When I was completing my undergraduate degree, I was known for having strong writing skills. Even if I hated writing essays, I could make a persuasive argument and get the A I wanted.
However, after attending grad school and now being in the workforce, writing a piece that was at least 8 pages and had many sources to back up its argument isn’t valuable.
Instead, focused and technical writing prowess is valued. The storytelling aspect I developed with my academic writing still held value, but the method of utilizing that skill had to change. People are plowing through many different messages every day and don’t have the focus to read through an academic essay.
So I figured I’d write a short blog post detailing a few things I’ve learned. These are the tips I’ve used for getting my writing to be more concise and easier to read:
- Use lists
- Break up paragraphs
- Cut filler words
- Active voice
- Know your audience
Use Lists
Lists are nice because they break up the text and make it easier for the reader to follow. If the list order matters, use numbered lists, and if it doesn’t matter, use a bulleted list (like above).
Break Up Paragraphs
As a former offender of writing paragraphs that would go on for more than 5 sentences in essays, it’s more effective to make sure every paragraph you write has less than 5 sentences and to group similar thoughts together to help split things up. Further, breaking up paragraphs also makes it easier on the reader’s eye, much like with using lists.
Cut Filler Words
My filler word of choice is “so” in speech, but it leaks into my writing too. There are other some filler words I know I use more often than I’d like to admit:
- very
- pretty
- really
- just
- actually
- basically
- sort of
- a little
- kind of
Everyone has their own habits with words; thus, your list of filler words will differ from mine. Reading back your own writing, especially out loud, can help you determine which words you rely on that dilute your message.
Active Voice
For those that are unaware, writing in the active voice involves a sentence like this:
They found an old truck in the parking lot.
While using passive voice looks like this:
An old truck in the parking lot was found.
Basically, an active voice because the sentence subject performs an action, rather than the action being performed on the sentence subject.
There are situations where using a passive voice can be useful, particularly in scientific settings. However, in a lot of business settings, writing in active voice will lead to your sentences being shorter and your writing’s purpose clearer.
Know Your Audience
What you need to write for will help determine how to best structure your writing. For example, an email requires a different approach than a report. Be sure to prepare different strategies depending on the problem at hand.
Conclusion
It isn’t easy to change writing habits. But if writing is a skill essential to completing your job duties, it’s worth the investment in making your writing easier for others to read.