever looking down at my hands. Nowadays I type at around 100 words per minute on a good day, and I find that being a fast typer helps me immensely in accomplishing my goals over the course of the day. Below you’ll find a collection of online resources to help you find out your current typing speed, learn how to type properly if you never learned, increase your speed if you’re already a proficient typer – and lastly I’ve included some online typing games that are just plain nerdy fun. Enjoy!

Take a Typing Speed Test

Typing Test dot com will allow you to find out how many words per minute (WPM) you currently type. To give you an idea, the average computer typist types 36 WPM. The average touch typist (meaning someone who doesn’t look at the keyboard while they’re typing) types 58 WPM. This test will give you an idea of where you stand and might help you to clarify what your typing speed goals are.

Become a More Efficient Typist

If you are a “hunter and pecker” (someone who types with two fingers, looking for each letter individually) or a slow typer who needs to look at the keyboard frequently, you might benefit from some basic typing lessons. There are numerous websites online that can teach you to type for free, but I found Typing Club to be a particularly good one. Check it out and if it doesn’t strike your fancy, a google search for “learn to type websites” will yield many more.

Increase Your Typing Speed

If you’re already a proficient typer and are looking to increase your typing speed, I recommend you check out Key BR. On this website you’ll be prompted to type a series of words, some of them actual English words and some of them nonsensical. I found this created a greater challenge and improved both my accuracy and speed over time.

Typing Games Are So Much Fun

Bored of all these typing tutors? There are many free games online that force you to use your typing skills. Below are a few that I found particularly fun (nerd alert!).

Type Racer – Type quotes from top-rated books as you race against real people located all over the globe.

Type a Balloon – Type the letters in each balloon before they float into the sky.

Type Attack – Type each word to shoot the invaders before they descend upon you.