Everybody uses a PC nowadays so computer keyboard skills are taken for granted, but there are two important reasons to learn to type properly.
The first reason relates to health, while the second is purely related to business.
Many people are surprised to learn that the simple act of typing can lead to repetitive strain injury (RSI), as well as a stiff lower back, neck and shoulder.
RSI manifests itself as a pain in fingers, wrists or elbows and it feels very similar to tennis elbow.
It is a constant, nagging pain that requires a lot of rest and ibuprofen to alleviate.
In the context of keyboard use, it is caused by poor posture while seated, the incorrect angle of the wrists and incorrect positioning of the fingers over the keys.
A poor seating position would be where the seat of the chair is too high or too low, where the typist hunches over the keyboard or where both feet are not planted firmly on the ground or on a foot rest.
One of the dangers of learning to type online without someone making sure you’re doing it properly is that you may develop bad habits which will lead to pain later in your career.
From an employer’s perspective, investing in touch typing courses is an inexpensive way to increase productivity.
For example, many people (especially men) who claim to be able to type at 45 words per minute actually have a net speed of 8 to 12 words per minute (wpm) once backspacing for errors is deducted.
A quick typing course should get them up to a net 25 wpm meaning an increase in productivity of double or triple!
One of the problems in persuading men to learn to type is that this has long been viewed as a predominantly female skill.
Of course this has been an outdated perception since the introduction of the PC in the 1980’s.
Nowadays, men are as likely to need to type at work as women and not doing it properly or endangering your health just doesn’t make sense.
But outside the venerable institution of bashing the keys, other typing skills such as numeric data entry for financial workers and audio typing for secretaries also offer significant gains in productivity.
Numeric data entry is evident when you see accounting people typing invoice details into a computer while audio typing is where the employee listens to dictation on a headset and types at high speed.
Whichever style of typing is appropriate to you, it is important to learn from a recognised training provider.
Pitman Training in London (Notting Hill and High Holborn) & Manchester is one such educational institution and their qualifications are generally regarded as proof of keyboard excellence.
They offer courses including Computer Keyboard Skills which teaches basic touch typing technique, Keyboard Speed Development to develop accurate typing at speeds of up to 70 wpm, two levels of audio typing coursesplus medial audio transcription and even numeric data entry.
