In this lesson, we’re going to explore how to use text expanders and build your text expanders list in Word.
Access our ultimate list of Text Expanders to speed up your Text Expander list: Download Text Expander List
You’ve already been introduced to setting up a shortcut to make it easy to add text expanders when you set up your speaker files. Now, it’s time to talk about why text expanders are so important and some strategies for using them and building your list. The beauty of text expanders is that they save you time.
As you build your list, you’re able to increase the speed at which you transcribe and type more with fewer keystrokes. Text expanders also ensure that you have spelled words correctly if you make sure you set them up correctly the first time. That way, you don’t have to rethink how some words are spelled.
This also saves time when you’re spell-checking files. Here are a few key tips to building a great text expander list. You’ll want to set up a system for remembering your expanders. There are different systems that some people use. One popular system is Jon Knowles’s ABCZ abbreviation system, where you type the first three letters and the last letter of a word, with some variations on words that would have common letters.
Another method is to memorize words by how the letters jump out at you. For me, consonants that are unique to the word jump out. For example, with the word “remember, ” I use the abbreviation “rm”. Every person thinks differently. And so while I have provided a list of text expander suggestions, further down in the course, use what works for you. Start small. If you’re using text expanders in Word, you’ll need to memorize them. It’s hard to memorize more than 5-10 a day.
So, figure out some of the most common words you type, and slowly add them in. Get in the habit of using them. Let’s say you set up a new text expander for the word “because.” Now, when you first start using a new expander, it takes some time to remember that you’re supposed to be using it. So, if you hear the word because, and you start typing B-E-C-A before you catch yourself, go ahead and delete what you’ve already typed because, and retype the word using your text expander.
It might be a bit annoying in the beginning, but it will train your hand and brain to use the expander when you hear the word. Note: Don’t worry about going back and fixing ones that you didn’t catch the first time or were one or two lines ago. Just make sure that as the words come up, and you realize you didn’t start using your text expander, to delete your just-typed word and use your expander.
As you get more comfortable with text expanders, try putting together often-used phrases. Some examples could be: I don’t know, or do you know. For these expanders, I usually use the first letter of each word. If I already have a text expander with those letters, then I might add the second letter of one of the words.
You can also set up your text expanders for style guide markings. If you need to mark something in italics every time, like a break in audio, set it up as an expander complete with the formatting. To do this, select your word, pull up your AutoCorrect menu, and then click on the formatted text button.
This will make it so that the text expander automatically formats into what you need it to be You’re able to back up your AutoCorrect files and even print them out.
This course won’t go into it, but you can do a Google search or go on forums for more details on backing up your files. Now we have a basic understanding of text expanders. In our next lesson, we’ll look at using text expanders with verbs ending in different suffixes.
