• Something about your message
• Something about your reader
• Something about you

When we write well, we are saying that we have thought about our message, we have taken the time to understand the reader, and we send a positive image of ourselves.

Finally, when we write well, we improve the bottom line. Why? We save time, frustration, and inconvenience; all of which represent costs.

All writing should be clear, concise, correct and complete (The four C’s). 

_{Writing Clearly}

Good writers use plain language to express clear meaning. They write in a simple style that uses every day words. They do not use showy words and ambiguous expressions in an effort to dazzle or confuse readers. They write to express ideas, not to impress others.

What do you think this manager meant in the following message?

“Personnel assigned vehicular space in the adjacent areas are hereby advised that utilization will be suspended temporarily Friday morning.”

You would probably have to read that sentence several times before you understand that you are being advised not to park in the lot next door on Friday morning.

Clear messages contain words that are familiar and meaningful to the reader. Whenever possible, use short, common, simple words to say what you mean.

Writing is like other forms of communication. You want people who receive your letters, reports, memos, or proposals to understand what you are saying.

Concrete Nouns

Concrete nouns help readers visualize the meaning of words. Concrete nouns name objects that are more easily imagined, such as desk, car, and earring.

On the other hand, abstract nouns name concepts that are difficult to visualize, such as automation, justice, integrity, and environment. In business writing, help your reader “see” what you mean by using concrete language whenever possible.

_{Writing Concisely}

Writing concisely means saying exactly what you mean in the fewest words possible. Often, when you re-write a sentence to make it more concise, it will also make it clearer.

Concise writing strikes a balance between abstract words that imply qualities (like beauty and inflation), general words (like management, team, and culture), concrete words (such as duck, lamp, lightning, and water, which we know by our five senses), and specific words that limit a general class. Building is a general word while a skyscraper is a specific building.

Here are some easy tips to remember that will help you make your writing more concise.

Use the active voice when possible.

Passive voice: The groceries had been carried away by the manager.

Active voice: The manager carried away the groceries.

Notice how much shorter the second sentence is, even though it contains the same information? It’s also easier to read and understand.

Watch out for adverbs.

Adverbs can add unnecessary bulk to your sentences. In his writing treatise On Writing, Stephen King says, “The road to hell is paved with adverbs.”

Example:

The dog moved much more quickly than the cat.

The dog moved quicker than the cat.

Don’t be redundant.

Have you ever seen a sentence like, “I watched the colorful sun set in the west,” or, “I took off the purple colored shirt”?

Now, if the sun were setting in the east, that would be something to comment on, but we all know that the sun sets in the west. Likewise, you can safely assume that your readers know that purple is a colour.

Similarly, watch out for words that mean the same: “We drained and emptied the tank,” could be replaced by, “We emptied the tank.”

Eliminate empty words.

The Writer’s Brief Handbook lists these words as the most common empty phrases.

• By means of
• Due to the fact that
• For the purpose of
• For the simple reason that
• In order to
• In spite of the fact that
• In this world today
• It is important that
• It is necessary that
• On the occasion of
• Prior to
• In anticipation of
• Until such time of
• With regard to
• In the neighborhood of
• Had an effect on

Exercises

Eliminate unnecessary words in the following phrases.

Wordy Phrase	Better Phrase
At this point in time
In the near future
In the event that
For the purpose of
With regard to
I am of the opinion that
Please do not hesitate to let me know
I wish to take this occasion to express my thanks
The early part of next week
Your check in the amount of
It is quite probable that
A large number of
At the present time
There is no doubt that
Most of the time
In the same way
During the time that
Remember the fact that
Not in a position
In view of the fact that
Until such time

 

Use up‑to‑date phrases, rather than those that are dated. (Write "omit" if you believe there is no appropriate substitute.)

Wordy Phrase	Better Phrase
As per your instruction
At an early date
Attached herewith
In lieu of
In reply I wish to state
In response to same
Kindly note same
Pleased be advised that/I would advise
Pursuant to our agreement
Refer back to
Take the liberty of
Thanking you in advance
This will acknowledge
We wish to advise that/ We deem it advisable
Allow me to express
According to our records
Hoping to hear from you soon, we remain
In response to yours of the 12th
Awaiting your reply, we are in due course

 Write the following sentences more concisely.

Original	Rewritten
In the event that payment is not made by January, your license will be suspended.
The invoice was in the amount of $50,000.
He ordered desks which are of the executive type.
There are four rules which should be observed.
The department budget can be observed to be decreasing each new year.

 Making your Writing Complete

The third C is Complete. Here are some tips on making your writing complete.

• Use the 5 W's and an H. Answer the questions: Who? What? Where? When? Why? How?
• Make a checklist of all the important points you want to cover, and then check them off when the letter/memo/report is done.
• Empathize with the reader. Have I told him/her everything he/she needs to know?
• Give something extra when appropriate.

_{Correct Writing}

The fourth C stands for Correct. 

We make most of our mechanical mistakes in four areas: grammar, punctuation, usage, and spelling. None of us need to be walking dictionaries, punctuation guides or spelling champions. Learn the most common errors and how to avoid them, and where to go for help when you need it.

Style

The first component of correctness is style. If you are writing a document that must conform to particular style specifications (such as Chicago or the American Psychological Association, or a style guide created by your organisation), you must also ensure that your document meets those specifications. You will also ensure that your document is free of spelling and grammar errors.

Grammar

Subjects and verbs should agree in number. For example, if the subject (noun or pronoun) is singular, the verb should be singular too. Most of the time we will have no trouble, but occasionally things get a bit sticky.

Allow meaning to determine whether collective nouns (jury, team, family, etc.) are singular or plural. When they function as a unit, as is usually the case, treat them as singular.

•           “The Board is pleased to announce the promotion of Jane Doe to Acting Manager.”

•           “The committee made the decision to move forward.”

•           “The jury has reached its decision.”

However, if the members of the group function individually, treat the collective noun as plural.

“The Board was split on the need for budget cuts,” is an instance of a plural collective noun, with the Board representing several voices or points of view, so a plural verb was needed.

Don’t let additional words in a sentence muddy the waters when they come between a subject and its verb.

•           The tulips need watering.

•           The tulips in the pot on the balcony need watering.

Words such as athletes, economics, scissors, statistics, and news are usually considered single despite their plural form.

Word Agreement

“Which” and “that” are relative pronouns that refer to other nouns or pronouns (antecedents) and the verb should agree with the noun or pronoun it refers to. For example, in the sentence, “Take a suit that travels well,” “that” refers to the suit and since “suit” is considered one outfit, the verb is the singular verb “travels.”

Make pronouns and their antecedents (the word the pronoun refers to) agree.

• The doctor finished her rounds.
• The doctors finished their rounds.

Anybody, anyone, each, either, everybody, everything, none, no one, someone, and something are all considered singular. In a sentence using both “neither” and “nor” the verb agrees with the final noun as in, “Neither Roger nor the twins are here today.”

Note: The masculine pronouns are he, his, and him, but imagine the feminine she, shis and shim.

Place modifiers or describers as close to the word they modify as possible, so the relationship is clear to the reader. Putting modifiers in their proper place is not always easy, however. The mistakes can be funny for everyone but the poor writer.

For example, in the sentence, “Opening the window to let out a huge bumblebee, the car accidentally swerved into an oncoming car,” the sentence falsely suggests the car opened the window. However, the car didn’t open the window; the driver did.

To repair the sentence, it can be revised like this, “As the driver (I) opened the window to let out a huge bumblebee, the car swerved into an oncoming car.” OR “Opening the window to let out a huge bumblebee, I accidentally swerved my vehicle into an oncoming car.”

“While reading the director’s report, Gibbon’s phone rang,” can be changed to, “While Gibbon was reading the director’s report, the phone rang.”

Exercises

Rewrite these sentences so subjects and verbs, nouns and pronouns agree.

Original	Rewritten
Everyone was there, and I was glad to see him.
Effective presentation of the competitive advantages of these products require increased television and advertising.
If any one of the garages are picketed, that section of the city will be without public transportation.
Some of these problems looks challenging.
Neither the doctor nor the nurses knows the whereabouts of the patient.

Rewrite the following sentences so that modifiers are in their proper places.

Original	Rewritten
The only other zoo animals that tried the crackers were the raccoons. Hanging upside down from their cage, Lund fed them biscuits from his hand.
I have discussed with my colleagues the possibility of stocking the proposed poultry plant.
He has one of the lowest mortality rates anywhere of any heart surgeon.
Dr. Coleridge has nearly performed ninety-one heart transplants.

 

Sentences and Sentence Types
The Sentence

A sentence is a complete unit of thought. Sentences can be classified by their structure.

There are three types of sentences: simple, compound, and complex.

A simple sentence has one idea expressed by one subject and one verb: “Billy ran.” Adding additional descriptors to those two words does not change the main idea: “Billy ran into the school yard.”

A compound sentence has at least two main ideas or clauses joined together. “Billy ran into the school yard and started crying for his mother.”

A complex sentence has one main idea and a second idea that is subordinate but tied to it. “Billy ran into the schoolyard when the school bus pulled away.”

A compound-complex sentence has two main ideas and at least one subordinate or secondary clause with it. “Billy ran into the school yard when the school bus pulled away, and began crying for his mother, who was nowhere to be seen.”

If however, one part of the sentence depends on the other (if the one is the cause of the other, for instance) we have a complex rather than a compound sentence.

Here are some examples:

• John hit the ball. (Simple)
• Little Johnny in the third grade hit the ball out of the park. (Still simple)
• Little Johnny in the third grade hit the ball out of the park and it broke the window in his grandmother’s house. (Compound)
• Little Johnny, who had been practicing all summer, hit the ball out of the park and it broke a window in his grandmother’s house, which was located directly behind the park. (Complex)

Keep most sentences short. There's nothing wrong with having a long sentence every now and then, but work to keep the average length of your sentences to fewer than 17 words. Vary the length of your sentences to make your writing more interesting.

The Paragraph

A paragraph is defined as a collection of sentences that may introduce, conclude, connect, and develop some part of an idea. Paragraphs have a beginning (a statement of the theme), a middle (clearly and logically develops the theme), and an end (concludes the discussion and sometimes provides a link to the next paragraph).

Limit each paragraph to one idea, unless you are linking related thoughts. If you are comparing the old and the new, for example, it makes sense to bring them together in one paragraph.

 Ordering the middle of a paragraph is a challenge for many writers. However, ordering may be chronological, in order of importance, move from general to specific (or vice versa), move from simple to complex, from pro to con, or from question to answer.

 Complicated information, or a discussion of several ideas, generally needs to be broken up into separate paragraphs to be easily understood.

 To avoid choppy paragraphs, use a variety of sentence types and sentence lengths. While the average sentence should be about 17 words, vary the length of your sentences to make your writing more interesting.

 Keep paragraphs short when possible. Paragraph length, of course, depends on content. Some topics are short, some are long, and others are in between. A good rule to follow is to question the unity of paragraphs over 12 lines. An average length of 9 lines makes for good readability.

Exercise

In the following exercise, find at least one simple sentence, one compound sentence, one complex sentence, and one compound-complex sentence. Then identify one way you might organize the information in the paragraph.

• Simple sentence
• Compound sentence
• Complex sentence

Paragraphs also must have unity, coherence, and emphasis.

Unity

In good paragraphs, the emphasis is on oneness, one theme with which the writer focuses the readers' attention. This theme should be stated in the first sentence of the paragraph.

Coherence

Coherence is achieved by carefully organizing your thoughts/material and then using mechanical devices such as:

• Parallelism of similar (terrorize/tyrannize) or contrasted (on the other hand) structure and words.
• Repetition (during one/during another) forces the reader to recall what came before and focuses their attention. Recall Winston Churchill's "We will fight them" speech.
• Use demonstrative adjectives (this, that, these, those) to refer to the concept that is the theme of the paragraph. In an opening sentence, if you referred to one evening, in the next, you would say “that day” to point back to the evening (emphasis!!!).
• The most important part of coherence is using transitional terms to bridge thoughts together by:

• Adding one point to another (also, besides, in addition, further)
• Showing similarity (likewise, in other words)
• Showing cause and effect (since, as a result, consequently)
• Showing differences (yet, nevertheless, despite, on the other hand, conversely)
• Expressing emphasis (chiefly, primarily, more important, mainly)

Emphasis

The most emphatic position in a sentence is the ending. Likewise, the paragraph closer is just slightly more important than the opener. Both are necessary. In the first case, a weak closer fails to wrap up the thought and lead to the next paragraph. On the other hand, a paragraph can rarely recover from a weak opener.

The best ways to get emphasis are to vary sentence length and vary paragraph length. While there is no optimum length, most paragraphs consist of 3 or 4 sentences, but should rarely exceed 9 or 10.

Complicated information, or a discussion of several ideas, generally needs to be broken up into separate paragraphs to be easily understood.

Rhythm

You should also vary the length and structure of your sentences so the pace of your writing doesn’t become too monotonous or too choppy.

In the following paragraph the ideas unfold too slowly. Sentences are similar in both length and structure.

“The Unicorn Corporation will close its plant in North Branch next fall. The closing will occur because of military cutbacks. The closing will put 500 people out of work. Military cutbacks will also close a plant in South Branch. Next fall, 200 employees will be laid off and another 200 reassigned.”

However, this example demonstrates a different problem where the information is overly compressed and the reader must retain a lot of information.

“Next fall, because of military cutbacks, the Unicorn Corporation will close plants in North Branch, where 500 people will be put out of work, and in South Branch, where200 employees will be laid off and 200 will be reassigned.”

Voice

There are two voices: active and passive.

The active voice is:

• Direct (The researcher applied the electrodes to the test sites.)
• Reduces length
• Clarifies the sentence
• Produces a crisper, more vital style

The passive voice is:

• Indirect (The electrodes were applied to the test site by the researcher.)
• Reverses the normal subject-verb-object pattern
• Includes some form of the verb be, followed by a past participle (were applied)
• Usually considered weak, obscure, wordy, and lacks vigor

Passive: “Be assured (by whom?) that action will be taken (by whom?)."

Active: "I assure you that I will act."

So if you find yourself using past participles like:

• Was given
• To be accompanied
• Had been shown
• Will be measured
• Is being removed

Stop and consider whether an active structure might not be more effective. However, if you are writing to break bad or unpleasant news, the passive voice is less direct and will weaken the link between you and the bad news. The passive voice focuses on actions rather than personalities; it helps you be impersonal and tactful.

Courtesy

Courtesy is an important principle of good business writing.

• Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful, and appreciative.
• Don’t use words that could irritate, hurt, or belittle.
• Apologize with a good nature, when required.
• Answer your own mail promptly.
• Use an appropriate writing style that fits the topic you are writing about and your audience.

When writing letters, you should also make sure you:

• Use the appropriate company name
• Address the letter correctly
• Spell the person’s name correctly
• Use the proper form of address; if unsure, use Mr. or Mrs. If unsure of gender, simply use the person’s name.

Seven Ways to Simplify your writing 

Parallelism

Parallelism is a writing technique that involves balanced writing, such as using similar structures to express similar ideas. It is the writer’s word for consistency. Once you start doing something one way, you should keep doing it that way. Use identical noun, adjective, or verb forms so that writing is easy to read and understand.

Change this sentence to preserve parallelism: “We need more laboratory space, additional personnel are required, and we also need a bigger slice of the budget.”

Style/Tone

Style and tone are nearly the same thing, and the words really mean the emotional mood of the writing. Style is famously described as “the way of saying it.” Style is what makes the same song sound different when it is sung by Michael Jackson or by Aretha Franklin.

Tone isn’t determined by topic, nor by the writer’s personality. Nor is tone always determined by the audience. Tone is most often determined by purpose: what are you trying to do?

Every piece of writing, like every person, has an emotional feel, an unstated message. To appreciate the large part that tone plays in writing, become sensitive to it in everything you read—particularly everything you read from your director or the person for whom you write letters and memos most often.

Most business letters, memos, and reports replace conversation. Thus they are most effective when they convey their message in an informal, conversational tone. Many writers tend toward a formal or distant writing style, depersonalizing the message by using third-person constructions such as “the undersigned” or “the writer.”

Try to use more familiar pronouns such as we, you and I, although you should use “I” sparingly. Overuse of the pronouns “I” and “me” suggest that the writer’s interests lie with the writer instead of with the reader.

Here are some examples of different tones.

Formal	Conversational
All employees are herewith instructed to return the appropriate designated contracts to the undersigned.	Please return your contracts to me.
Pertaining to your order, we must verify the sizes the organisation requires prior to our consignment of your order to the shipper.	We’ll send your order as soon as we confirm the sizes you need.

 Positive Language

The tone of a letter or memo is considerably improved if you use positive rather than negative language. It is uplifting and more pleasant to focus on a positive message. Positive language usually conveys more information than negative language does. Analyze what you have to say and then say it as positively as possible.

For example, “I can’t use Macintosh computers,” vs. “I am very comfortable using any IBM computer.”

Change the negative tone of the following sentences to a more positive impression.

Negative Message	Positive Message
We are unable to send you your registration until we receive proof of your payment.
Parking is not permitted in any other lot than South Lot D.
If you fail to pass the exam, you will not qualify.
Although I’ve never had a paid position before, I have worked as an intern with the Department of Justice before completing my degree.
I am unavailable to answer the phone between 12 and 2 pm.

 Inclusive Language

Create messages that include rather than exclude. Biased language not only hampers communication, it also alienates some people and excludes others entirely. All of your oral, written, visual, and electronic communication should be inclusive, unbiased, and fair to all individuals.

Every lawyer has ten minutes for his summation.	Each lawyer has ten minutes for a summation.
Everybody is responsible for his own parking space.	They are responsible for their own parking space.

When creating your messages, identify or address people first as individuals, and then mention the group to which they belong, if that information is relevant.

• Alternate word order in phrases that include both sexes. Always putting men first (as in men and women, boys and girls, he and she, male and female) can give a subtle impression that men are more important than women.
• Identify women as individuals. Identify a woman as someone’s wife, mother, grandmother, or aunt only if it is appropriate in the context and if men are or would be described in a similar fashion.
• Use generic nouns, such as firefighter rather than fireman, letter carrier rather than mailman.
• Avoid feminine suffixes. Terms like manageress, waitress, or executrix, all reinforce the idea that a woman in a particular job is an exception.
• Use language that reflects equal respect for women and men. Avoid using terms like girls, gals, or ladies in situations where you would refer to men as men.
• Use gender as an adjective only if relevant to your message. Female physician, woman lawyer, or the like are unnecessary and can suggest bias.
• Use words or phrases that promote inclusivity. For example, instead of career woman, consider professional or businessperson.
• Avoid phrases that make assumptions about gender. Phrases and words such as feminine intuition, the fairer sex, his better half, or women’s work assume certain characteristics based only on gender.
• Describe similar behavior using similar terms. Saying men are aggressive and women are pushy to describe similar behavior advances inappropriate stereotypes.
• Use generic terms when referring to a general group of people. Unless you are only referring to men, consider human beings, staff, and synthetic, rather than mankind, men, and man-made.
• Find alternatives for masculine pronouns. When referring to persons whose gender hasn’t been identified use something other than he, him, or his.

How could we re-write these terms to make them inclusive?

Empathy/Reader Benefit

Always be clear to the WWIFM: What’s In It For Me? (Me being the reader.) If you were reading an advertisement, which of these sentences would appeal to you the most?

• “We have just designed an amazing computer program that automatically calculates income tax.”
• “You will be amazed at how this computer program can calculate your income tax.”

Rewrite this sentence: “To prevent us from possibly losing large amounts of money, our bank now requires verification of any large check presented for immediate payment.”

This tells the reader which are the important words or ideas in a sentence. For example:

• “The deadline is December 30th for applications for overseas assignments.”
• “December 30 is the deadline for applications for overseas assignments.”

Make this sentence more emphatic: “We need a new distribution system.”

Sometimes we want to de-emphasize bad news or painful responses by using general words rather than vivid words, burying the bad news in the middle of a sentence, or putting it in a dependent clause. (Example: “We have a plan that will allow you to meet your immediate needs on a cash basis since we cannot issue you credit at this time.”) No matter what kind of news you are delivering, it is important to be clear, concise, correct, and as positive as possible.

Sentence Unity

Unified sentences contain thoughts that are related to only one idea.

For example, “Our insurance plan is available in all provinces and you may name anyone as your beneficiary.” What would a better sentence be?

Practical Language  

Use language and punctuation in a practical manner. Rules were meant to be broken or stretched occasionally. If necessary, you may:

• Begin sentences with “and” or “but”
• End sentences with prepositions
• Use the same terms consistently (the reader may be confused if you change words)

You can also use fewer punctuation marks, as long as the writing remains clear.

You should try not to start sentences with “it” and you should spell out acronyms the first time you use them.

 World Usage

Fewer refers to number but less modifies a singular noun. “There were fewer volunteers and they were less eager to work.”

Anxious means worried. Eager means desirous. “I am anxious about the interview tomorrow but I am eager to begin earning some money.”

 Almost means nearly. Most is the superlative form of much. “I have almost finished lunch. This was the most delicious salad I’ve eaten in days.”

Numerous refers to a large but unknown number. Many is a large, indefinite number. “There are numerous sales positions advertised but many of them are for jobs in manufacturing.”

Who and whoever are always subjects of a clause. Whom and whomever are always objects of verbs or prepositions.

• “The man who wanted to buy the miracle window cleaner stood in line for an hour.”
• “The firefighters rescued the children whom the police had been unable to reach.”

That and Which

“That” is used almost exclusively with restrictive clauses; those that limit or narrows the definition of an item. The clause cannot be moved or changed without affecting the meaning of the sentence. For example, “The clothes that Jamie wore to the party reeked of cigarette smoke.” The only clothes being talked about here are those Jamie wore to the party.

“Which,” on the other hand, is used in a non-restrictive clause, neither limiting nor narrowing meaning but rather telling more about an item. “The Statue of Liberty, which is in New York, welcomed many, many immigrants at the turn of the century.”

Some reasons to be grateful if you grew up speaking English:

• The bandage was wound around the wound.
• The farm was used to produce produce.
• The dump was so full that it had to refuse more refuse.
• We must polish the Polish furniture.
• He could lead if he would get the lead out.
• The soldier decided to desert his dessert in the desert.
• Since there is no time like the present, he thought it was time to present the present.
• At the Army base, a bass was painted on the head of a bass drum.
• When shot at, the dove, dove into the bushes.
• I did not object to the object, nor could I be objective about the objective.
• The insurance was invalid for the invalid.
• There was a row among the oarsmen about how to row.
• They were too close to the door to close it.
• The buck does funny things when the does are present.
• A seamstress and a sewer fell down into a sewer line.
• To help with planting, the farmer taught his sow to sow.
• The wind was too strong to wind the sail.
• After a number of Novocain injections, my jaw got number.
• Upon seeing the tear in the painting I shed a tear.
• I had to subject the subject to a series of tests.
• How can I intimate this to my most intimate friend?
• I spent last evening evening out a pile of dirt.
• If you have a rough cough, climbing can be tough when going through the bough on a tree!
• There is no egg in eggplant.

Let's face it - English is a crazy language!

 Sentence Construction 

The two basic rules for constructing sentences are use construction that makes meaning clear and keep construction parallel. Parallel construction means that parts of a sentence that are parallel or balanced in meaning should be parallel or balanced in structure.

 For example, if you write, “She likes swimming, running and to play the piano,” to play the piano is a different construction from swimming and running. Write “She likes swimming, running, and playing the piano,” to make the activities parallel in structure.

 When Shakespeare has Hamlet say “To die, to sleep, perchance to dream,” he is using parallel structure. Parallelism refers to a series of like grammatical structures—words, phrases, clauses—expressed in repeated grammatical construction.

Change the following sentences to the correct parallel structure.

Original Sentence	Rewritten
Running, walking, and a swim are all good forms of exercise.
To get to the store, you walked down to the corner, take the path through the park and cut across the square.
To run for office, you may have to join a party, have to sell your independent views, and raffle tickets.
Roseanne Barr battled her network, will fight with her husband publicly, and sings the American national anthem with an equal absence of class.
Three reasons why manufacturing companies are losing money is that their plants are inefficient, high labor costs, and increasing foreign competition.

Steps for Writing Business Letters

There are times when a telephone call cannot replace a letter. Perhaps you want a permanent, written record of a transaction, a commitment, a complaint, or a congratulatory note. Perhaps you know it will be difficult to catch busy people in the office and with time to talk on the phone. They are faced with hundreds of e-mails a day and may pass them by. However, you know they read their mail.

Business letters represent a direct communication between one person and another. You have an opportunity to make a good impression for you and your company, to take the reader's needs into account, and to be courteous, positive and professional.

The following steps will help you to write more effective business letters.

 Assess the Situation and Your Objective(s)

Why are you writing? Assess your reader and your relationship with your reader. Then assess how you want to appear to the reader and what you want to happen. Time spent on preparation is time saved later, and goes a long way towards ensuring a more effective letter.

Decide the purpose of the letter. What do you want to achieve? Have action taken about a complaint? Have an instruction carried out by a deadline?

Decide who to write to if it is not obvious, e.g., if you are initiating a complaint.

Obtain all the information/facts you need before starting to write.

Decide What to Say

Only when it's clear in your mind can it be clear in the reader's mind. The reader might be tired, busy, or distracted. Try dealing with one point at a time and in a logical order. Give the letter a structure. The beginning sets the scene for the reader (reference to a previous letter, explanation of the purpose of the letter); the body of the letter sets out the key points; and the end of the letter indicates the next step that should be taken, by whom, and by when.

Put Your Thoughts in Sequence

Divide your thoughts into groups, with a clear paragraph for each thought. Individual paragraphs for each thought tell the reader when the writer has finished one thought before going on to the next. Long paragraphs are both hard to read and hard to digest. If you need to use a longer paragraph, consider using numbered sub‑paragraphs to aid clarity.

Identify Your Subject

Address the letter correctly. Whenever possible, use the person's name in both the address and the salutation. That's one way of making your letter more personal.

End By Pointing the Way Ahead

Make it easy for the reader to comply with your request with a statement that's aimed at telling the reader what comes next.

 Ensure the complimentary close matches the salutation. For example, “Dear Dr. Holt:” is formal so you will want the end of the letter to end equally formally, as in, “Yours truly,” and your full name. However, if you began your letter with, “Dear Ted,” you may close your letter with a more informal, “Sincerely,” and your name.

Parts of a Business Letter

Here is a sample business letter. Each number is identified on the next page.

1)    Letterhead: Most businesses use 8 ½ x11 inch paper printed with their own letterhead. The letterhead usually includes the company logo, name, address, phone number, facsimile number, and Web site (if applicable).

2)    Dateline: Two lines below the letterhead. Alignment depends on the style used.

3)    Addressee and Delivery notations: Delivery notations such as FAX TRANSMISSION, OVERNIGHT DELIVERY, CONFIDENTIAL, etc. are typed in all capital letters two line spaces above the inside address.

4)    Inside Address: Type the inside address (the address of the person receiving the letter) single-spaced, starting at the left margin, two lines below the dateline (or five lines if there is an addressee or delivery notation). It is there to help writers accurately file a copy of the message.

Be sure to include a courtesy title such as Mr., Ms., and avoid abbreviated company names unless they appear in the printed letterhead of the document being answered.

5)    Attention line: If you know the person’s complete name it is always better to use it as the first line of the inside address and avoid the attention line. If you do use an attention line, it may be typed in all caps or with upper and lowercase letters, one line below the inside address.

6)    Subject and Reference lines: Although experts suggest placing the subject line two spaces below the salutation; many businesses actually place it above the salutation. Use whatever style your organisation prefers. Reference lines often show policy or file numbers. They generally appear two lines above the salutation.

7)    Salutation: For most letters place the salutation two lines below the last line of the inside address, or the subject line if it is used. Even if you are on a first name basis with the individual, add a colon (not a comma or a semi-colon) after the salutation. (Do not use a person’s full name unless you are unsure of their gender, as in “Dear Leslie Lenahan:”)

Note: Letters addressed to organisations pose certain problems. Formerly, “Gentlemen” was used generically for all organisations. That no longer works today. As of yet, no universally acceptable salutation has emerged, so you will probably be safest with “Ladies and Gentlemen.”

8)    Body: Most business letters and memos are single spaced, with double line spacing between paragraphs. Very short messages may be double spaced with indented paragraphs.

9)    Complimentary close: Typed two lines below the last line of the letter, the complimentary close may be formal (Very truly yours) or informal (Sincerely or Respectfully).

10) Signature Block: Two lines below the complimentary close. The combination of name, title, and organisation information should be arranged to achieve a balanced look. Use commas to separate categories within the same line but not to conclude a line. Women may choose to use a courtesy title. Men do not. Some organisations include their names in the signature block. In such cases, the organisation name appears in all caps, two lines below the complimentary close.

11) Identification Section:

• The writer’s name and title, or their initials, may appear three lines below the signature block, left-aligned.
• Reference initials: If used, the name of the typist and the writer are typed two line spaces below the writer’s name and title. Generally the writer’s initials are capitalized and the typist’s are lowercased, but this format varies.
• When an attachment or enclosure accompanies a document, a notation to that effect appears two lines below the reference initials. This notation reminds the typist to insert the enclosure in the envelope and reminds the recipient to look for it. The notation may be spelled out or abbreviated (Enclosure, Attachment, Enc., Att.) It may also indicate the number of attachments or enclosures, or it may identify a specific enclosure.
• Copy Notation: If you make copies of correspondence for other individuals you may use cc or c to indicate a copy. A colon following the initial(s) is optional.

12) Second Page Heading: When a letter extends beyond one page, use plain paper of the same quality and color as the first page. Identify the second and succeeding pages with a heading consisting of the name of the addressee, the page number and the date. Separate this heading from the continuing text by two blank lines. If you have only one line of text or the complimentary close to put on the page, rearrange your information to avoid that second page. (Not included in the image)

 Business Letter Styles 

There are three styles commonly used for business letters.

Full Block

This letter is characterized by all elements being aligned to the left, and no indentations (unless it is a table).

 Modified Block

This style has the following elements:

• All elements aligned to the left, except the dateline, complimentary close, and signature block, which can be aligned dead center, to the right of the center, or with the longest line flush right.
• No paragraph indentations.
• Subject and attention lines (if used) usually left-aligned, but can be centered.

 

Semi-Block

This style offers the most options, with the following elements:

• Dateline is centered, flush right, or beginning dead centre or to the right of the centre.
• Complimentary close and signature block are usually blocked and begin at the centre or to the right of the centre.
• Paragraphs indented five to ten spaces.
• Attention line usually flush left, but can be centered.
• Subject line is usually centered, but sometimes indented to match paragraph indentations.

Folding

 The way a letter is folded and inserted into an envelope sends additional non-verbal messages about a writer's professionalism and carefulness. Most business people follow the procedures shown here, which produce the least number of creases to distract readers.

For large No.10 envelopes, begin with the letter face up. Fold slightly less than one third of the sheet toward the top, as shown below. Then fold down the top third to within 6 to 7 mm of the bottom fold. Insert the letter into the envelope with the last fold toward the bottom of the envelope.

Dealing with Specific Letters

These are some of the types of letters you may have to prepare:

•           Requests for information

•           Letters of Reference (Recommendation)

•           Letters of Refusal

•           Letters of Persuasion

 Information Requests

The most emphatic positions in a letter are the first and last sentences. Readers tend to look at them first. Capitalize on this tendency by putting your most significant statement first. The first sentence of an information request is usually a question or a polite command. Do not explain or justify unless you believe your request will be refused. This saves time and immediately tells the reader what you want.

The body of the letter can provide the necessary details. Make it easy to read and use highlighting techniques to make the main points stand out, such as lists and bullets. Items enumerated in a list are much easier to read than items bunched in a paragraph. They should also be phrased similarly, or parallel.

The quality of the information obtained from a request often depends on the clarity of the enquiry. Analyze your needs, organize your ideas and frame your request logically and you are likely to receive a meaningful answer.

Use the final paragraph to ask for specific action, to set an end date if appropriate, and to express appreciation.

Letters of Recommendation

Here are some guidelines you may want to follow when writing a letter of recommendation.

• Identify the reason for writing.
• Suggest the confidentiality of the recommendation.
• Establish your (or your manager’s) relationship with the client.
• Identify the length of employment and job duties if relevant.
• Describe the applicant’s professional and personal qualities.
• Describe the applicant’s relationship with others.
• Include specific details and examples that illustrate the applicant’s personality and performance.
• Be especially careful to support negative comments with verification. (Not that he was slower than other receptionists, but he answered 25 calls an hour while most receptionists averaged 40 an hour.)
• Compare the applicant with others in his or her field.
• Offer an overall rating of the applicant.
• Summarize the significant attributes of the applicant
• Draw a conclusion regarding the applicant.

Letters Refusing Requests

When you must refuse a request and you feel the refusal is likely to antagonize, upset, hurt or anger the reader, use the indirect approach. Try the following writing plan:

• Start with a buffer that identifies previous correspondence either incidentally or as a subject line, and then begins with a neutral statement on which both reader and writer can agree.
• Then plant a key word or phrase that leads naturally to the explanation.
• The explanation presents valid reasons for the refusal and avoids problem words that will be seen as negative. The bad news can be de-emphasized to soften the blow. Avoid language that causes hard feelings.
• If possible, suggest an alternative or a substitute, or perhaps a compromise.
• Renew good feelings with a positive statement, without referring to the bad news.

These same general principles of indirectness are appropriate whenever bad news must be delivered. You may worry that the indirect approach is unethical or manipulative because the writer deliberately delays the main idea. But consider the alternative. Breaking bad news bluntly can cause pain and hard feelings. Remember, “It’s not what we say but how we say it.” Your goal is to be a compassionate yet effective communicator.

Letters of Persuasion

The ability to persuade or to sell an idea is a key factor in the success you achieve in your career and in your interpersonal relationships. Persuasive individuals are highly valued in today’s organisations. Persuasive individuals become decision-makers because their ideas generally prevail.

Persuasion is necessary when resistance is anticipated or when ideas require preparation before they can be presented effectively. Persuasion requests are generally more effective when they are indirect because the writer has the opportunity to lay the groundwork before actually making the request.

Persuasive appeals generally fall into two broad groups: emotional appeals and rational appeals. Emotional appeals are associated with the senses. They include how we see, feel, taste, smell, and hear. Strategies that arouse anger, fear, pride, love, and satisfaction are also emotional.

Rational strategies are those associated with reason and intellect. They appeal to the mind. Rational appeals include references to making money, saving money, increased efficiency, and making the best use of resources.

Email Etiquette

Virtually everyone today uses e-mail to communicate at work and at home. It’s fast, easy, and can save you a tremendous amount of time.

Some do’s and don’ts include:

• Don’t send an e-mail message if a telephone call would be just as good.
• Don’t send copies of e-mails to people who don’t need to receive them.
• Do cover only one topic in your e-mail.
• Do compose your message and then create your message using word processing software if the message is a critical one. Word processing has much more efficient text editing.
• Do provide a descriptive subject line.
• Keep lines, paragraphs, and messages short.
• Don’t automatically include the sender’s message.
• Don’t automatically CC your messages to a large distribution list.
• Do care about correctness. You are still judged by your writing.
• Do remember that e-mail is far from private, so if the issue is sensitive, perhaps e-mail isn’t the best medium to use.
• Don’t use acronyms or shorthand; they’re too informal for business writing. How would you feel if you got a message that looked like, “BBIAB; I was ROTFL at your msg!”

Although e-mail can be great, it can also be a huge time consumer. Here are some tips for managing your e-mail:

• Set e-mail program to receive mail every 30 minutes or an hour, rather than every five minutes.
• Set aside an hour each day to review correspondence (mail, memos, and e-mail).
• Use folders and other organisational tools to keep e-mail inbox clean.
• Ensure that co-workers understand you do not want jokes and other junk mail forwarded to your work address.
• Have a free address for personal use outside office time.

Selecting an appropriate text type, format and layout for the purpose of communication

 Writing report

Reports make up a big part of on the job communication. All reports fall into two broad categories:

• Formal reports: Formal reports may take many hundreds of pages and cost thousands of dollars.
• Informal reports: Informal reports may run from a few paragraphs to a few pages. They may not be as time consuming or as costly as the formal report, but they do require careful planning.

If the report is very long, you may wish to include a Table of Contents, to help readers find specific parts of the report, and a summary that allows them to understand the gist of the report without reading it all.

Starting with an outline will not only keep you on track, it can form the basis for the Table of Contents when the report is completed.

Organizing your report comes down to four basic organisational tactics:

• Finding the grand design
• Clustering
• Sequencing
• Connecting

The grand design is the shape of the report as a whole. Your brain needs this sense of large structure. It needs to perceive the big chunks in order to understand. It helps you decide what the purpose of the report is, what information you need, and who your audience is going to be.

Clustering is putting all the bits that belong together in groups. You start putting bits of information in groups almost as soon as you start writing. You can't think without categorizing, and then sub-categorizing, and then sub-subcategorizing.

Sequencing is putting one cluster after another, so that your read can read about them in order. There aren't always any absolute answers in sequencing, but if you keep your reader in mind, you can't go far wrong. The most popular tool for sequencing is the outline.

Finally comes connecting, where you connect all the clusters together to make a cohesive report.

Reports have three or sometimes four main parts:

• Introduction
• Body of the report
• Recommendations
• The conclusion

Organisation

The order in which you have decided they should be arranged depends on what you are trying to do.

Chronological sequence

This is information that is arranged chronologically. This plan is effective for presenting historical data or for describing a procedure. A report explaining how to obtain federal funding for a project might be arranged chronologically. Often topics are arranged in a present to past or past to present sequence.

Geographical or spatial arrangement

Information arranged geographically or spatially is organized by physical location. For instance, a report analyzing a province’s employment statistics might be divided into sections representing different geographical regions such as Northern, Central, Eastern, etc.

Topical or functional arrangement

Some subjects lend themselves to presenting information by topic or function. A report analyzing changes in the management hierarchy of a government department might be arranged in this manner. First the report would consider the duties of the deputy minister, followed by the functions of the other senior managers.

In organizing a formal report, you may find that you combine some of these strategies. However it’s done, you must break your topic into major divisions—usually three to six. You can then break these into smaller subdivisions. Now comes the tough part: connecting them and making them all part of an organized whole. The same rules of good communication apply. Be clear, concise, complete, and correct. But don't try to accomplish all this in the first draft. The first draft is for getting it down. The polishing comes as you rewrite. Keep the little language cop locked up in the closet until it's time for him to come out.

References that can help:

• A good dictionary
• A good thesaurus
• A good book of quotations
• A good reference manual on punctuation and style, such as Strunk & White’s “Elements of Style”

Report Formats

There are two basic formats or approaches to writing reports: the direct approach and the indirect approach.

Direct Approach

The direct approach, in which recommendations come first, is the up-front or psychological approach. This format is often used in short reports and when recommendations are more-or-less straightforward.

Indirect Approach

Typically, the longer, more formal report has the following parts:

• Cover: Includes the name of the organisation, division and the title of the report.
• Letter of Transmittal: Explains how, why, and under what circumstances the report was prepared.
• Title Page: Title of the report, who the report was prepared for (name and title of recipient), author’s name, and date.
• Synopsis or Executive Summary: An informative summary covering purpose as well as key findings, conclusions, and recommendations.
• Table of Contents: Contains main divisions with page numbers.
• List of Illustrations: Needed only if there are many illustrations and graphs.
• Introduction: Includes whatever the reader needs in order to understand the report (background, scope and limitations, details about your approach or method, criteria used in making your evaluation).
• Body/Discussion
• Summary
• Conclusions
• Recommendations
• Appendix: May include statistics, tables, and other information of interest to some readers, but would not be appropriate in the body of the report.
• Very extensive reports may also contain footnotes and a bibliography.

Documentation

If you use data from secondary sources when you are preparing your report or your business case, the data must be documented, meaning the source of that information must be cited. Using someone else’s ideas without giving credit for them is plagiarism. Even when you paraphrase and put others ideas in your own words, they should be documented.

Use direct quotations sparingly. There are three situations when you will find it useful to quote someone’s exact words: when they are an expert and you want to emphasize their opinion; when you want to use their exact words before you criticize them; or you want to repeat identical phrasing because of its precision, clarity, or aptness.

This isn’t a fun part of writing, but it does have its uses. Citing sources strengthens your arguments, and shield you from charges of plagiarism.

The greatest challenge is that all business writers do not follow the same formatting style. There are traditional styles and there are other styles that are still evolving.

Here are some of the most frequently used endnotes, styled in accordance with the Chicago Manual of Style format.

Book, One Author 1. Sara White, Profiting in the Knowledge Age: A Canadian Guide to the Future (Toronto: McKnight Publishing, 1999), p.25. Book, Many Authors 2. John Doe, Jane Smith, and Sara White, Profiting in the Knowledge Age: A Canadian Guide to the Future (Toronto: McKnight Publishing, 1999), p.25. Journal Article 3. John Drovich, “Peace in the Middle East,” Canadian Journal of International Studies 19, no. 5 (1999); 23-45. Magazine Article 4. Bill Safer, “Future Leadership,” Canadian Management, April 1999, 45. Newspaper Article 5. Trisha Khan, “Beyond 2000: Working in the Next Century,” Winnipeg Free Press, 22 August 1999, B3. Government Publication 6. Human Resources Development Canada, How to Find a Job (Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada, 1996), 30. Encyclopedia Article Without an Author 7. Encyclopedia Britannica, 15th ed., s.v. “Great Lakes.” Interview 8. Izzy Asper, interview by author, 14 June 1999.

If you are using the Modern Language Association Method (MLA) this is the format to use.

Book, One Author White, Sara. 1999. Profiting in the Knowledge Age: A Canadian Guide to the Future. Toronto: McKnight Publishing. Book, Same Author            1990. Life After your Career. Toronto: McKnight Publishing. Book, Many Authors Doe, John, Jane Smith, and Sara White. 1999. Profiting in the Knowledge Age: A Canadian Guide to the Future. Toronto: McKnight Publishing. Magazine or Journal Article Drovich, John. “Peace in the Middle East,” Canadian Journal of International Studies 19, no. 5: 23-45. Newspaper Article Khan, Trisha. 1999. “Beyond 2000: Working in the Next Century.” Winnipeg Free Press, 22 August, B3. Government Publication Human Resources Development Canada. 1996. How to Find a Job. Ottawa: Supply and Services Canada. Interview Asper, Izzy. 1999. Interview by author. 14 June.

 Electronic Sources

Generally electronic sources will follow the guidelines for print publications. However, some information, such as page numbers, may not be available. Cite what you can find, including the date you accessed the information and the web address.

Example:

Brown, Ronnie R. 1995. “Photographs That Should Have Been Taken.” Room of One’s Own. (On line) Cited Feb. 18, 2005. Available from www.photographstogo.com/poetry.

 

Note: Because online sources can change or move, cite the date the document was produced (if possible) and the date you received the information. Record the information immediately.

Writing Memos

So far, we have talked about writing reports and business letters. Another item that you may have to write for your business is a memo. A memo, short for memorandum, is the traditional way of relaying information through an office in a written form.

Let’s take a look at a sample memo:

The memo above was created using a basic template from Microsoft Word. Here’s a look at the three parts:

1)    Title identifying the document as a memo

2)    Standard fields, including to, from, date, and subject

3)    Body of the memo

When writing memos, the same rules that we have been discussing apply. As well, memos should be kept short (typically no longer than a page) and should not discuss extremely sensitive information or information that is likely to change. (This type of information is better dealt with in person.) A memo should also be kept to one topic.

 Request Proposals

Companies both large and small will often use a Request for Proposals (also known as an RFP) to solicit competitive bids on projects. When a company knows exactly what it wants, whether it is a computer upgrade or a feasibility study, preparing an RFP allows them to specify their requirements. They can then invite companies to submit proposals, and allows them to compare apples to apples.

What are some of the cardinal rules for RFPs?

• Preparation, preparation, preparation.
• Know what you want.
• Know what the people who respond to your RFP will need to know and what they will want to know.
• When is it useful to say up front just how much money you are prepared to spend/ what your budget will be?
• What are the disadvantages of putting an upfront budget in front to bidders?

Business Cases

How can you create a compelling case for change? When you write a business case, you want a document that concisely presents the benefits of change and develops a complete cost/benefit analysis to assess the financial impacts of the change.

Set up your business case by including:

• Executive Summary/Business Case Summary: Although this is found at the beginning of your Business Case, it is a summary of all that has been brought forward in the business case, and as such, should be written last.
• An introduction to the proposed change
• Appropriate background information
• A mission statement for the proposed change, if desired
• Costs of the change
• Benefits accrued from the change
• Conclusions from your research
• Why the organisation should consider the idea
• Principles to guide development
• Recommended scope of change
• Projected cost/benefit analysis
• Cost of recommended program
• Measurement, Outcomes, Evaluation
• Anticipated overall results

Appendix information should include:

• Glossary of Frequently Used Terms
• FAQs
• Endorsements

Using appropriate grammar conventions
Punctuation

The Comma

Commas are our most common punctuation mark inside a sentence. However, the trend today is to use it only when absolutely necessary, when omitting the comma would cause confusion.

Use a comma after a long introductory phrase or clause: "After working all day at the office, I went home for dinner." If the introductory material is short, forget the comma: "After work I went home for dinner."

Use a comma if the sentence would be confusing without it, like this: “The day before, I borrowed my boss's calculator."

Use a comma to separate elements in a series, including numbers in a list: "I enjoy drinking orange juice, tea, milk, and coffee." You also use it with numbers: “5, 7, and 9.” (There is a movement afoot to omit the comma before “and.”)

Use a comma to separate independent clauses that are joined by and, but, or, nor, for, or yet. "We shopped for three hours, but we didn't make a single purchase."

Use a comma(s) to set off nonessential elements in a sentence. Compare these two sentences:

In this sentence: “At the podium stood a man wearing a green suit,” the phrase “wearing a green suit” is essential to identify which man.

However, in this sentence: “At the podium stood Frank, wearing a green suit,” the phrase “wearing a green suit,” adds nonessential information about Frank.

Use a comma to:

• Separate a city or town from a state, as in Sarasota, Florida and Santa Ana, California.
• Set off the name in a direct address. “Jane, can I see you in my office please.”
• After dates, when day, month and year are used. “He was born August 12th, 1975.
• Before degrees that come after a name, as in Joan Walker, PhD.
• Set off an informal quotation, as in: Robert remarked, “My investment counselor is very good.”
• After linking adverbs such as however, therefore, etc. “The hike was several miles long; however, the path was a good one.”
• Separate thousands in numbers for clarification, as in 18,239.

When shouldn’t we use commas?

• Do not use commas between two independent sentences.
• Do not use commas after titles like Jr. or Sr.
• Do not use a comma after a month when only the month and the year are used.

Note: If you use words like “however”, “moreover”, “therefore”, “consequently”, “nevertheless”, or “then” between two independent clauses (i.e., sentences by themselves), you must use one of the following:

• A period
• A semicolon
• A comma plus a conjunction between the two clauses

NOT, "It looked difficult, therefore, we did not try."

BUT, "It looked difficult. Therefore, we did not try."

OR, "It looked difficult; therefore, we did not try."

OR, "It looked difficult, and therefore we did not try."

The Semi Colon

This is considered a more defined pause that the pause required by a comma. Use a semi colon to separate major sentence elements of equal grammatical rank.

Use a semi-colon to separate sentences joined by logical conjunctions such as however, therefore, thus and nevertheless.

Example: “I learned all the rules and regulations; however, I never really learned to control the ball.”

It can also be used to separate two closely related sentences not joined by a conjunction. The semi colon in this instance is useful for showing contrast or balance.

Example: “Injustice is relatively easy to bear; what stings is injustice.”

It should also be used to separate a series that is complicated or whose items containing internal punctuation (such as commas).

Example: “Please direct your comments to one of these individuals: Pat Warner, chair of the committee; Ross Ingram, public affairs; or Calvin Jenkins, promotions.”

The Colon

This punctuation mark is used primarily to call attention to the words that follow it.

Use a colon after the formal salutation in a business letter. (Dear Dr. Pomeroy:)

Use a colon before a list.

Example: Bring this equipment with you: a knapsack, thick     socks, gloves, etc.

Use a colon to separate hours and minute, as in 2:25.

The Apostrophe

Use an apostrophe when the meaning of “it’s” is “it is.”

(Using it’s when the word does not mean “it is” is one of the commonest mistakes in the English language.)

Use an apostrophe to show singular possession (The doctor’s office was always busy) and plural possession (The doctors’ offices were always busy).

Note: The use of an apostrophe can be determined by inserting an “of phrase,” as in “The offices of the doctors were busy.”

Use an apostrophe to show possession of two objects by two people. “Hilda’s and Janet’s cars were crushed by the falling tree.”

Use only one apostrophe when a possession is shared by two people. “Robert and Susan’s house sold in five hours.”

Use an apostrophe to show possession in words that are already plural. “The women’s changing room at the Y was being renovated.” Or, “The men’s changing room had been renovated last year.”

Use an apostrophe to show contractions. “They’re on vacation and can’t get back in time for the meeting.”

Use an apostrophe to show plural of lower case letters. “I made sure I’d dotted all my i’s and crossed all my t’s before I signed the contract.”

Use an apostrophe to show possession in a single compound noun. “We are living in my mother-in-law’s house until ours is finished.” Use an apostrophe to form the possessive case of indefinite pronouns. “This election could be anyone’s win.” Use an apostrophe in expressions of time or value: two weeks’ notice, two dollars’ worth of nuts.

Spelling and proof Reading
Spelling

People are either good spellers or they aren't. Most of us have a few words that we regularly forget how to spell. However, that doesn't mean we can't produce letters, memos and reports that are word perfect.

Here are some tips for making your documents perfect:

• Use a dictionary. It doesn’t matter which form you use, but it is important that you be consistent.
• Use spell check on your computer, but don’t rely on it totally.
• Use a telephone book to check spelling of names and addresses. However, there are sometimes errors in telephone directories too.
• Proofread your work, and when possible have someone else proofread your work.
• Learn some little tricks to help you remember words that you use frequently but still spell incorrectly, like "i before e, except after c."

Make up a list of your most common spelling errors and learn how to spell those words correctly. Keep that list posted so you can refer to it when you need to.

Proofreading

Proofreading carelessly can spoil a writer's best efforts. Proofreading is classic evidence that writing looks different to the writer and to the reader.

To the writer, typographical or spelling errors don't mean all that much. So your finger slipped, or you always put two t's in "commitment." For the reader, an unfixed typo can transform the writer from a smart guy into a careless writer in the twinkling of an eye.

It is impossible to read about "fist class work" or "shot meetings" without breaking up. It may be unfair that proofreading matters so much, but it does.

If you can put yourself in the reader's position, you'll proofread obsessively, gripped by the fear that a mistake will turn you into a laughing stock!

Proofreading errors are different from punctuation or spelling or usage problems, and you fix them differently.

Punctuation, spelling, and usage are knowledge problems, and you fix them by learning.

Proofreading problems are usually a matter of seeing, and you fix them by learning to look. The better you read, the worse you'll proofread, unless you consciously are aware of what you are doing. Good readers, fast readers, guess what the words are, and they just check in now and again to see if they are right. The more they can guess, the less they have to look and the faster and better they read.

To be a good proofreader, you have to go back to being a child again, looking at every word as it comes along. Here are some principles to guide you.

• Ignore content. As soon as you start paying attention to what the text is saying, you'll start assuming and stop looking.
• Assume there's at least one typo.
• Forget what you meant. Read the memo/letter as though you never saw it before.
• Read backwards. This destroys comprehension, and your eyes can't trick you as easily.
• Don't try to do something else when you proofread. Stop tinkering with the thing and look for errors.
• Take your time. When you hurry you guess and skim, and that usually doesn't work.
• Proofread a second time, paying attention to content. This is where you find those things spell check and reading backwards did not catch, such as "The little cap pulls off it you put enough effort into it."
• Read it aloud. It is more difficult, but still not impossible, for your eyes to skip over errors when you read aloud.
• Try to have someone else proofread your work, particularly if the document is important or going public.
• Make proofreading a game. Score points for yourself when you find an error!

Following Instructions Sample Questions Answers and Explanations

1. The correct answer is "2", Warehouse, because according to the third rule, warehouse storage should be used for items weighing over 200 pounds.

2. The correct answer is "1", Special, because the last rule states that special storage should always be used for storing hazardous materials.

3. The correct answer is "1", Special, because the item needs the special handling of refrigeration.

4. The correct answer is "3", Regular, because the item weighs less than 200 pounds.

5. The correct answer is "2", Warehouse, because a cement truck weighs more than 200 pounds.