Make your fingers smarter

It's time to remind you (and me) that I'm a programmer. And one skill that is perfectly assisting me in this craft is touch typing (an ability to type some text without looking at the keyboard).

I've started practicing a year ago when I was typing 40w/min using an advanced hunt-and-peck technique.

Why did I start?
First of all, 40w/min is just too slow for fingers that spend their lives mostly on the keyboard. Why not speed up a bit?
Another reason is that it is mentally exhausting to look for the needed key and think about your current programming problem simultaneously. It's like driving a car when you're a beginner. Painful.

I've decided to practice for at least 30 minutes daily, found a web app that teaches this skill in a step-by-step manner, and started.

Honestly, it wasn't a walk in the park.
I remember how I did 15-20 w/min during the first days using only 5 keys.
I remember how I learned to type long-distance keys ("y", "b", all of the numbers). It's pretty demanding and takes time to build muscle memory.
I remember a regress in speed and accuracy when I started typing capital letters and punctuation.
I'm 100% sure that everybody who has mastered this skill experienced the same difficulties during their learning process.

On the other hand, there were also many enjoyable moments.
What on earth can be better than beating your speed record by 2-3 words or winning a multiplayer typing race? Nothing.

I've intensely practiced for 3-4 months in different apps. After 6 months, I was already typing 60 w/min on average. I started trying to apply my new secret weapon to my work. It was a success. It has certainly paid off.

I urge you to try it out if you're still struggling with your typing routine. Make it a one-month challenge. It’s worth a shot. I believe in you.

Btw, check out my profile on keybr.com. It was the first app that I've used, and I loved it. It collects every possible statistical data that you can imagine, so you can always see where you should try a bit harder.