How to keep the quality of your handwriting in the age of technology

In August 2010 it was revealed that people use technology at least seven hours a day in the UK. This ranges from watching television, attending to Facebook on tablet devices, and playing games on mobile phones.

Being that the average adult is awake for roughly 15 hours a day, this means that we are spending roughly half our lives with our fingers tapping at some electronic device or another.

It is of little surprise therefore, that only a year later, the death of good handwriting was announced by the BBC.

With that in mind, how can we keep the quality of our handwriting?

Use the right pen

Anyone will tell you that their handwriting varies from pen to pen, and it is true – some handwriting styles tend to work better with certain types of pen.

Some people therefore, find that they have more control with a thicker barrelled pen, and one that produces a thicker line of ink. It is also thought that a thicker barrel will help loosen even the tightest of grips – improving the flexibility of the hand.

Our Diplomat Excellence A might therefore make for the perfect pen if you find that you tend to grip too hard when writing.

On the other hand (excuse the pun), it also helps to be in love with the pen that you use. After all, there’s nothing wrong with being enthusiastic about the tool that you use to scribe!

Slow down

One of the main issues that people have, is that they try and write as fast as they can type, and although this can be accomplished, the quality of handwriting does tend to suffer.

If you have time therefore, try and relax and let your hand flow across the sheet instead of scribbling away. What’s more, make sure that you have room to write, as there’s nothing worse than knocking your elbow against some books while you’re trying to write a letter.

Write out the alphabet

A great way of practicing your writing is by going through the alphabet and joining every single letter. Of course, this might be quite tricky with some letters (Y and Z?), but that’s half the point.

Once you’ve done that a couple of times, take a look through your writing, see which letters are pleasing and which ones aren’t.

Also, try and pick out which letters look the same and identify ones that might lead to confusion. A lot of people have trouble distinguishing between ‘O’ and ‘Q’ when presented with other people’s handwriting.

Try and make sure that the closest letters are distinguishable from each other – a little like putting a line through the letter seven so that it does not get mixed up with a one.

Don’t be afraid to be inspired

If you see a style of handwriting you like, even if it is by a friend or family member, do not be afraid to try and copy it. Often, by aspiring to be like someone else, it is the best way to help us to improve ourselves.

And there is simply nothing wrong about that.