CSRNation
Magnum Steno Fan Club
Let's all get together and learn to write shorter, cleaner, and faster the Mark Kislingbury way. "Write Short - Write Fast!"
Why doesn't this work for me (insert wailing and gnashing of teeth)?
Mark is wonderful, and this board has gotten me really interested in his theory. BUT -- and you knew this was coming -- I have tried and tried with his idea of practicing at very high speeds, and it doesn't seem to help me.
Some possible reasons: I am court a lot with judges who race through material that is boilerplate to them and their regular reporters, but not to me. So I already have a lot of butt-kicking stuff to write anyway; is it an overload problem? Maybe I am not consistent enough about writing at high speeds? It seems that all I really get out of this is discouragement, and perhaps that is the problem right there.
I know this works for a lot of people, so all ideas will be gratefully considered at this point. Waaah!
Blessings, Cathryn
Some possible reasons: I am court a lot with judges who race through material that is boilerplate to them and their regular reporters, but not to me. So I already have a lot of butt-kicking stuff to write anyway; is it an overload problem? Maybe I am not consistent enough about writing at high speeds? It seems that all I really get out of this is discouragement, and perhaps that is the problem right there.
I know this works for a lot of people, so all ideas will be gratefully considered at this point. Waaah!
Blessings, Cathryn
KJM
When I first started speed building, the instructors encouraged us to practice at about 10WPM above goal speed. Some of my fellow students who seemed to progress more quickly than average told me about their technique of practicing at speeds well above their goal speed. I tried for a week and got discouraged because it was so frustrating not getting the dictation down and having notes that looked like crap. I also subscribed to the belief at that time that I would be reinforcing incorrect outlines writing slop.
Then I met Tami. She also advised to practice at super fast speeds, and once again, it was really frustrating. But this time, because she has been so helpful and encouraging, (and I saw the proof in the pudding when she started helping me shorten my writing--a million thanks again, Tami!) and I have the utmost respect for her wisdom, I stuck with it. It took a while to see the difference. But I have definitely seen great improvement, and now with magnum steno, even though Mark's dictation is WAY WAY WAY beyond anything I can get, (LOL) it is still training my hands to move faster.
I have found that I like to practice the same dictation over and over until I start getting it. That definitely helps with the discouragement. It is such a rewarding feeling when you do triumph. Also, at least as a student, I find it to be much more beneficial to practice the lightning dictation first thing in the morning before class when I am fresh and alert.
May 27, 2009