A stenographer is one of those professions that everyone kinda knows what it is, but isn’t 100% sure about the details.
Well, fear not, for we have made the three most common questions a stenographer hears, so the next time you meet one you can wow them with your intimate knowledge!
1. So… what do you do exactly?
To sum it up in a sentence, a stenographer records what is being said as quickly and as accurately as possible.
They mostly work in a legal setting: courtrooms, depositions, contract negotiations… that kind of thing. In these areas it’s important to record what’s being said and by whom, as important decisions are being made which could have serious legal consequences down the road.
A stenographer can type as fast as a person is speaking at around 360 words per minute – much quicker than regular typists. In fact, a good stenographer can type 3 to 4 times faster than a professional typist!
2. How can you type so fast?
The secret to a stenographer’s speed is the device they use.
A stenograph isn’t the same as an everyday QWERTY keyboard. Instead, it uses a form of shorthand, based on phonetics rather than spelling.
So instead of typing out H-E-L-L-O (5 keystrokes) the same word can be written in just two: Hel-O.
Different keys can be pressed at the same time to form different words or syllables, and each stenographer has a unique list of pre-set shortcuts for different words and phrases, usually associated with the industry they’re working in.
For example, if a court stenographer hears the phrase “Do you swear to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth so help you god?” every day, then they can create a shortcut to that phrase to record it in a fraction of the time it would take to type it.
3. Do you only work in courtrooms?
A stenographer is immediately associated with a courtroom setting, but they can work in a variety of situations that need conversations to be transcribed into text as quickly and as accurately as possible.
A good example of this are subtitles on live television. The next time you have the 6 o’clock news on, turn on the subtitles and watch just how fast the newsreader’s words are being converted to text. That’s the impressive work of a stenographer watching the news along with you!
Stenographer is also used for deaf and hard-of-hearing students in places of learning to help follow what’s being said in a lecture, classroom, or video conference.
Around one-in-six people in the UK suffer from difficulty hearing, making business meetings, conferences and seminars difficult for staff and clients.
A stenographer can level the playing field and at the same time ensure your company is meeting its obligation when it comes to discrimination law.
Need a stenographer? Call us
Here at 121 Captions, we have built up a team of outstanding stenographers, every one of whom meets the highest standards set not only by ourselves but by the appropriate registration bodies.
We pride ourselves on a 100% accuracy target, and we’re so confident in our expert’s skills that we offer a no-quibble 100% money-back guarantee.
If any of our hand-picked, international network of over 300 professionally-qualified captioners don’t meet your expectations then we’ll happily refund your money.
If you would like to know more about our stenography services then contact us today and let’s have a chat about how we can help.
