Too much noise, too little attention
Nobody wants to read anything you write at work. It's not personal though. We just happen to live in a world where there is so much information asking for our attention.
We can take action and make it easy for our colleagues to read our emails, messages, texts, and memos.
MORE IDEAS FROM THE ARTICLE
Things that are rare and dwindling become more attractive and are perceived as more valuable. The less we write, the more valuable our writing becomes.
Refrain from responding immediately. If another recipient should answer, give the person the right of first response. Ask yourself:
- Do I need to send this now?
- If not, do I need to send it at all?
- If so, does more than one person really need it?
Put yourself in the other person’s shoes and ask, “What’s in it for them?”
When we seek assistance or buy-in, asking for an opinion produces a critic. Asking for advice provides a partner.
Pay attention to your pronouns as well: "You" is selfish. "Them " is selfish. But "we " means working together.
When you discover problems, don't compose an email with a long explanation, opinion or instruction as this will make co-workers less inclined to take ownership.
Instead, use one or two sentences to describe the situation, then ask a single question and let the team contribute.
Communication is eighty percent listening and twenty percent talking.
In writing, ask clear, concise questions, so they know they'll be heard.
Because most of us start rambling with our insecurities - don't try to write a final draft on the first try. Allow yourself a few first drafts, then flip it.
Take the final sentence, the conclusion, and move it to the top. This inversion forces you to lead with the need. Then, you'll find that you can eliminate much of the rest.
Tell your recipients from the start what you expect.
If they need to read and comment on it before a Tuesday afternoon meeting, instead of "Agenda for Tuesday," use "PLEASE COMMENT: Agenda for Tuesday."
We long for clarity and for other people to say what they mean in as few words as possible.
Making wordy sentences that lose their fluency due to needless complexity in a text negatively affects the receiver of your message. In short: big is bad.
Especially for memos, agendas, and group emails, add a TL;DR (too long; didn’t read) summary.
Follow this formula: Who does what by when and how are we going to track progress. Write this person by person if needed. If the TL;DR clearly summarizes everything, send only the TL;DR.
RELATED IDEAS
Our coworkers are often not able to read or understand our messages due to the sheer barrage of information already trying to get their attention. There are text messages, emails, document updates and other notifications vying for eyeballs and mindshare.
To be successful in conveying our message, we need to design it in such a way that can grab people’s attention. Marketers are experts in designing words that, based on research and data, make people stop and take action. Their tricks can be applied to our memos, emails, reports and messages so that your teammates actually end up reading them.
- 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 one of the primary mediums in which you will be judged throughout your life.
- Your writing communicates your thoughts, and it’s important that those thoughts are conveyed in the clearest, most eloquent way possible.
❤️ Brainstash Inc.