Business Communication Instruction

While you have been busy working, some of the rules of writing evolved, and the University of Chicago Press released a new Chicago Manual of Style. Take a look at the changes below to determine which ones you need to adopt. Then update your company style guide to be sure everyone is writing consistent, up-to-date pieces.

For this post, I consulted The Chicago Manual of Style (Chicago), published in September, The Associated Press Stylebook 2017 (AP), Garner’s Modern English Usage (Garner’s), which was published in 2016, and Microsoft Manual of Style (Microsoft), published in 2012.

1. Words with web are no longer capitalized and are sometimes closed up: website, webmaster, webcam, and webcast, but web address and web browser. AP, Garner’s, and Microsoft recommend webpage, but Chicago still prefers the open web page. AP (effective 2016), Microsoft, and Chicago use the lower case web as a short form of World Wide Web, but Garner’s uses Web for that purpose.

2. You can stop capitalizing internet if you follow Chicago—or AP, which changed its approach in 2016. However, Garner’s and Microsoftstill capitalize it.

3. The ever-present word email should be lower case and closed up. That’s according to Chicago, AP (effective 2011), and Microsoft. Garner's lists three versions—E-mail, e-mail, and email—noting that “The unhyphenated email is unsightly, but it might prevail in the end.” (Might? It certainly will!) Other e words are generally not capitalized unless they appear at the beginning of a sentence or in a heading, and they are hyphenated: e-book, e-reader, e-commerce, e-form, e-learning.

4. The word voicemail is closed up according to AP (since 2016) and Garner's. However, Microsoft and Chicago render it open: voice mail. Chicago doesn’t single out voice mail for discussion, but its rules on compound words call for the word to be rendered open.

5. Using they as a singular pronoun has become acceptable in some cases. The Washington Post argued in late 2015: “Allowing they for a gender-nonconforming person is a no-brainer. And once we’ve done that, why not allow it for the most awkward of those he or shesituations that have troubled us for so many years?”

AP chimes in on the awkwardness issue. In its 2017 edition, APstates, “They/them/their is acceptable in limited cases as a singular and/or gender-neutral pronoun, when alternative wording is overly awkward or clumsy.” For example, to avoid revealing an individual’s gender, this their is acceptable: “The employee believed their safety could not be guaranteed.”

Chicago now states: “While this usage [they, them, their, andthemselves] is accepted in those spheres [speech and informal writing], it is only lately showing signs of gaining acceptance in formal writing, where Chicago recommends avoiding its use. When referring specifically to a person who does not identify with a gender-specific pronoun, however, they and its forms are often preferred.”

Garner’s recommends its careful use: “Where it can’t be avoided, resort to it cautiously because some people may doubt your literacy.” And Microsoft advises, “Although . . . they for a singular antecedent is gaining acceptance. . . . Whenever possible, write around the problem.”

Note: The singular they always takes a plural verb, just as you does.

6. Over = more than for quantities. In 2014, AP joined Chicago andGarner’s in accepting over as synonymous with more than. Example: “She has over 20 years of experience.” AP describes over as "acceptable in all uses to indicate greater numerical value.” However, Microsoft still recommends more than for quantities; it uses over “to refer to a position or location above something.”

7. One space—not two! This isn’t a recent change. As far back as 2004, virtually all style guides have dictated one space after end punctuation and colons. If you are still using two, it’s time to adapt. Remember what happened to the dinosaurs.

8. In the 21st century, there’s no reason to render a number both spelled out and in figures—not even in contracts. Consider these redundancies: “You may cancel the contract within three (3) days” and “A deposit of $250 (two hundred fifty dollars) is due upon signing.” In the very old days, numbers were repeated to prevent them from being altered, according to attorney Bryan Garner. And back in the days of fuzzy carbon copies, spelled out numbers were easier to read. Today there’s no need for them. 

I shared the changes above with a friend who wrote back: "I prefer eLearning. It still seems an unsettled question." Not to me! With so many things unsettled in the world, I'm going to defer to the style manuals and get on with my life. 

How about you and your editorial team? Do you follow the advice of a well-respected style guide? Or do you go it alone? 

With Labor Day and the start of the new school year, I happened to read two articles that covered the difficult role of adjunct instructors: "The Adjunct Revolt: How Poor Professors Are Fighting Back," published in 2014, and "In ‘Campus Confidential,’ a Professor Laments That Teaching Is Not the Priority of Teachers," published last month. With the struggles of adjuncts on my mind, I want to be sure business writing instructors know about my free curriculum, Business Writing That Builds Relationships. 

But why a business writing curriculum on building relationships? Below is an excerpt from the curriculum, an in-class exercise, that shows why.

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Written exercise and paired discussion to gain insight into the importance of relationships.

Ask students to each think of a career they want to pursue or one they are considering as an option. Then ask them to list who their coworkers might be and who their internal or external customers might be.

Example: A student wants to be in sales. Her coworkers might be other sales reps and the sales assistants. She would probably have a sales manager and a sales director. Internally, she would probably deal with sales support, marketing, advertising, perhaps manufacturing, and inventory processors or supply chain managers. She would also have external customers.

Ask students to pair up. Their partners should review their lists to see if they can add anyone to the lists. Ask one individual to read his or her list aloud for a shared reference point.

Ask students to reflect on their lists:

• Which of the people on your list do you need to have a good working relationship with?
• Are there any people with whom a good relationship is not necessary or beneficial?

Students should experience an aha moment about the importance of relationships.

Point out that the value of relationships is not just their providing a pleasant working experience. It’s their helpfulness in getting information. Read aloud or show the Karen Stephenson quote from her essay "Trafficking in Trust: The Art and Science of Human Knowledge Networks," p. 10 in the text:

“Knowledge ebbs and flows down hallways, in meetings, and in private conversations inside and outside the office. The key to the way that knowledge travels lies in the relationships that can bypass the standard organization chart. . . . Relationships are the true medium of knowledge exchange.” 

Ask students:

As you look at your list of people in your work world, how many of them might provide you with useful information? (Probably anyone on their list could share useful information.)

*****

That exercise takes place on the first day, followed by two ice-breaking exercises that help students build relationships with one another. Then they discuss the introductory chapter of Business Writing With Heart, which covers the ROI of writing with heart. 

Yes, I would love to sell more books. But even without book sales, if the free 90-page curriculum helps adjuncts or full-time business writing instructors in any way, their success will be my reward. 

Please share this information with the business writing instructors you know, especially any who may have just accepted a teaching assignment and are scrambling for a curriculum. They can check out the book's table of contents, get the free curriculum, and preview the first chapter.  

To all who teach, have an excellent start to the academic year!

Lynn
Syntax Training

• I will show you how to get more done in less time.
• You will learn how to get more done in less time.

___________________

• I would appreciate the opportunity to present this information in a web demo that will take 30 minutes.
• In just 30 minutes, you will find out how to save yourself hours of . . . . 

The pronoun I makes your reader an observer. The word you brings readers into your message. 

• Each one of you has an opportunity to step forward.  
• You have an opportunity to step forward.

___________________

• Those of you who love crafting will want to bookmark this site.
• If you love crafting, bookmark this site.  

4. Get beyond the "what." Focus on "so what." It is easy to write about what interests you, but that information must be tied to your readers' interests. If you don't connect the information to your readers, they will ask "So what?" or simply stop reading. Compare these approaches:

• The new web calendar provides one information source for all staff on company events. [tells what]
•  With the new web calendar, you can quickly find the company event information you need. [tells so what]

_____________

• There is plenty of room in the trunk [boot] of this model. [tells what]
• The trunk has plenty of room for your gear or luggage when you feel the urge to travel. [tells so what]

5. Answer your readers' questions. Before you write, think about what your readers would ask if you were sitting face to face. Then when you write, answer those questions. If something you write is not an answer to your readers' questions, they won't care about it. 

For example, if your readers would not ask, "What is the background?" don't write a background section. But if the background is about them, recognize that they would ask "What do you know about my situation?"

It's all about you, the reader. Just remember that fact as a writer, and you will keep your readers' attention.  

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Here's a discount for YOU, the reader of this blog: Use the coupon code August anytime this month to get 20% off all Syntax Training guides and courses. 

Lynn 
Syntax Training

Time clicks by on your phone and wristwatch. Your article, letter, report, email reply, or blog post is due at noon. How do you get around the obstacles that block your writing flow? Try these techniques.

1. Imagine you are talking with your reader. Think about the things your reader wants or needs to hear from you. Then "tell" (write) any part–beginning, middle, or end. Don't worry about the perfect opening or a knock-'em-dead awesome close. Just start and keep going.

2. List the questions your reader would want answers to, such as "What do you want me to do?" and "What do you recommend?" and "Why should I care about this topic?" Answering those questions will get you started and help you continue. Start with any question, even the simple "Where do I get more information?"

3. Write without censoring yourself. Pay no attention to whether the writing is good. Just let the words and ideas flow. Writing and marketing expert Ann Handley calls this step "Show up and throw up" in her book Everybody Writes: Your Go-to Guide to Creating Ridiculously Good Content. After you have something to work with on the screen or legal pad, choose your "keepers" and build from them.

4. Ask yourself the question "Why am I stuck?" Focus on writing the answer to that question; then transition to the real writing when you have a clear answer. I myself do not use this approach, but other people insist that it works beautifully for them.

5. Strive for completion–not perfection. Your goal is to get out of the burning building fast, not to salvage every idea in pristine condition. Do not stop to polish each sentence. Reworking while you write takes too long. Besides that, you will often end up cutting the sentences you spent the most time on.

6. Review pieces of your past writing that make you feel proud.This look at good writing will build your confidence and may give you specific ideas about formats and approaches that work. (If the people who report to you are stuck in their writing projects, give them examples of their best work, and remind them of what they do well.)

7. Talk with people about what you are working on. Do not wait until you're done to tell about your struggles. The screen and page are blank now. Get help. Throw out a question and reel in the answers. Then see if those answers and suggestions move you to the next step.

8. Take a break that includes a change of scenery, or shift to another activity. This break doesn't need to focus on the coffee pot or snack machine. Check your to-do list to find something else you need to do. Maybe you need to approve art for a webpage. Maybe you have to return a borrowed book to your mentor. How about a quick walk around the block or the building? A registration for an upcoming workshop? A timely New York Times article to read? Just change what you are doing, even briefly.

9. Compare your writing project with something completely different, and think about how you would handle it. For instance, how would you move forward if the document were a fancy dinner you were going to prepare? A jigsaw puzzle you were just dumping out of the box? A garden you need to weed? A mountain peak you intend to scale? The ways you would approach those tasks may give you hints about what to do now.

10. Allow yourself to be awestruck. Look at something beautiful, for example, Diane Varner's exquisite Daily Walks photos. Or listen to music that makes you feel yourself flying or skating or dancing. Engaging other parts of your brain with things of beauty and awe–even for a few moments–can loosen the stuck places in your thinking.

Bonus Tip. Although this tip doesn't work at the last minute, it helps with writer's block:

Start early. If your piece is due on Friday, start thinking about it the previous Friday. Come up with a topic, and then let your subconscious work on it over the weekend. You are likely to notice metaphors, examples, quotations, and other gems that will help you when it's time to write. 

Please share your tips for breaking through writer's block. 

Lynn
Syntax Training