An Australian man typed every number from one to a million in words on his typewriter. It took him 16 years to complete.
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Setting goals is a great way to get things done, but not every plan has to make sense to others. An Australian man named Les Stewart is one person who proved that determination can outlast even the strangest ambitions. He set himself the goal of manually typing out every number from one to 1 million on his typewriter. It took him 16 years, earning him the “Fastest time to type one to 1 million” Guinness World Record.
Stewart began typing out each number (in written form) in 1982, and he finally completed the challenge on December 7, 1998. Partially paralyzed after a tour of duty in Vietnam, he typed with just one finger, making his achievement even more impressive. To successfully reach his goal, Stewart typed an average of three pages per day using seven manual typewriters. He typed for 20 minutes on the hour, every hour, and by the 1 millionth number, he had used 1,000 ink ribbons and 19,890 pages.
Stewart was no stranger to breaking records. Before his typing feat, he had already set Australian records for treading water and for continuous swimming, staying afloat for an incredible 30 hours straight. When asked why he took on his typing task, Stewart explained that his physical disabilities limited what he could do. Plus, typing was something he enjoyed. Before his accident forced him to leave the police force, he had even worked as a typing instructor.
Source: Fastest time to type one to one million
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