So I applied for a job last night that requires good typing skills. Not exceptional typing skills but good ones. I’m getting up early tomorrow to go in and take a typing test before I head to work. As such I decided it may be a good idea to take an online typing test to see how rusty I am.
Turns out I’m plenty rusty. The last time I took a typing test to look for a job was over a decade and a half ago. Adjusted for no errors my typing speed was 67 words per minute. I was actually faster than that I just oops’d a few times knocking my score down. When the woman told me my speed I was a little disappointed. I knew I was faster than that. She was surprised. She said my speed was well above most who tested for the job (Alaska Department of Motor Vehicles, if you were curious). That was my last official typing speed test.
Tomorrow I have to beat 35 words per minute. Remembering my last official test I wasn’t too worried when I heard that. After a few practice tests online, I’m still not worried, but also not quite as cocky as I was earlier. My first go was 45 words per minute, well under my old speed. And my accuracy was just a smidge over 90%. Not my best showing, even if it would have counted as a pass on the typing test. I did the test over a few times and I’ve gotten my speed back up to 64 words per minute over a couple of tests. So I’m certain I’ll do fine on the typing test.
Why do I bring this up? Simply, I had a good skill back in the day that I lost to a certain extent because I didn’t make use of it. I typed all the time back then. I was in college and had tons of papers to write. And a very bad habit of putting them off until the last minute. So quick typing was a necessity. Now, aside from the blog, I just don’t need to type that much. So my skill has waned a bit.
Happiness works the same way. You can’t practice happiness until you get a good “happiness speed” and then coast on it. It’s a skill you need to hone every day. If you aren’t practicing happiness and gratitude daily, over time you’ll lose the “skill”. You just won’t be as happy.
I’ve learned a valuable lesson. I’m going to test my typing skills regularly. Maybe even invest in a good typing program to challenge myself. I’m also going to take this little epiphany to remember to also keep up on my happiness and gratitude practice. While keeping up my typing skills may land me a good job tomorrow, keeping up my happiness and gratitude skills will land me a good life. And it can for you too. Have a great day.
Senso1970's Blog 
Good Luck on the typing test and hoping you get the job!
I’ve tried this in the past and I know a lot of people who use it regularly to help them hone their typing skills.
http://www.mavisbeaconfree.com/
It all went well. I only needed 35 words per minute and my score was 55 words per minute. So I’m happy that I was well over what I needed, but I’ve told myself it’s time to practice typing more because I know I can do better. And I did well overall on the practical test. Now I just have to wait to be notified if I’m moving on to the next stage. She said it might be a week or two with it being the holiday season. But fingers crossed and thanks for the support 🙂