Five
Writing Tips that Can Double Your Salary
Extracted from LinkedIn
June 4, 2013
It is
impossible to overstate how much we rely on written words to get what we want.
Are you making your writing as powerful as possible?
By improving
your writing, you will change the arc of your career. You can literally double
or triple your salary, because effective leaders get paid much more than
"muddled thinkers."
Your first
reaction may be to doubt my salary claim, but let's start with your resume. A
well-written one can be the difference between a big job and a dead-end one.
Now consider what you do for a living... effective writing can make a huge
difference. For example, a researcher who can write effectively might get five
or even ten times as many grants over the course of her career.
If you are an
up-and-coming leader, the ability to use words to motivate others can easily
double your rate of advancement. We all know people who are obviously
intelligent, but just can't seem to consistently offer a series of actionable
recommendations. Such people aren't worth nearly as much as their colleagues
who communicate with clarity.
Print out this
"business writing cheat sheet" and use it whenever you have to create
a powerful document... even if it is just a short email:
1.) Have a
repeatable message. Most of the stuff you read has no clear message, which makes it nearly
impossible to repeat. In our digital age, being easily repeated is the
difference between fame and forgotten.
To give you one
example, search engines put clear and focused pieces much higher than random
and rambling ones; this fact impacts all business writing, even pieces that
will never be posted online.
Creating
repeatable messages is one thing it takes to deliver on the premise of my
headline. In most companies, it takes more than one person's agreement to
double your salary. The people who control your fate must be able to easily
grasp both your messages as well as the value you add.
Ask yourself:
why am I writing this piece? What do I want the reader to learn? Even more
importantly, what do I want the reader to do after reading what I wrote?
2.) Know your
audience. If you write
everything in the same style, you are - sorry - an ineffective writer. You must
adapt your style and approach to match the needs of the people you wish to influence.
The odds are
that your boss doesn't think like your subordinates, or your friends. The
people in Accounting don't think like the people in Marketing.
Some of us like
facts and figures, others crave stories.To get a message into someone's brain,
you have to package it in a form they can process. For some people, that means
using 100 words or less; for others, it means including three pages of support
materials.
Ask yourself:
who is going to read this, and how do they think? To get a clue, re-read anything
they have sent to you.
3.) Be
powerful, not passive. Powerful professionals DO things; they don't sit
passively while others take action. But huge numbers of professionals write in
the passive tense, like this:
After careful
consideration, our department's new operating policy was approved this morning
by the management team.
What a lousy
way to try to get others excited. Far better to write:
We just created
five simple principles to make daily life in our department easier and simpler.
Whenever you write,
show people how and why to take action. Demonstrate that you are doing the
same. Empower others. Get them moving ahead.
4.) Use
examples. Without
examples, your words are little more than abstract thoughts, and most people
ignore abstract thoughts. There are good reasons for this; we all have daily
pressures, and if you don't know how to implement an idea, it isn't useful to
you.
Examples show
readers how to implement your ideas.
If you are
suggesting that your boss approve a new expense, tell him or her why the
expense is such a good investment and give examples of how it will support your
group's goals.
Every year in
my town, the Board of Education fights for more money from the Board of
Finance. And every year, concerned parents stand up and give heartfelt examples
of how children will be hurt if the school budget is cut. Such stories don't
always work, but without them our school budget would be much smaller than it
is today.
5.) Use more
pictures and fewer words. There's a reason why nearly every LinkedIn article
starts with an image; more people read articles with images.
The same is
true for nearly every document. Some people think in pictures, others in words.
If you fail to include pictures, you will fail to reach some people. Plus, you
can use images to draw attention to your key points.
Just as
importantly, don't waste words. In fact, you might want to write "don't
waste words" right above the screen on all your digital devices. I'm
serious. Only use as many words as is necessary to get your point across
clearly, and no more.
Bonus tip...
write at least three drafts! People hate this tip, but the hard reality is that you
need to rewrite your first draft, and to keep rewriting until you've
accomplished all five of these tips.
I write at
least three drafts of everything, even emails. When I violate this principle, I
regret it. By regret, I mean: years ago, not rewriting cost me a raise, it cost
me more than one client, and it cost me some friends.
Rewriting
doesn't require hours of time. You can rewrite a short email in two minutes.
Don't skip this step! The more you polish your words, the higher your career
will soar.
For those of
you who prefer images to words, here's a visual version of this article...
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Image credit:
Flickr member Pierre Metivier. "Rewrite" image by Flickr member
mrsdkrebs
