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A CEO told us his title changes to chief editing officer when draft monthly board papers are received. Another leader admitted to printing copies of difficult-to-comprehend documents, taking them home and reviewing them with a pen in one hand and a glass of Shiraz in the other.
Poor business writing kills decision-making and productivity. It damages personal, team and organisation reputations. And it can leave some readers feeling mocked because the language alienates.
A 2020 Ohio State University study is a wake-up call for plain English in business.
Study lead Hillary Shulman says the use of difficult, specialised words sends a signal that people don’t belong. Providing explanations isn’t the solution to making complex writing easier to understand.
“What we found is that giving people definitions didn’t matter at all – it had no effect on how difficult they thought the reading was,” Dr Shulman says.
Bottom line – jargon disempowers and dissuades.
“When you have a difficult time processing the jargon, you start to counter-argue,” Dr Shulman says. “You don’t like what you’re reading. But when it is easier to read, you are more persuaded and you’re more likely to support.”
Breaking bad habits
Most people are not taught business-ready communication skills.
Schools and tertiary institutions are not equipping today’s professionals with the ability to write and speak in a style that ensures effective results. Workplaces foster overwriting at the cost of clarity and understanding.
In his book Death Sentence: the decay of public language, Don Watson likens employees to parrots. It’s in a parrot’s DNA to fit in. That’s why they quickly mimic those around them. “Whatever is the most frequently repeated sounds to them definitive, and this is the one they imitate,” writes Watson. “Our language grows, mutates and ossifies in a similar way. We are all inclined to imitate the sounds we hear.”
Most of us want to fit in with those around us.
And like the parrot we tend to communicate in a style that’s familiar to those close by. We repeat what we see, read and hear. This is risky because it de-skills our ability to communicate with different audiences – senior leadership, customers, and other work teams.
Across the board we see people overusing words to camouflage incompetency. Their lack of confidence masks clarity.
In our recent blog on communicating projects we recommend leaders and teams “health-check” their communications. Take a moment to identify the documents and other writing tasks impeding performance and productivity. Next, identify team members needing to build their business communication skills.
Adopting plain English in your workplace
Plain English or plain language business writing enables readers to:
● uncover what they need
● understand what they find
● use the information to take action.
It is writing that’s easy to read, easy to understand, and easy to use.
Does your writing achieve this?
Plain English writing is not imprecise, too informal or chatty. Plain language “clears up”, it doesn’t “dumb down”.
1. BE CLEAR
● Write in active voice
● Limit acronyms – but if used, spell out on first reference
● Use visuals – tables, graphs, images – if they are the best way to convey information
2. BE CONCISE
● Cut unnecessary words
● Stick to one idea per sentence with no more than 20 words
● Limit to four sentences or fewer per paragraph
3. BE SPECIFIC
● Include only reader-essential information
● Use words with precise meaning
● Add details directly relevant to the main point
Plain English business writing has significant financial and other payoffs. It results in clearer communication, and promotes reader focus and comprehension.
It also improves individual and team productivity, too, because better writing means fewer questions and faster response times.
Would you like to introduce plain English writing to your team? Contact us.
Communicate For Impact equips leaders and their teams with effective outcomes-focused writing, meeting and presenting skills. This ensures better business results.