38

The return of shorthand at last...
Advice for learning shorthand:

1 - Firstly that a "Half an hour's study six days a week is better than six hours in two three-hour sessions."

2 - Reading shorthand really helps in learning to write shorthand.

3 - If an outline causes some confusion, don't panic over it, take another look but if you still can't work it out, move on and eventually the rest of the sentence will clear up any words you don't recognise and any misunderstandings in translation as well.

4 - For increasing your speed at writing, find or make a recording, start slow, then use a slightly faster recording. Keep going until you're happy with your speed.

4 - i) Try not to use a tect like a book to translate and copy into shorthand, as you won't be writing it properly; where some words can be removed, you won't, double letters will be added and you punctuation will likely fall through.

4 - ii) Whilst avoiding using text to practise your shorthand with, this can also be avoided if you say the words aloud as you write them, but do be careful as this may become a habit.

5 - Despite advice number 4, you can practise random words by using a needle to stab into a dictionary, and pick a word, even if its one you don't know, in which case this will help your vocabulary as well, this will help when being dictated something.