Professional writing tips

Professional writing tips

10/18/ · Web content, emails, newsletters, and social media posts require us to write well. Small business owners often can’t afford to hire professional writers and editors, yet we know that our words matter. Here are a few pro tips for professional writing. First, tackle the big issues Many of these tips come directly from our award winning online business writing courses. My hope is these tips help you enjoy writing, better communicate at work, get ahead in your career, and grow your business! 1. Know Your Audience. Business writing is all about your reader. Your reader is your focus point, not what you know. 2. Prime Questions 3/15/ · Use conversational language. Bear in mind that you’re writing for readers, not drug brochures

Write Flawless Content With These 15 Professional Writing Tips | Moneybag24 - blogger.comag24

All existing courses can be customized for groups. Learn more. I'm excited to share these top 87 business writing tips with you. Professional writing tips were honed while I studied English Literature and Rhetoric, taught writing at the university level, and worked with thousands of individuals and hundreds of companies to help people write better at work. Many of these professional writing tips come directly from our award winning online business writing courses.

My hope is these tips help you enjoy writing, better communicate at work, get ahead in your career, and grow your business!

Who is my reader? What do I want this reader professional writing tips know or do? Think First Business writing is just as much about thinking as it is about writing, professional writing tips. Plan First, Then Draft Accept that you want to draft more than you want to plan a document or email. Everyone does. Drafting gives us a sometimes false sense of accomplishment. And, drafting is easier than planning, professional writing tips. If you are an analytical thinker, professional writing tips, which many business writers are, this is natural for you, but accept that sometimes it makes your brain hurt as your mind has to figure out all the interconnections.

Concept Maps are Essential for Business Writers Mapping the structure of a complex document will make both planning and drafting much easier. Develop Headings When you plan your documents, write a heading for each main section of your document. The first sentence is professional writing tips the hardest sentence to write. Instead, look at your document headings and write the section that is easiest or most interesting for you. Once you begin writing, the interconnectivity of thoughts will ignite, and the rest of the document will be easier to write.

To maximize your efficiency, refer to the map or outline you created, decide which section you can tackle in the time you have and start drafting.

Having a map and headings will prevent you from having to re-engage your thinking all over again each time you exit and enter the document. When you get stuck, professional writing tips up! Hire a Coach Hire a business writing coach and receive personalized feedback.

One-on-one sessions will help you gain confidence in your writing, professional writing tips. Lines, not sentences. Any longer than that and readability studies show that your readers just see a big block of text and jump over it.

Dangling Expressions are Funny but Avoid Them Dangling expressions commonly creep in documents in bullets and when copying and pasting, professional writing tips. Instead, write out the actual words - his or her. Headings Will Professional writing tips Your Readers to Scan Easily Using headings in email to highlight the organization will allow readers to scan the email more efficiently.

Make it Easy for Your Reader to Scan Add white space to your documents by using numbered and bulleted lists. Use Format to Indicate Hierarchy Indent paragraphs to visually indicate it is a subset of the professional writing tips above. Write to Express, Not to Impress In business writing, your goal is to easily transmit ideas and information, not to flaunt a big vocabulary. Concise Writing is Skilled Writing Concise writing is harder to craft than writing that has no length limit.

Blaise Pasqual stated, "I apologize for the length of my letter. I did not have time to make it shorter. In his book, The Miracle of LanguageLederer sings the praises of the short word:. When you speak and write, there is no law that says you have to use big words.

Short words are as good as long ones, and short, old words— like sun and grass and home—are best of all. A lot of small words, more than you might think, can meet your needs with a strength, grace, and charm that professional writing tips words do not have. Two tips on clarity I always highlight in our business writing courses :.

A break in varied syllable length has the same effect on reading a document that staccato notes have when listening to music.

The short, staccato words subconsciously alert your reader that something has shifted, causing them to pay more attention. Strong verbs have real punch. Business-speak: Professional writing tips was in attendance, and I conducted a review of the situation and culture, and I made recommendations for acquisition.

Use Precise Verbs To bring clarity to your writing, use precise and evocative verbs. Business writers tend to muddle verbs because imprecise verb professional writing tips is so common in business writing that it sounds normal to our ears.

For example, the verb decide is nominalized into the noun decision. These nominalized verbs require helping words around them that smother their impact, muddle the clarity of a sentence, and increase sentence length. Verbs Used Right Bring Clarity Enhance clarity by using a specific verb, instead of a smothered nominalized word. None of the smothering words have any value. Unsmothering verbs is a very powerful clarity technique. If take is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered.

Example: We need to take the data findings into consideration if we expand the product line. We need to consider the data findings if we expand the product line. If give is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example: Let me give consideration to your muddled writing.

Let me consider professional writing tips muddled writing. If have is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example: I have a suspicion some of your verbs are smothered.

I suspect some of your verbs are smothered. If make is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example: We promise to make an adjustment to your account by tomorrow. We professional writing tips to adjust your account by tomorrow. If conduct is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Two smothered verbs corrected. If come is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is smothered. Example: We came to the conclusion that prices had to increase.

We concluded that prices had to increase. If -ion or -ment is next to a verb or nominalized verb phrase, it is likely smothered. Example: Are we i n agreement that clarity matters? Do we agree that clarity matters? Extend an invitation to Karen and Sunita. Invite Karen and Sunita, professional writing tips. Avoid Wimpy Verbs Avoid wimpy verbs that need a helping word to enable the verb to do its job in the sentence. Avoid Redundancy Avoid redundant verb modifiers. Example: Damian shouted loudly at Clarrisa after she missed the deadline.

Damian shouted at Clarrisa after she missed the deadline, professional writing tips. Shouting, by definition, is loud, so no modifier is needed, professional writing tips. Don't Start Sentences with "There is" or "There are. Find the real subject and start there. Example: There was a strong disagreement between the divisions about the reorganization structure.

The two sides strongly disagreed about the reorganization structure. Active Voice is Better than Passive Voice Active voice is more dynamic and lively than passive voice, typically. Use Reader-Focused Wording To increase reader engagement, shift appropriately from writer-focused wording to reader-focused writing. Be professional writing tips. An entire document written with reader-focus wording can feel smarmy or too much like a marketing pitch.

Example: We professional writing tips decided to upgrade the features of our training course. You will automatically receive updated features in your training course. So often, I hear people within an organization parrot each other with phrases that have been used so much they have become meaningless. Bonus Tip: You can also use our free Jargon Grader to check your writing for over jargon words and phrases.

Be Polite. It Echoes. Everything we write at work has a larger echo. This echo is both a worry and an opportunity to advance your career.

For example, you may have to deny a funding request to present research at a conference, professional writing tips, but the larger echo requirement is maintaining the drive to innovate and research at your company.

Don't win a battle and lose the war. Use Standard Grammar, Even When Challenging Subjects and verbs need to agree in number. Their is plural. How to Dodge Awkward His or Her Dilemma To dodge the awkward his or her dilemma, shift the subject to plural when possible: A manager is trained to support his or her employees.

Improve your Writing: Show, Not Tell

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Pro Tips for Professional Writing - Get It Write

10/18/ · Web content, emails, newsletters, and social media posts require us to write well. Small business owners often can’t afford to hire professional writers and editors, yet we know that our words matter. Here are a few pro tips for professional writing. First, tackle the big issues Extensive use of properly-attributed materials is acceptable for prof essional writing assignments, however, paraphrasing (versus direct quotation) is th preferred. Use direct quotations sparingly and then only for a specific purpose. Paraphrasing is a summary File Size: 92KB Many of these tips come directly from our award winning online business writing courses. My hope is these tips help you enjoy writing, better communicate at work, get ahead in your career, and grow your business! 1. Know Your Audience. Business writing is all about your reader. Your reader is your focus point, not what you know. 2. Prime Questions