In todays business world, writing skills have taken a backseat to
other seemingly more important corporate development activities.
Without good writing skills...
Most business executives would rather attend a seminar on negotiation
strategies or marketing tactics rather than learn the proper usage of ¡°that¡± or
¡°which¡± in a sentence. What they fail to realize, however, is that good writing skills
are just as important to their future success as is their ability to locate prospects and
close deals. Without good writing skills, your printed documents may very well undermine
the professional image you work so hard to achieve.
The fact is that your prospects, your clients, and even the media judge you and your
business based on the written documents you put out to the world.
Sales letters riddled with errors, advertising copy that is boring, and
media announcements that ramble on for pages send the message that youre
careless, uncreative, and possibly incapable of delivering quality work. People want to do
business only with those individuals they perceive as
knowledgeable and competent. Your writing is the perfect opportunity to showcase your
professionalism and win the deal.
Tricks of the Trade
You dont have to be a professional editor or journalist to write
effectively. In fact, there are a number of self-editing techniques professional writers
use to catch embarrassing errors that could cost them the job. Use these guidelines as a
way to proofread your own writing so you can make all your printed materials reflect the
professionalism you display in every other business activity.
1. Reread your work out loud
After they write a document, most people reread it to themselves to scan
for errors. While this is certainly a good start, it should not be your sole means of
proofreading. After scanning the document silently, read it out loud and really listen to
the words youre saying. Does your tongue stumble over a block of words? Do certain
phrases sound funny or out of place? Is a sentence so long that youre gasping for
breath by the time you reach the period? Do your own words put you to sleep? All these are
signs that a section of your document needs some tweaking.
When you read a document to yourself, youre relying on only your eyes
to catch writing errors. However, when you read a document out loud, youre activating
your sense of hearing and forcing your brain to concentrate on each individual word rather
than visual cluster. Now you not only see missing commas, incorrect words, or subject-verb
disagreements, but you can also hear when something sounds out of place. When you hear as
well as see what youre writing, you can catch more errors and produce a written
document that holds the readers attention.
2. Rely on yourself, not your spell check
The spell check feature on your computer is both a blessing and a
hindrance to writing success. While spell check can locate and correct blatantly
misspelled words, it cant catch those words that are spelled correctly but used
incorrectly. You know the words: right/write, meet/meat, youre/your,
there/their/theyre, no/know, plus a host of others.
Such words, called homonyms, are often immune to computerized spell check
features and can single-handedly undermine your writing skills.
As you reread your document, both silently and out loud, pay special
attention to known homonyms and read out your contractions. So if your text reads,
¡°Please know which word *youre* supposed to use,¡± proofread it as ¡°Please know
which word *you are* supposed to use.¡±
This way youll be able to catch those instances when you write,
¡°Youre writing skills are impeccable,¡± but really mean ¡°Your writing skills are
impeccable.¡±
3. Start from the end
The more you read something, the more your brain begins to memorize it. If
you reread a document over and over, you eventually get to the point where your brain
knows whats coming next, so your eyes go into scan mode. While you think youre
really reading the document closely, your brain is only picking up key words and drawing
on memory to fill in the blanks. So even though your 50th read-through confirms that your
document is error-free, your reader (who has never seen the document before) will quickly
spot careless errors you scanned right over.
When you feel that youve read your document too many times and cant
get past scan mode, mix things up for your brain. Read the last sentence of your document
first just to check for things like sentence structure, grammar, spelling, etc.
Then read the sentence above the last and do the same.
Pull sentences out of the text at random and check for errors. By treating
each sentence as a stand alone unit rather than as part of a flowing document, your brain
will perk up and not be anticipating the next memorized line. Youll catch more errors
when you look at the individual elements of your document instead of focusing on the
overall content.
4. Go to the experts
You may have a dictionary on your office bookshelf and perhaps even a
thesaurus. But do you have a good grammar guide? Anyone who produces written documents can
quickly improve his or her writing simply by referring to a grammar guide for writing
tips. Your local bookstore has many grammar guides available. Browse through a few to
determine which one adequately addresses your particular writing challenges. Some guides
focus specifically on grammar issues, while others pay particular attention to matters of
writing tone and style. Some target fiction writers or journalists, while others angle
their topics to business writing. Choose a guide youre comfortable with, refer to it
often, and watch your writing improve.
Better Writing Now
Competition in business is fierce these days. Dont let a misspelled
word or incorrect sentence kill the deal. Practice the tricks of self-editing so every
written document you produce showcases your knowledge, competence, and professionalism.
Before you know it, your prospects and clients will be unable to resist your written
messages, and your companys profits will soar.
About the Author
Dawn Josephson is president and founder of Cameo Publications, an
editorial and publishing services firm based in Hilton Head Island, SC. She is also the
author of Putting It On Paper: The Ground Rules for Creating Promotional Pieces that Sell
Books. 843-785-3770, e-mail Dawn@CameoPublications.com, or visit
www.CameoPublications.com.
Reprinted with permission from ExpertMagazine.com |
I'm Ivan Walsh, the person behind this site. I help people improve how they write, publish and extend their business assets.