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5 Tips for Better Business Writing
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Tips for Better Business Writing
You can be a good business writer, just by following these five tips:
1. Write as you speak.
2. Read it aloud.
3. Ditch the Jargon.
4. Ignore the English Teacher.
5. Put your main points first.
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Write how you Speak
Writing simply, and in an alive tone, using everyday words is more forthcoming and refreshing, than using unnatural sounding words.
Write like a human.
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Read it Aloud
If you read your written text aloud, you will realize where it can be worded better, or where to add or remove a comma. You can also let someone else read it.
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Ditch the Jargon
Jargon can be minimized, and complicated words are sometimes unclear to the reader.
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Ignore your Teacher
It's good to be creative and free in your writing, instead of just following old rules.
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Put your Main Points First
Simply put the main points first, instead of burying it inside the text or email, as many readers don't have the attention span or bandwidth to read everything closely.
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SIMILAR ARTICLES & IDEAS:
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The value of solid writing skills
- Being a good writer helps you stand out from the crowd.
- Repeated writing mistakes affect your reputation and credibility in the future.
- Your writing is ...
Kurt Vonnegut
"Why should you examine your writing style with the idea of improving it? Do so as a mark of respect for your readers, whatever you’re writing.”
The “5 Ws + H” method
... for establishing what and how you will write:
- Who: Who is my audience?
- What: What do they need to know?
- When: When does this apply, when did this happen, or when do they need to know it by?
- Where: Where is this happening?
- Why: Why do they need this information?
- How: How should they use this information?
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The first draft
The first words you write are the first draft. Writing is thinking. You'll rarely know what exactly you want to say when you start writing.
The time you put into editing, reworking and re...
Common errors
Most writing mistakes are widespread, but good writers just get better at spotting them. Some things you'll learn to watch for are:
- Overuse of jargon and business-speak, like "utilize" or "endeavor" instead of "use" or "try."
- Clichés are stale phrases that have lost their impact and novelty through overuse. If you are used to seeing it in print, don't use it.
- The passive voice. The subject of the sentence should be the person or thing taking action, not the thing being acted on. "Harry wrote this article," is better than "This article was written by Harry."
- Rambling. When you are not sure what you want to say, it is easy to phrase it in three or four different ways. A single concise sentence is generally better.
Give it some space
When you write something, you get very close to it. It is nearly impossible to distance yourself from it straight away to edit properly.
The longer you can leave a draft before editing, the better. Half an hour to two days is enough of a break to edit well. When you do edit, read your work out loud. You'll catch more problems and get a better feel for how everything flows.
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Writing is Deliberate
You’re going on the record as someone who thinks about why they do what they do, and understands how each decision affects the results. And developing this knack for critical thinking will also make you better at what you do.