Professional Documents
Culture Documents
COMPLETENESS
1. Provide all necessary information 2. Answer all questions asked 3. Give something extra, when desirable
2. CONCISENESS
1. Eliminate wordy expressions
1. Use single-word substitutes instead of phrases whenever possible without changing meaning. At this time Now For the reason of that Because, since Due to the fact that Because In due course Soon In the meantime Meanwhile In very few cases Seldom On the occasion of On For the purpose of For 2. Omit unnecessary expression. Please be advised that your admission statement was received. Your admission statement has been received. Allow me to say how helpful your response was. Your last response was helpful. 3. Replace wordy conventional statements with concise versions. Please find attached the list you requested. The list you requested is attached. Such refreshing comments are few and far between. Such refreshing comments are scarce. 4. Avoid overusing empty phrases. There are four rules that should be observed. Four rules should be observed. It was known by Mr. Smith that we must reduce inventory Mr. Smith knew we must reduce inventory. 5. Omit which and that clauses whenever possible. She bought desks that are of the executive type. She bought executivetype desks. The receipt that is enclosed documents your purchase The enclosed receipt documents your purchase. 6. Limit use of passive voice. The total balance due will be found on page 2 of this report The total balance due is on page 2 of this report. The policy was enforced by the committee. The committee enforced the policy.
Repetition Eliminated: One should know the basics of clear writing I am interested in learning your procedures. Start using the new form on Nov. 1 WORDY Will you ship us sometime, anytime during the month of October would be fine, or even November if you are rushed (November would suit us just as well, in fact a little bit better) 300 of the regular 3- by 15-inches blue felt armbands with white sewn letters in the center. Thank you in advance for sending these along to us by parcel post, and not express, as express is too expensive. CONCISE Please ship parcel post, before the end of November, 300 regular 3- by 15-inches blue felt armbands with white sewn letters in the center.
3. CONSIDERATION
1. Focus on You instead of I and We.
Using you does help project a you-attitude. But overuse can lead to a negative reaction. I / We-attitude: I am delighted to announce that we will be extending our hours to make shopping more convenient You-attitude: You will be able to shop evenings with the extended hours. We-attitude: Were sure you must be frustrated by the length of time it has taken to ship your books to Lahore. You-attitude: The books will be reaching Lahore within a week. I / We-attitude: We have been quite tolerant of your past-due account and must now demand payment. You-attitude: If you are to continue to enjoy the benefits of credit buying, you must clear your account now. Messages that use you can be insensitive in negative situation which can be avoided by employing the passive voice, making the receiver part of a group Depersonalizing the situation. Intensive: You failed to enclose your check in the envelope. Considerate: The check was not enclosed (passive voice) Considerate: The envelope we received did not have a check in it. (Depersonalized) Intensive: You are completely off base in your proposal Considerate: We have differing interpretations of the utility of the proposal (sender-oriented with acceptance of responsibility) Considerate: The proposed plan has three aspects that need clarification (Depersonalized)
2. Show audience benefit or interest in the receiver 3. Emphasize positive, pleasant facts
Positive words to which people react favorably are: Benefit, Cordial, Happy, Help, Generous, Loyal, Pleasure, Thanks and Thoughtful etc. Negative words that often arouse unfavorable reactions include: Strongly negative words - Mistake, Problem, Error, Damage, loss, Blame, complaint, failed, fault, negligence, regret, reject, trouble, unfair etc. Words that deny - no, do not, refuse and stop etc. Words whose sounds or meanings have unpleasant effects itch, grime, sloppy, sticky and bloody Negative Unpleasant It is impossible to open an account for you today We dont refund if the returned item is soiled and unsalable. Positive-Pleasant As soon as your signature card reaches us, we will gladly open an We refund when the returned item is clean and resalable.
4. CONCRETENESS
1. Include as much specific information as possible.
Abstract, Vague, General, Indefinite Eastern Europe is making progress in obtaining investment. He got a good score in his MBA Program. She is a fast typist. Students GMAT scores are higher Concrete, Precise In 2008 investments in Eastern Europe were about $600 million; today that figure has increased by 35%. His GPA in Fall 2010 was 3.92 on a four point scale. She types @ speed of 80 words/min. In 2009 the GMAT scores averaged 600; by 2010 they had risen to 610.
5. CLARITY
1. Choose precise, concrete and familiar words
Familiar For example Thats it About Pay Invoice Study, examine, check After, later, following Find out, Learn Unfamiliar/pretentious e.g. (L) "exemplum gratia i.e. (L) "id est circa (L) Remuneration statement for payment Peruse Subsequent Ascertain
This machine has a tendency to develop excessive and unpleasant audio symptoms when operating at elevated temperature VS. This machine tends to get noisy when it runs hot
Long word During the preceding year, the company was able to accelerate the productive operations. The president acceded to the proposition to nullify the contractual relationship Short word Last year the company was able to speed up operations The president agreed to break the contract. With the increased use of e-mail there is the tendency to be concise. IMO FAQ ASAP BTW FYI TTFN
Unity means that you have one main idea, and any other ideas in the sentence must be closely related to it. Example: I like Sam, and Faisal Mosque is in Islamabad obviously is not a unified sentence. In a coherent sentence the words are correctly arranged so that the ideas clearly express the intended meaning. Place the modifier as close as possible to the word it is supposed to modify e.g.: Being an excellent lawyer, I am sure you can help us. Being an excellent lawyer, you can surely help us.
6. COURTESY
1. Be sincerely tactful, thoughtful, and appreciative
Be sincerely tactful and dont be abrupt or blunt as these negative traits are a common cause of discourtesy. Sometimes from negative personal attitudes Sometimes they stem from a mistaken idea of conciseness Sometimes from not knowing the culture of a country or even group of people Please send your cheque for the amount you owe (Tactless) By sending your cheque for Rs. 5,000, you will be able to maintain your good credit reputation (Tactful)
More Courteous: Warm congratulations on your wedding! Well, you certainly took us by surprise. In fact, just a few of us even suspected you were taking off to get married. But even though we didnt hear about it until later, we my wife and I wish you the best. Give our warm regards to your new partner.
Racial and ethnic bias His black assistant speaks more clearly than he does (Racial-bias) His assistant speaks more clearly than he does. (Reader-friendly) Mr. Ali is an unusually tall Asian (Racial-bias) Mr. Ali is tall (Reader-friendly) Age bias Mr. X, aged 55, has just joined our Technical Department (Age-bias) Mr. X has just joined our Technical Department. (Reader-friendly) Disability bias Crippled workers face many barriers on the job. (Disability-bias) Workers with physical disabilities face many barriers on the job (Reader-friendly).
7. CORRECTNESS
1. Use the right level of language 2. Check accuracy of figures, facts and words 3. Maintain acceptable writing mechanics