How to Improve Your Handwriting

Your handwriting may not seem that important anymore. After all, practically everything is done online or electronically these days. If you have always been self-conscious about your handwriting (like I was) then it is still worth making the effort to improve it, no matter how old you are!

Improving your handwriting may have seemed like an enormous challenge when you were in the third grade, but it really isn't as difficult as you remember! All is takes is a little time and some simple retraining methods. You can relearn to write beautifully in a relatively short amount of time and ease the stress that writing a birthday card or leaving a note for a friend used to cause you.

Does your handwriting really matter?

Often, your handwriting represents you when you aren't present. It leaves a subtle impression of who you are. Sometimes people may judge your abilities (such as on a job application) simply by looking at your handwriting and not by reading what you have written. Take the time to make this small improvement and leave a lasting good impression.

I have bad memories of learning to write. Do you? I'm left handed and had trouble following along with the class. I remember trying to work it out on my own and never quite getting it right. My first "bad grade" in school was in handwriting and I was devastated! I got over it, of course, but I always thought of my handwriting as messy and not good enough.

As an adult, I continued to be self conscious when writing letters, invitiations etc. I always prefered to type it out, because I was still embarrassed.

When I homeschooled my daughter for a year, I researched several handwriting programs. Although there are many terrific programs out there for children, one in particular stood out. Getty-Dubay offers a program for adults and older students who wanted to learn to write clearly in italics and improve longstanding problems with their handwriting. So I bought it and gave it a try.

I absolutely loved this program! I still have the book, and have yet to finish the more challenging cursive sections, but I greatly benefited form the basic Italics course. I spent an entire weekend working on it and I can now write beautifully with ease. It did take time for it to become second nature, but there was nothing tedious or painful about it. I actually enjoyed it! The program consists of a workbook or two, depending on what you want to work on and the investment is less than $10.

Although the Getty-Dubay program worked for me (see above side bar for a peak at the workbooks), have a look at all your options, in case there is a program that you think would work better for you and your needs.

It is so important to be patient in this process, and go easy on yourself! If your handwriting has always been an issue for you, it's important to realize that it is not your fault! Many experts believe that poor handwriting is the result of poor teaching methods. The way you were taught was obviously not effective or thorough enough for you to gain the skills that you needed.

Please be patient with the process and have fun!

1. Relax. Find a comfortable spot to practice and relax your hands. Take a deep breath. This should not be stressful!

2. Keep your writing simple and clear. Don't try to do anything fancy with your lettering.

3. Take your time. Rushed writing is usually messy, careless writing.

4. Write gently. Pushing too hard on your pen or pencil will not get the results you are hoping for! Your writing will appear forced and stiff.

5. Believe you can do it! It isn't not as hard as you think. You don't have to be a gifted artist to be able to write clearly and legibly. You CAN do this!