Most instruction books begin with the straight strokes and the first few lessons feel more like deciphering sticks and dots than writing. When you get on to the curved strokes, the outlines begin to flow more easily.

Ten numerals or 15 words (in 7 shorthand outlines) on 8 lines in one minute = 120 wpm
"Dear Sirs Thank you for your recent letter which we have received today. Yours sincerely"

Something for everything

Because Pitman's Shorthand is based on rules, rather than memorising arbitrary combinations of shapes, there does come a point when you can write shorthand outlines that you have not previously seen or learned, in the same way that you can write a nonsense word in longhand, using your familiarity with the words you already know. Pitman's Shorthand's speed comes from the many ways of abbreviating the basic strokes. These abbreviating devices are not "add-ons", they are an integral part of the system, and they actually improve reliability and legibility because they mostly reflect where the vowels occur and where the syllables break. They give you additional information without writing anything extra, in fact writing less, and this is what enables the vowel signs (dots and dashes placed beside the strokes) to be omitted for most words, as familiarity increases. You can write in the vowel signs any time you feel it necessary, so you are never deprived of them. As you become more proficient, the outlines end up looking like groups of familiar syllables, rather than strings of consonants with unwelcome gaps.

You can record a word in a long, incorrect and doubtful outline, using the basic strokes, and still transcribe it correctly. Circle such words in red pencil, resolve them later with the dictionary and practise them until they are familiar. Writing something for everything is essential in real dictations, but is made easier when you know you have the right habits in place to clear up the difficulties afterwards. A bad outline is better than no outline, but it must not be allowed to remain. The easiest thing to do is to break the word up and write all the bits or syllables separately.

Shorthand writing at speed requires above all concentration on the task in hand. Cultivate cast-iron concentration and learn to switch it on for the duration of the dictation, and of course during the lessons as well. This is a useful skill for any learning situation. Learn not to be distracted, either by outside events or intruding thoughts.

Resource file

It is helpful to keep a resource file or notebook, so that no item of information is lost. I kept one book as a dictionary of unusual words, and another for reminders of theory that I needed to work on, lists short forms and special outlines to practise. A miniature notebook in your pocket or bag can accompany you everywhere – fill it with bits and pieces to learn – read it on the bus or in a queue. I keep several A5 binders full of items for the websites, with blank pages under each subject tab ready to write in the outlines and ideas as they occur.

The pad should be at right angles to your forearm, not the edge of the table or your body. If you draw a vertical line on the pad, you will find that having the pad at that angle produces the most accurate and comfortable line. The side of your hand or part of the little finger may touch the pad very lightly, if at all. The reason for this is that the arm should be positioning the hand along the line, leaving the hand at a constant angle and with fingers only doing the work of forming the outlines. Your wrist should not be bending to reposition the fingers.

Practice

Make up your own drill books and keep them in readiness for practice. Write the beautiful shorthand on the top line and leave the rest blank. Fill these in during spare moments. The idea is to practise without having to create the outlines from your memory. Instead you are consolidating their place in your memory.

When you have filled in a page, you can reuse it by writing over the top of ink outlines very lightly in pencil, leaving almost no mark. Say the words out loud while writing in order to associate the sound with the outline.

Never go back and correct an outline, just circle the outline and write it again. Note the difficult outlines and drill those ruthlessly. Do not be tempted to do only easy outlines, but planting a difficult or new outline amongst some easy known ones in a sentence is a good way of keeping the shorthand flowing during the drill.

Theory needs to be understood, but not memorised, like grammar in a foreign language. Just keep writing as many examples as possible, over and over again. Once you know the outlines for a batch of similar sounds, new similar words will be easily learned, because you already know the general shape they take. Being acquainted with the theory allows you to see the sense in groups of similar outlines and makes the initial learning easier.

It is not helpful to be distracted by the desire to be able to write any word you come across, or keep a shorthand daily diary, in the very early stages of learning the system. The frustration is counter-productive and I believe time is better spent consolidating what is presented in the book. You cannot really take proper dictation from television or radio before finishing thechapters, although it may be interesting to listen and mentally picture outlines for some of the common words. However, the telephone message pad is a painless place to start using your new skill.

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Exams

Take a new unused shorthand pad of good smooth quality that you have already tried, tested and trusted. Go through and check all the pages are separated, undamaged and do not contain any marks or spots. Rule the margins.

Immediately upon finishing the dictation, read through the entire piece and rewrite troublesome outlines in the margin, while they are still fresh in your mind – do not alter your actual notes in any way.

Never leave the exam room before the end of the time. Use every second to read, check, reread and recheck. Even if you believe you have correctly transcribed every word of your shorthand, spend the remaining time ensuring that your longhand handwriting contains nothing ambiguous – if the examiner misreads, or cannot read, your longhand, you may lose a mark. Consider the other students, who will get distracted or discouraged, seeing you leave the room (if it is allowed).

Do not attempt to cram or learn anything on the exam day. Restrict yourself to hand-relaxing fluency drills. In my exams we had warm-up passages at a slightly higher speed, mainly to allow the students to get used to the reader's voice. Warm-ups are a great help in getting your mind in gear.

Fatigue

Fatigue and tension from long periods of study is no encouragement to carry on with studies. Purposely avoiding it will speed up progress. Learn one short item of shorthand theory at a time, practise well and then leave it for something else. When you come back to it after your break, the "new" item will look like an old friend.

I discovered this principle by accident when learning to touch type at home, and narrowed it down to 20 minutes on and 10 minutes off. When I came back to the typewriter keyboard, my fingers instantly flew to the correct keys, because they had had a rest. I did not know how it worked (now known as "muscle memory"), but I certainly made full use of it from then on and found it can be applied to mental processes as well. The main point is not the number of minutes, but to stop well before the point of fatigue and change the type of activity.

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