The Essentials of Effective Communication

By Dave Dowling

Good writing allows writers to be taken seriously, and being taken seriously is always important in communicating ideas effectively. If a person's writing is awkward, clumsy, or questionable, readers may get the wrong impression. And, first impressions can determine what people will read and what they will not.

Clarity Is Key

Clarity adds to the freedom from ambiguity.

Sometimes writing can be grammatically correct but almost impossible to comprehend. To be accurate in delivering a message, good writing requires sustained clarity. People will not read text if they have to hesitate and interpret the meaning. When you write something, make sure readers will immediately understand you. Your intention is to reach the audience the first time, not the second. Proper words in proper places can make pivotal differences.

Follow these simple guidelines to gain clarity in your writing:

• Avoid clichés, vogue words, redundancies, and jargon.

• Avoid expletives (it is, there are, etc.) at the beginning of sentences.

• Break up long sentences and paragraphs.

• Cut out all unnecessary words and phrases.

• Eliminate large words (multisyllables) where possible.

• Limit acronyms and message text abbreviations (IMHO,BTW, etc.)

• Use the active voice where possible.

• Write paragraphs on a single subject.

Consistency Is Critical

Consistency in communication adds usability; inconsistency adds noise.

Though every writer has a unique style, unique styles unfortunately add to inconsistency thereby hurting the usability of something. Usability helps people use products. Readers need to feel that literary conventions always mean the same thing. An inconsistent use of conventions causes confusion for readers, heightening their frustration and lowering their opinion of the information. Consistent language is a focus of clear communication. If you have preferred writing standards, such as a style guide, make sure those writing standards are used on all of your publications. Being consistent with information is a favor to the reader.

Follow these simple guidelines to gain consistency in your writing:

• Avoid ALL CAPS for large blocks of text.

• Identify and correct patterns of grammatical error.

• Keep the subject and the verb close together.

• Learn formatting and style conventions for documents.

• Learn strategies to enhance cohesiveness, such as transitions and parallelism.

• Proofread (including reading a text backward and reading aloud).

• Put the action in the verbs, not the subjects.

• Review word choice, eliminate wordiness, and vary sentence length.

Correctness Is Crucial

Correct writing not only leads to a good first impression, but good communication as well.

Most correctness in writing depends on the writer's knowledge of a subject and the appropriate detail given. Accurate information should focus clearly and thoroughly on a particular situation or problem. By studying and researching a particular subject, writers can gain that command of correctness. Remember, even small errors can hurt one’s credibility. To that end, spend the time and check every fact, name, and number.

Follow these simple guidelines to gain correctness in your writing:   

• Describe details correctly.

• Ensure all facts are correct, current, and unambiguous.

• Make your ideas parallel.

• Provide sufficient details, examples, and facts to support your points.

• Use clear terminology.

• Use correct grammar and punctuation.

• Use precise words.

• Use the appropriate tone for the subject.

Conclusion

Clear, consistent, and correct writing can set you apart from many writers and aid you in your professional success. Good writing looks good to the reader, commands respect, and promotes good communication.

Whatever you put in writing is a record of your thoughts and those thoughts may be challenged. So protect yourself, your image, and your ideas by continuing to write well and providing language that will gain respect and go unchallenged.

Dave Dowling, is the author of "Writing the Right Word", ( iUniverse Books, ISBN 0-595-20830-4), a grammar reference on confused word pairs. It consists of more than 600 entries and the meanings of more than 1,500 individual words.

Dave is president of Write On Course, LLC (www.writeoncourse.com), a company that offers business and technical writing seminars throughout the U.S. You can contact Dave at: davedowling@stny.rr.com.

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