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Be a Better WriterBe a Better WriterImproving Written
Workplace Communication
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“Make thyself a craftsman in speech, and thereby thou shall gain the upper hand.”
–Egyptian tomb inscription
The Value of Writing WellThe Value of Writing Well
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The Value of Writing WellThe Value of Writing Wello Writing is a "marker" for people who are
more intelligent, more promotable and more valuable*
o An Office Team survey of 150 senior executives showed that 84% said it takes just 1 or 2 typos to remove a candidate from consideration for a job
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*National Commission on Writing
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The Pain of Poor WritingThe Pain of Poor Writing
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“… Amy asked that you be sent the attached checklist so that you can avail yourself of impertinent information regarding the engagement of a speaker.”
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How Good a Writer Are You?How Good a Writer Are You?o What kind of impression are you making?o Could you recognize your shortcomings as
a writer?
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What We’ll CoverWhat We’ll Covero The Four C’s
◦Correct◦Concise◦Compelling◦Clear
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What We’ll CoverWhat We’ll Covero If you didn’t learn it in elementary school
… you won’t learn it todayo If you have the fundamentals,
you WILL be a better writer
HELP!
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Correct:Correct:The Write WordThe Write Word
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The Meaning Aludes MeThe Meaning Aludes Meo When you use a word, make sure it’s the
right word
My wife had a difficult delivery. They had to seduce labor.
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The Meaning Aludes MeThe Meaning Aludes Meo When you use a word, make sure it’s the
right word
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Let’s conjugate at the baggage claim.You can’t rest on your morals.We need to be translucent with our customers.
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The Meaning Aludes MeThe Meaning Aludes Meo There’s no excuse for using the wrong
word
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Correct: Correct: ProofreadingProofreading
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Proofreading TechniquesProofreading Techniqueso Self-checks
◦Read out loud◦Print and read it with a finger◦Put it away and check it later◦Read it backwards
o Have someone else read it
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“WGBH TV, your favorite pubic television station”
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Concise Concise
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Less is MoreLess is More
"There's not much to be said about the period except that most writers don't reach it soon enough.”
William Zinser
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Less is MoreLess is Moreo Continual partial
attentiono Your writing has to
compete with other sources of information
o Say less … communicate more
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Less is MoreLess is Moreo Houdini’s secret
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Less is MoreLess is More
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210,000 Copies 14 Million Copies
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CompellingCompelling
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Writing Style Writing Style o The combination of word choice, sentence
structure and other factors◦Differs with audiences, format and purpose
o We’ll just touch on a few elements
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Stay ActiveStay Active
o Write in the active voice◦The subject does something to the object
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Russ drank a beer. The car burns oil.The dog ate my homework.
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Stay ActiveStay Active
o Write in the active voiceo Active writing is:
◦Shorter◦More direct◦More interesting ◦More easily understood
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Clear Clear
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The Communications PlanThe Communications Plano Audience:
Who is the reader?o Objective:
What do you want the reader to know, feel or do?
o Messages: What are the key points you want to communicate?
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The inverted pyramidThe inverted pyramid
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Most important point
Supporting point
Supporting point
Supporting point
Supporting point
Supporting point
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ResourcesResources
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ResourcesResources
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ResourcesResources
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The Value of Writing WellThe Value of Writing Wello Customers and clients evaluate you and
your firm, in part, based on your written communication skills
o Good writing conveys an image of professionalism and competence
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Be a Better Be a Better Business WriterBusiness Writer
Improving Written Workplace Communication
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