“How can I help my team send better e-mails?” I get this question a lot. It’s occasionally put like this: “Kids today can’t even send a decent e-mail!” E-mails are a hot-button issue because everyone receives them, and everyone writes them. Your whole team, including your most junior hires, have to answer complicated questions and […]
Bullet points are just as bad in business writing as they are in PowerPoint. There’s a growing tide of evidence, anecdotal and scientific, that bullet points are bad for presentations. They’re boring, they’re outdated, they cause something called “extraneous load.” And yet, when people sit down to write, they seem to believe that bullet points […]
This one confuses people, but grammar nerds know that it’s simple: You use “that” for restrictive clauses and “which” for non-restrictive clauses. Huh? What does that mean? That = restrictive clauses A restrictive clause is a necessary clause. It narrows down (or restricts) a larger group or category so that it’s clear exactly what you’re referring […]
Corporate writing projects often go through an arduous and convoluted processes. Typically, Communications Managers can only bear witness to the time-wasting because they lack the power to change the workflow. If you’re fed up with your team’s writing process or if you’re getting ready to embark on a new corporate writing project (like a quarterly […]
A few simple rules and tips will help you use numbers like an expert. Overall, write out the numbers zero through ten as words. Numbers 11 and greater can be written as numerals. Four easy, important guidelines (1) Never begin a sentence with a numeral. Instead, write a number in text format when it begins […]
Give your sentences precise and focused action. What is a compound verb? A compound verb is a verb phrase with more than one word. If you really want to get grammar-nerdy about it, you can check out the Wikipedia entry on compound verbs to learn about the different classifications and labels for this phenomenon. But […]
One of the simplest, most effective ways to simplify and clarify your writing is to eliminate prepositions. It’s incredibly easy to do, and usually you can replace them with strong adjectives or adverbs instead. Identifying a preposition First, you have to know what a preposition is. Think of them as words that begin short phrases […]
This little-known tip can help you make more concise and powerful sentences. In five minutes, make your sentences shorter, stronger, and clearer. Get rid of the disembodied pronoun!
“Misplaced modifier” is one of those fancy phrases that most people have heard of but aren’t really sure what it means. A modifier–or descriptive phrase–is misplaced when it’s sitting next to a noun it doesn’t describe. Misplaced modifiers can be rampant in financial writing, most commonly when investment analysts are describing stocks. In my client’s […]
Comprise vs. compose & home vs. hone This entry tackles what you might call personal grammar peeves—mistakes that just drive you crazy, even though they are minor. Two that make my skin crawl are: *comprised of *hone in on Neither of these expressions is correct. If you don’t care about the explanation here, just know […]