Читать книгу Write Better and Get Ahead At Work - Michael Dolan - Страница 16

You have no doubt noticed that freewriting is much different from your usual writing at work. For one thing, no one is looking over your shoulder. Freewriting is something just for you. No one approves it or offers criticism.

At work, however, the writing is different. Not only do people see it (and judge us), but also it is directed at a goal. We write because it is necessary. By learning how to write at work and knowing how to do it quickly and well, we increase both our productivity and our enjoyment.

Fast Tips for starting

1. Complete this sentence: “My reader will want to read my message because....”

2. Say it all in one 2-line sentence.

3. If you are having trouble starting, write down your goal first.

4. Write anything.

Today, more than ever, people at work must know how to write. Not just people who work at a desk. As computers enter the workplace, information becomes a larger share of each person’s daily job. Promotion to a supervisory or managerial position often requires more writing.

People are busier than ever before. With international competition affecting almost every part of society, the push for improved productivity becomes stronger.

We need to be able to write memos, letters and reports quickly, with a sense of accomplishment and confidence. Writing at work successfully means mastering the activity of writing rather than letting it control us.

Even those who gained strong writing skills in school find it necessary to learn the particular composition techniques used in today’s workplace. Although experience at writing stories or term papers is valuable in becoming an effective writer at work, these disciplines differ from writing memos, letters and reports in certain important ways.

Writing is also one of those fundamental human activities—such as sports or dancing — that require constant attention to maintain skills. Every person can write better. Even those who have mastered all the skills must try to write faster when they come to work.

Yet mastering the skills of language is not enough. Writing at work is goal oriented—it gets work done. The memo, letter or report is never the end product. At work we do not write for information alone. We write for action.