Students and adults today use digital means for most of the writing we do. There are apps and programs for writing essays, taking exams, making to-do lists, and email for sending personal and professional letters.

5 Simple Steps to Neat Handwriting as an Adult

However, handwritten notes and letters are still an incredibly personal and memorable way to communicate with other people. Having neat handwriting has impacted my life and career in at least 5 positive ways.

5 Reasons Why It Was Worth the Time to Practice Penmanship

I was not born scribbling perfect, legible letters in straight lines. I can’t even say that I was incredibly gifted when I first learned to write. It took time for me to develop my personal style and for others to start to recognize it as mine.

1. An Opportunity to Practice Self-Discipline

Learning intrinsic motivation, or self-motivation is an important life skill in general. My decision to improve my handwriting was one of those early opportunities I took to practice those skills.

Learn more about how I challenged myself to improve my handwriting in this post. In a nutshell, I started small and eventually formed new habits that made my handwriting into what it is today.

Nobody cared. I didn’t really talk about it with anyone. I did it for myself, and my motivation came from my own wish to create a better representation of myself through my penmanship.

2. It Conveys a More Personal Connection

In general, handwritten notes and letters feel more personal. Whether writing a birthday card, a friendly reminder, or a thank you note after a job interview, the handwritten version feels more genuine. It takes a little more time, but the impression it leaves has always seemed well worth the effort.

Real life example: My husband’s grandmother writes cards and notes for her family all the time. Not only do we get to enjoy the personal touch that her handwritten notes have, but we can hold onto them and feel like we have a little piece of her with us whenever we get the chance to reread.

3. My Lists & Plans Are More Organized

I am a planner and a to-do list maker! Nothing makes me more excited to check items off a list than having things color coded and organized by priority. The icing on the cake is when everything is easy to read. This has come in handy whenever I need to take a picture of a to-do list and send it to someone else.

Real life example: As I planned my sister’s bridal shower, I kept a lengthy to-do list with notes on my jobs and all the tasks associated with each of my helpers. My neat handwriting kept this list organized and kept my stress levels down.

4. It Stands Out in a Professional Environment

Each person has their own unique style when it comes to penmanship, but having neat, easy to read handwriting is often remembered in a positive way. Coworkers and colleagues can easily pinpoint my handwriting when I leave a note for them.

Taking notes might not be an exciting task, but organized notes on a paper pad or whiteboard can help to keep conversations on track. Having neat handwriting and organized note-taking skills has been a benefit to my team. It has helped me to become more valuable and useful to any influential people I am in meetings with.

5. People Are More Willing to Read My Writing

I am not saying that I believe that people with neat handwriting are more intelligent. In fact, I’ve read about how many of the most impressive people throughout history have had sloppy penmanship. However, I do believe that people notice neat handwriting and are more likely to take the time to read what it says.

Neat, intentional-looking handwriting conveys confidence and attention to detail. While it’s also important to make sure that things are spelled correctly and proper grammar is used, the benefit of being tagged as an organized and confident thinker can have numerous benefits. People are more likely to look past small mistakes and less likely to misunderstand what you are communicating to them.

Take Neat Handwriting to the Next Level

If you feel like your penmanship is in a good spot, that’s great. Have you considered attempting to learn more about decorative lettering? Check out my Instagram and get inspired!

How do you feel about how much we’ve cut down on practicing penmanship in school? Do you think this skill is still important today?