It's Never Easy

"Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment; full effort is full victory." - Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi

I remember reading a blog post early on in my CR training relating to how becoming a excellent reporter is like that of becoming a professional athlete.  I believe it was this blog, on the Kramm Court Reporting Blog (one of my favorites!).  As I've gone through my journey to become a professional reporter, I've found more and more instances where I find this comparison to be an appropriate one.

Now, I know there are all kinds of conflicting opinions on whether or not cheerleading is a sport.  Opinions aside, training to win a Division 1A college cheerleading championship was the most difficult of any goal I've ever set out to accomplish, and with rigorous training and a lot of discipline, my teammates and I fulfilled that dream.  It was an experience that has every day since reminded me that I can do anything I set my mind to.  Sometimes, accomplishing goals to fulfill your dreams can be really difficult along the way, but the feeling you get when you've made it is the best ever.

I had been involved in cheerleading since I was eight years old, and had spent many years starting with the basics (handstands, somersaults, cartwheels) and gradually worked my way up to the harder skills.  On many occasions, if I was unable to hit or land a harder skill, my coach would make me go back to the basics.

Sound familiar?  It's a lot like going back and reviewing theory in order to perfectly stroke those difficult letter combinations when "it counts."

When I tried out and made a spot on a college cheerleading team that had a reputation of being the best in the nation, I knew it wouldn't be easy to keep my position.  So I was constantly striving for excellence every single day that I was a part of the team.  Our week would consist of three-hour team practices, four days a week -- and grueling team workouts at 6:30 a.m. two to three days a week.  We cheered football/volleyball/basketball games on the weekend and had to partake in various community service events.

Just like learning stenography and prioritizing practice time and testing time and review time, it was a juggling act.  Time management was not an option; it was necessary for survival.  As CR students, many of us juggle working jobs, paying the bills, being good parents, taking care of loved ones.  There are so many distractions, but it's up to you to prioritize time for your studies in the mix and to set goals with realistic time frames.

Just like there are days in CR school where sitting down to practice on my writer is the absolute last thing I want to do, I had days where making it into the gym for cheerleading practice was torture to my sore muscles and my sleep deprived body.  After having woken up before the sun came up to endure an exhausting workout, and having attended a full morning of classes, enduring a very physically and mentally demanding practice was the last thing I wanted to do.  Luckily, I didn't have an option.  No one was allowed to miss practice unless they were literally on their death bed in the hospital, and there were no exceptions.  It was tough, but it was required to achieve excellence.

Our practices were very organized, and we knew what to expect from each day.  We would spend the first five minutes jumping rope (jumping rope for five minutes straight is not easy...if you don't believe me, try it), getting our heart rates up and our blood pumping.  Then we would stretch the same moves every practice, to the same music, with the same partners.  Then, we would start out with basics: handstand forward-rolls, cartwheels, back walkovers.  Then we would progress on to our harder tumbling skills: backhandspring layouts and full twists.  Then the rest of the practice time would be divided in segments: partner stunts, pyramids, basket tosses.  Usually the last hour would be spent on trying harder skills.

As weeks and months went by, my body got stronger.  I was able to perform skills I never thought I was capable of doing.  This past Friday, I passed my 200 wpm  Q & A test.  Here's a log that shows my progress from the beginning of my speedbuilding.

I remember hearing my first take at 200 wpm and thinking that it was impossible, but I mastered it!

Recovery time after cheerleading practice was crucial.  We would stay late in the training room to soak in ice baths, which were painstakingly cold, yet they healed our aching and tired muscles so we could make it through a practice the following day.

As CR students, we all have those days where our backs ache, and our fingers are hurting, and we become paranoid we're in the beginning stages of acquiring carpal tunnel syndrome.  I bought these ice/heat mittens on online from http://www.etsy.com/shop/theferriswheels that I keep frozen in the freezer, and I put them on after every long practice session.  Then after the cold has worn off, I throw them in the microwave and put them on for another ten minutes or so.

I have also found that making time to exercise every day, even if it's just going for walk, helps my body to recover from sitting in my work chair for hours on end.  Stretching is another thing I do to keep my hand and finger muscles in good steno condition.

As a collegiate athlete, I didn't have much free time.  Whenever I was fortunate enough to have a day off, I would use it wisely.  Sometimes, I would go into the cheerleading gym and spend extra time on a skill I was trying to master.  Sometimes I would go home, a two-hour drive, just to have some downtime with my family.  A few instances, I would do absolutely nothing, which was a treat all in itself.  Training to become a champion doesn't allow for many days off, and that was a sacrifice I was willing to make.

Being that my CR program is self-paced, I am thankful that this concept of making sacrifices to experience future achievement has been instilled in my life.  It has kept me focused and on track throughout my theory and speedbuilding journey thus far, and I know it will continue to lead me in the right direction with any of my future endeavors.

This is a video of our winning performance at the 2007 UCA College Cheerleading National Championships.

 

If you watch it, you can see why all that hard work paid off!  It was a feeling I will never, ever forget.  And one day, after we have worked so diligently and have remained so focused on getting through steno school, all of you fellow steno students and myself will eventually experience that same feeling when we reach that level of CR excellence and pass our state and national exams!


Can you tell from these photos in this photo-story how amazing that accomplishment felt?

Photo and video credit in this go to Chris Schubert at www.picturechris.com.

Happy Steno-ing!  Hope everyone has a very productive week!

It's a balancing act

I've come to the realization that many of us court reporting students have that one speed level that is harder than all of the others to pass.  For me, getting past my 160s was the most difficult and frustrating of them all.  It was like, my fingers would freeze and just wouldn't move.  I would get so tense and have to take a break to rid myself of my nerves during tests.  After six months of spending four to six hours daily working towards improvement, I finally saw results.  Nonetheless, it was a rough six months, and I'm glad they're over.

What I like about my online court reporting program is that it incorporates two different learning techniques in our speedbuilding regimen:  mostly writing clean notes and dropping when it's too fast; and at other times just write and let your fingers move freely.  During my 160 wpm journey, learning to practice both of these styles was key to my success from that point forward.  I say that because I learned that I had to write clean enough to be able to read my notes, however I needed to loosen my thinking cap and turn it to the side a little bit in order to keep my fingers from freezing up.

Now, this is just what has worked for me in my training so far, and I'm by no means an expert on this.  Being that I'm a Libra, I naturally find happiness in achieving balance.  Clearly, everyone functions in different ways, so I don't expect that this "way of going about it" will be that magic key for everyone.  I've found a couple of resources online, and I'll share them so that you all can explore them and see which methods best suit you.

I really like the video teachings that Stephen Shastay has on YouTube.  Although this is for students in slower speeds, the technique is applicable to students in the higher speeds as well.   Steve advocates writing clean notes, however he also emphasizes the importance of becoming an expert "dropper" when your speaker starts to babble so quickly you mentally rename him/her Chatty Cathy.

On the opposite end of the spectrum, Mark Kislingbury teaches on YouTube a method that involves getting a stroke for everything.  I have found this method to be more enjoyable than the flipside, but I still believe a balance should be maintained between the two.  I like to practice in this manner when transcribing TV shows or radio shows because it allows me to sort of turn my brain off and really enjoy writing and let my fingers move more smoothly than they usually do.

I actually did a lot of free writing like this when I was getting through my 160s, simply because of the fact that I would get bored listening to my school dictations after hearing them over and over again.  I think that by practicing from shows that kept me entertained and by allowing my brain to relax while still being engaged with my writer, I was able to stick to my practice sessions for extended time periods without getting frustrated and calling it quits prematurely.

One more thing worth sharing is a document written specifically about the rough patch, which I previously made reference to, that many student reporters experience during their training.  It is called The Plateau, and you can read read it here: http://www.cheapandsleazy.net/filez/the_plateau_older.pdf.  Stephen Shastay was one of three authors on this.  It gives a more in depth explanation on why writing clean and learning to drop are crucial to getting through court reporting school.

As a side note, I want to congratulate my dear friend, Stacy, for passing her 160s today!  She was actually the inspiration behind this post because we've chatted many times about how the 160s were a huge challenge for her, just as they were for me.  Congrats, girl!  So happy for you!

Happy steno-ing, my friends!  :)   

Persistence is key

"Never give up on a dream just because of the time it will take to accomplish it.  The time will pass anyway." - Unknown

This is a quote that I wrote down on a Post-it and stuck on the front of my theory binder when I very first started my court reporting training.  So far it's been almost two and a half years, and I am beginning to see the light at the end of the tunnel in terms of completing my steno school.

Like I said, I've been doing the Court Reporting at Home program, and I've really enjoyed the self-teaching nature of the school.  In college I was always looking for ways to take classes online rather than "in person" since I have always been able to stay self-motivated when it comes to school.  However, for anyone who isn't a self-starter with schoolwork, this program may not be the best for you.

I learned steno on a student writer, the Stentura Protege.  Her and I have gotten closely acquainted over the past couple of years, but sadly I will need to be upgrading to a professional writer soon.

My writer with my favorite plate on.  I usually switch the print to a light blue when I shadow on jobs to be more profesh.

I would love to stick with the writer I have (being that new writers are so expensive), but I can't because this one only holds 50 pages of memory.  Honestly, for anyone considering going into court reporting school, I would recommend buying a professional machine from the get-go, even if it's an older model.  Because really what's important to have post-school is your ability to do real time with it, it's memory capacity, back up memory, and being able to write clean notes with it.  

If anyone else reading this has any pointers when it comes to upgrading to a professional writer, I would love to hear what experiences you've had.  I thought about going with a refurbished Mira, but for not that much more I could have the oh-so-pretty Diamante.  I really, really want the pink Diamante so I'm (fingers crossed) hoping  that they bring that one back.  

So beautiful!

Another thing I kind of wanted some feedback on is what kind of jobs have you other steno students held while getting through school?  I spent the first year of my training working at a radiology office doing filing and reception work.  That was fine in the beginning, but later I realized that I needed more time and energy to devote to speed building.  I spent about six months doing mostly speed building and shadowing a reporter at some of her jobs.  In that six months I went from 120 wpm to 180 wpm.  

Since the beginning of this year I have been doing legal transcription work, which pretty much makes the same product as a court reporter, but it's done my means of pre-recorded audio.  I had originally hoped to use my writer while doing this, however because of tight deadlines, I never successfully used my steno writer to complete any of those jobs.  Although I've felt like I've learned a lot about transcript production in the past couple of months, it really has been very time consuming and has put a hold on my speed building.  And being that I am so close to the finish line, I've been trying my best to balance the two so I can finally start reporting live jobs.

A couple of months ago I discovered a group on Facebook called Encouraging Court Reporting Students.  When I found this group I felt like I had won the lotto because for so long I felt like I was the only court reporting student in the whole world.  I've come to realize that having other students to communicate with is such an important element of this whole learning process, especially because the amount of people that I've come across locally that have any kind of knowledge about court reporting are few and far between.  If you haven't been to the Facebook group page, I insist you check it out here: http://www.facebook.com/groups/ECRSgroup/.

I hope everyone is having a great practice week so far.  Happy steno-ing, steno friends!

Do it!

In the beginning...

So it's about time I share a little bit about myself for any of you who are reading this and who don't know me personally.  I am always asked the question, how did you even get interested in becoming a court reporter?  So I will tell you!

Growing up I always had a knack for words.  I always was the star student of my English class, and I enjoyed reading out of the oh-so-bulky Norton Anthology of English Literature book.  I was part of that generation that spent a lot of time online, whether it was blogging or using AOL Instant Messenger to talk to my friends.  So naturally, I became a very fast typist at a very young age.

I started college at the University of Central Florida in 2006 and right away had to declare a major (I had taken care of most of my general education courses in high school).  In my mind I had two options that would suit me:  journalism or creative writing.  Being that journalism seemed a little more glamourous than the alternative, that's the one I chose.

I learned so many things in J-school that I have found to be very useful in my court reporting studies.  All of those copy editing classes drilled into my head the horrific panic that one will experience when an error is discovered in a final draft.  All of those news writing classes drilled into my head the one unforgivable sin: missing your deadline.  A missed deadline equals epic fail.  Period.  I also did a lot of news blogging, so that's also one of the factors on why I decided to publish this blog.

Anyways, I graduated with a degree in journalism and a minor in English literature in May of 2009.  I spent a brief period of time exploring the job market and trying to figure out what I wanted to do with my journalism degree.  I finally decided that although I enjoyed writing, news writing wasn't "it" for me.  So I viewed my experience as a journalism student as a stepping stone on my journey to discover something I could feel more passionate about doing.

I'm a big believer in the law of attraction, and looking back now, I feel that explains how and why I became interested in court reporting.  If you aren't familiar with the law of attraction, I suggest you watch this video by Jessica Harlow on YouTube.  She gives a brief, yet relatable and easy-to-understand description of how it all works here:



I've always known that I would somehow find a way to utilize my natural skill with words in a positive way while simultaneously being able to help others.  It took some time, but with patience and curiosity I eventually stumbled upon the idea of becoming a court reporter.

To make a long story short, I met a working court reporter through a family friend, and she has been nothing but helpful and inspirational to me.  I was curious about what she did for a living, so I met her for coffee one day and she brought her steno machine with her.  I was so excited to see her machine in real life because I had only seen a steno writer in online images before that day.  She turned on her screen and started speaking silly riddles while her fingers danced upon the keys, and magic words appeared on her screen.  I was hooked from that point on.

The woman who introduced me to court reporting, Mary (left), and myself (right), and the bailiff at my first trial that I shadow reported in the summer of 2011. 

After doing a lot of research on different court reporting schools, I eventually decided to do the Court Reporting at Home self-study program.  Linda Bland, the woman who created the program, is so nice and she really knows what she's talking about.  If you're interested in becoming a court reporter, I suggest you check out the program at http://www.courtreportingathome.com/.

I started the program in January of 2010 and I am very close to completing it.  I'm able to write confidently at 180 words per minute right now.  I've still got a little ways to go to get to 225 words per minute, but I'm getting faster every day.

My fancy mouse pad.  You know you want one! ;)

I'll elaborate more on my court reporting school in a future post.  Happy steno-ing, steno people!

Welcome to my new blog!

Hello friends!  Welcome to my brand new blog that I decided to start to kind of share my unique experience as a court reporting student with all of you other steno people on the planet.

Also, I thought it might be a good way for my friends and family to understand what steno is (somewhat) because they're always asking, how does it work?!  What are you doing all day?!  That's looks weird!  I guess it is kind of weird...but I feel so special to have stumbled upon the steno language in all of its mysteriousness, as I have found that it's actually an enjoyable way to write once I passed my 160s-ish tests.

I've also been SO excited to have discovered other steno students scattered about the country via Facebook, YouTube, Twitter and blogs, so I hope that this blog will help me to discover and connect with even more future reporters.

In the beginning of my training I felt like I was on a deserted island, population one (me).  Now I'm communicating with other students on a daily basis, and it really helps to have that support system and people to talk to who understand what it's like to have a day where listening to a fake depo is the absolute last thing you want to do.  I'm talking, I would rather go to the gym...or clean out my closet...or vaccuum my car...or go get my teeth cleaned at the dentist...or whatever. I know you steno people know what I'm talking about.

So, I'll post more later about my steno background and whatnot.  I just wanted to post a brief, hello!  Thanks for reading!

Happy steno-ing! :D