Handwriting can be something that people get embarrassed about or wish to change. It's amazing how different writing is from person to person. There are many things that can be seen as a reason for this perceived problem.

It is widely believed that you can paint a picture of somebody's personality by looking at their handwriting, so this often leads to parents who wish their children to have neat and legible writing.

It is firmly believed that better results and a positive study attitude is something that can come from neat note taking. Here are five of the best ways to improve handwriting:

- Understanding - By identifying and observing a problem with your handwriting, you will be able to analyse what you have written and which words or letters need more attention to increase the finesse and neatness of copy. Uneven word and letter spacing is one of the most obvious and common error.

- Materials - Failing to prepare is preparing to fail. Make sure that you remember this cliché during your lifetime, and writing is no different. Your choice of pen and paper can make a great difference in ensuring that your style is being suited. This can be a personal preference but many people believe that the foundation of good handwriting can come through a fountain pen.

- Technique - Many things in life need good technique for them to be able to work properly, neat handwriting isn't really any different. Try to use your shoulder and fore-arm muscles to write because by using your fingers you may well put too much weight onto the paper and have messier handwriting due to squeezing the pen. It is believed that by doing this there is more uniformity.

- Posture - Posture is something else that some people fail to consider, but it is an important issue. Be sure that it is correct, so try not to slump and sit up straight in order to fix arm movement and increase concentration.

- Practice - As the cliche goes, practice makes perfect and handwriting follows this rule exactly. By practicing block, cursive and print handwriting you can make sure that there are an array of options for yourself, and gives you the armoury needed for proper handwriting. Some like to compare their writing to others in order to realise exactly how you would like your writing to be in the end.

To some people, the inability to write neatly can be problematic, and many parents want to make sure that their children are up to speed on handwriting as soon as possible.