THIS CHAPTER explains some of the everyday purposes that apply to reading and writing for information and understanding. You will learn how to apply the skills you have just learned to write business letters, directions/instructions, and general summaries. | CHAPTER THREE Everyday Writing THIS CHAPTER explains some of the everyday purposes that apply to reading and writing for information and understanding. You will learn how to apply the skills you have just learned to write business letters directions instructions and general summaries. Just how does writing which seems so geared to school have any connection to your everyday life You may even be thinking that once you re out of school you ll never have to write again. Well that s simply not the case. With e-mail developing as a primary means of everyday communication writing to communicate information and demonstrate understanding is of major importance. This is especially true as you enter the business world and hope to climb the corporate ladder. Remember what we said at the very beginning of this book Writing is the way we make our thinking visible to the world. Consider then the likelihood that your boss or business manager would want to promote you to a leadership position if he or she hasn t seen a particularly clear and organized mind. And we re not talking about waiting until you re out of college or graduate school. Even if you re just working your way through 27 Everyday Writing EXPRESS YOURSELF school waiting until you can finally land the job of your dreams your writing can establish you as a competent confident individual worthy of responsibility. Here are some of the most important characteristics of business writing in general and e-mail in particular Know your audience. Anticipate your audience s needs and questions. State your main idea in the opening sentence. Be brief. Avoid wordy repetitive writing. Avoid slang buzz words jargon and colloquialisms. Never include jokes clichés and ethnic references. Be factual not emotional. Focus on the positive by choosing positive words and phrases. Always proofread to be sure that you have followed the conventions of standard written English. Even in e-mail correct grammar including capitalization and diction
