Givence Shorthand

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What is Givence Shorthand?
Why use Givence Shorthand?
Introduction: The Core Abbreviations
Shorthand Reference

What is Givence Shorthand?

Givence Shorthand is a method of shorthand that can be used both with writing utensils and with keyboard (e.g., a laptop). This is in contrast with shorthand systems such as Gregg Shorthand (that are hand-written exclusively), and the specialized chording machines used by court reporters.

Here is an example of Givence Shorthand at work:

/s s a sys /a L wk f b/ kybd- e writ-, b- as ez t rd as it s t write.

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Why use Givence Shorthand?

THE PROBLEM: I invented Givence Shorthand after struggling with Gregg Shorthand (which I had been learning to use in meetings and class lectures). The problems with Gregg Shorthand were several: (1) It was harder to read (interpret) than it was to write, since it was highly phonetic in nature. (2) Many of the shorthand forms were focused on business correspondence, while I needed to take meeting notes that were of technical topics, and for classroom notes that were of a Biblical nature. (3) I couldn't use a laptop to take shorthand. I was forced to write everything down on paper and then retype the full text in later.

THE SOLUTION: What I learned most from Gregg Shorthand was to think differently about note taking. I could transfer some root concepts to a new shorthand method and learn from both the strengths and weaknesses of several shorthand methodologies. The goal was to create a system that would work with a keyboard (and automatically would be reproducible by hand), could be read back quickly, and would use some phonetic techniques, but sparingly. Phonetics would be used for homonyms since context would easily determine the interpretation (e.g., the same abbreviation is used for "there," "their," and "they're").

CAVEATS: This is a personal system that makes perfect sense to me, but which you may find difficult. Feel free to customize the technique and to substitute abbreviations that are mnemonic for your paradigm.

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Introduction: The Core Abbreviations

The core abbreviations are for extremely common words and phonetic sounds. Not only do we want to abbreviate common words, but the more common a word, the shorter the abbreviation. Learn the core abbreviations first (in the order listed below) and start using them in your current note taking. Then add the other abbreviations (listed in the reference). Add one word at a time, practicing the words that occur most in your type of writing.

Phonetic Symbols

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Common Words: Single Letter Abbreviations

Common Words: Two or Three Letter Abbreviations

bcm

bcz

btw

lvm

nec

prn

ret

shd

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Shorthand Reference

This is the collection of symbols and abbreviations. Add or substitute your own to meet your needs. A word may have more than one abbreviation, so use whichever works best for you. The important issue is first to write quickly. The second issue is that it must be interpreted later. Use standard abbreviations whenever possible (e.g., "u std abbrevs"), but don't waste time putting a period after/amid them unless omitting them would cause confusion. You can also make up abbreviations on-the-fly if it will be readily understood within that context.

Punctuation & Symbols
A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z

Punctuation & Symbols

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