What Your Business Writing Says About You
There is power in the way you communicate.
The words you choose and how you put your thoughts across create an impression on your colleagues, management team and business associates. Effective communication within an organisation can help it run smoother by improving productivity and allowing functional areas to work better together. If your business transcends borders, communicating effectively forms the basis of efficient collaboration in the global workplace, creating a positive image if you do it right.
You know you have done it right when what you have written comes across as:
i) Persuasive
Knowing how to write persuasively isn’t just for copywriters or sales & marketing professionals. Every individual in a company will at some point need to make a written case for something related to work where a decision-maker takes action based on what was written. For example, a CFO explaining the expenditure report to the CEO or when the HR manager needs to put reasons forward as to why a certain candidate should be hired over another candidate.
ii) Clear
Sometimes writing with clarity is one of the most difficult skills to master. Many business plans get rejected simply because investors find it hard to decipher exactly what the business is all about. Knowing how to organise your thoughts and the points you want to put across is the key to clarity in your writing.
iii) Courteous
Unfortunately living in an era where “text-speak” like ‘brb’, ‘atm’ is the norm in instant messaging, such communication “short-cuts” have slowly crept into business communication as well. Even-though emails should be brief and concise, many professionals unwittingly come across as abrupt and impolite because the emails they send out appear to be carelessly written giving the impression that they do not respect the person they are writing to.
iv) Complete
If a report or proposal you have written does not completely express its intention, your communication is not complete. When presenting information to the reader, do ensure that you have answered every question that they may have by the end of your report or proposal.
v) Inspiring Confidence
If your writing comes across as sharp, concise and clear, the perception colleagues and business associates would have is that you are intelligent and well-versed in your job-scope. Imagine a scenario where a potential client is looking to engage your services and your email correspondence is riddled with spelling mistakes, typos and grammar errors? Would that inspire confidence in them about your capabilities and assure them that you would be the right match for their business needs?
As you can now tell, the style and manner in which you communicate certainly has tremendous power to impact your career. It is not enough, to just ‘know’ your stuff – how you communicate with colleagues and business associates is also crucial.
KCOM Academy will be organising a workshop on Principles & Practical Applications of Effective Writing in Brunei to turn your business writing skills from average to powerful. Click on the workshop to find out more.
(Reposted from BruDirect)
