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Stop typing like a 5-year-old
5/18/2025
After 3 years of ignoring this section of my website, I have finally gotten myself to write another blog post. My junior year of high school is winding down to a close, and as summer begins I am already becoming a little bored. After finishing some of my projects and revitalizing/improving parts of my personal website, this is my last stop before starting something new. I am not letting this blog section die, at least not yet. Anyways, I have been meaning to write this blog post since the middle of the winter, so let me stop rambling on about my procrastination and get to my point.
I, like most, started typing with just my two index fingers. It was simple and got the job done. However, as my life became increasingly more digital, and I stared to type more and more, I failed to adjust. I never learned how to type properly. It's not that I didn't want to, I just never wanted to take the time to learn and change my habits. I often would see people typing 200+ WPM and would be envious. I would think to myself, "I wish I could type like that," But then I would tell myself, "Nah, I'm too busy right now," and I would go back to typing with my two index fingers. This cycle repeated itself countless times until I finally decided to change my ways.
I eventually learned how to type with 10 fingers on a website called TypingClub. Typing Club did a really good job of teaching in a fun and engaging way, but also in a slow and methodical way. It started with just the letters J and F, then progressed to the rest of the home row, then the top row, and so on. Once I learned how to type each letter, then it focused on not looking at the keyboard, common combinations, and other lessons that would improve my typing skills beyond the basics. It ended up taking me a just under a month to get to a point where my new typing methods were better than my old ones. It was a fairly quick and easy transition that would end up paying off more than I could have imagined.
People tend to overlook the benefits of learning how to type properly. Yes, your typing speed and accuracy will go up. But beyond that, you will be able to copy text from paper quicker, you will be able to take better notes, and in general, your typing skills won't hinder your other functions. I am no longer losing my train of thought because I mess up my typing or because my typing falls behind. In case anyone's curious, my typing speed rose from around 50 WPM to around 100 WPM. It may not seem like a lot, and yes I still really don't type that fast, but my improvements were definitely noticeable.
Now why am I even writing this? Basically, I am advocating for everyone to take the time to learn how to type properly. It is a skill that will pay off in the long run, and it is a skill that is not hard to learn. I am not saying you need to go out and learn how to type 200 WPM, but small improvements can go a long way.
I know this blog post is a little different than my others, with it being longer and more boring, but I really wanted to write it given how much learning how to type improved my programming skills. I hope to get back into writing more blogs in the future, but in the meantime, or in the event that the blog section dies go check other the previous blog posts, the projects section, or the history section. Now stop typing like a 5-year-old.