10 Super Simple Ways to Be a Better Writer

Do you enjoy writing? Does it come naturally to you? Do colleagues praise you for your crisp, articulate, Nobel Laureate-worthy email updates?

Congratulations! Because if you work in an office or run your own business, you’re likely to spend about a quarter of your workday doing one thing:

Writing.

Oh, and that’s just the portion of your day that you’ll spend writing emails.

That figure doesn’t account for reports, proposals, best practice guidelines, blog posts, Facebook updates, tweets, texts, chapters of your forthcoming memoirs, that TED Talk script you’ve been tinkering with for the last 18 months, and the occasional hand-written “thank you” note.

We live in an era where the written word is King.

And if you’re going to write 40,000+ words this year—at minimum!—you might as well learn how to do your absolute best.

Here are 10 ways to become a better writer, right away.

(The kind of writer whose words get results.)

1. Get Clear

Before you sit down to write (anything), ask yourself: Why am I writing?

What’s the desired outcome that you want with this particular piece of writing?

Are you writing to brighten someone’s morning? Motivate your team to head back into the ring after a crushing defeat? Encourage folks to say “yes” to your new meeting time?

The best writing tends to have one clear, ringing intention. Choose it—and commit.

2. Get to the Point

In the business world, brevity is gold. 

If you’re struggling to get to the point, take a moment to think about the person (or people) that you’re writing to, and create a roadmap for yourself by filling in the following statements:

The reason I am writing is:

What I want you to know is:

What I want you to do is:

Get those three points down pat. Then refer to them as you write to keep yourself on track.

3. Strip it Down

Albert Einstein once said, “If you can’t explain it to a six-year-old, you don’t understand it yourself.”

Imagine that you’re writing for an audience of little kids—impatient, easily distracted, with zero tolerance for jargon.

You can practice—out in the real world—by having actual conversations with kids. Try explaining to a toddler what you do for a living, for starters. You’ll see, very quickly, if your elevator pitch is clear and intriguing—or not. 

4. Write From Your Happy Place

Ever notice how when you’re stressed out and trying to “force” yourself to write something amazing, it almost never works?

Research shows that getting yourself into a happy, relaxed state—think: taking a shower—is the key to creativity-on-command. When your body is experiencing a rush of dopamine, that’s when those a-ha! moments (“Ooh! I’ve got the perfect title for my presentation!”) tend to happen.

Can’t take a shower at work? No worries. There are plenty of other ways to get into your happy place before you sit down to write. Play energizing music, light a scented candle, bounce on an exercise ball—whatever it takes to help you unclench and relax!

5. Give Yourself a Time Limit

For most people, the longer you fuss over a piece of writing, the worse it gets.

When you have a clear reason for writing and feel happy and relaxed (see tip #4), your first draft is usually best. There’s no need to endlessly chew it over.

Clearing out your inbox, for example? Give yourself a time limit—say, two minutes per email—to prevent yourself from slipping into analysis-paralysis.

6. Ask, “What Would My Hero Write?”

If you’re struggling with a sensitive piece of writing where hitting the right emotional tone is essential, try channeling one of your personal heroes.

“What would Mister Rogers write in this situation?” “What would the Dalai Lama say?” “How would Richard Branson handle this email chain?”

7. Close Strong

Lost in a sea of never-ending email threads? Questions building upon questions, never leading to decisive action?

Try taking a decisive stance, rather than wrapping up your writing with an open-ended prompt.

Think: “In my opinion, the following approach is the best choice. If you agree, write back to say ‘yes,’ and I’ll get started.”

Not: “So, what do you guys think? I’m open to everyone’s input!”

8. Use the 7 Magic Words

“All I need from you right now.”

Kick these words up to the top of your correspondence, as in:

“I’m so excited that you’re going to deliver a keynote at our annual conference.

All I need from you right now is the title of your talk, a headshot, and your bio.”

These seven magic words give your reader a clear assignment, and put them at ease. (“Ahhh—that’s all? No problem. Done.”)

You can always add more information down below, if necessary (“Here are a few other things to know—for later.”)

9. Say it Out Loud

Whenever possible, read your writing out loud.

Does it sound like it was written by a human being or a cyborg? Are you stumbling over excessively long sentences? Catch any typos or duplicate words? If so, tweak and read it out loud again.

If reading aloud isn’t possible—because you don’t want to disturb your colleagues—try lightly tapping a finger on your desk or thigh as you silently read each word in your head. (It’s bizarre, but it works almost as well as reading out loud.)

10. Be a Daymaker

David Wagner, CEO of Juut Salonspa, often speaks about being a “Daymaker”—not just going through the motions at work, but actively choosing to be a source of positivity and encouragement. Choosing to make someone’s day.

With everything you write—every email, every text, every tweet—you have an opportunity to make someone’s day. (Or not.)

Often, all it takes is a few words of kindness, a thoughtful compliment, or the kind of insightful reminder that leaves people thinking, “Yeah. I needed that.”

Set “Daymaker” as your barometer of success—for your writing, and for everything you do.

Whether your writing is “perfect” or not, your intent will shine through.

How to Gain Respect and Make Professional Connections

No matter how talented or smart you are, if you can’t communicate effectively with others it will be difficult to get a job, retain clients, and have productive relationships.

It’s a delicate process. Communication can be a hectic two-way street with messages coming and going between sender and receiver. If you aren’t paying attention, you’ll miss a queue and in turn, send a response that isn’t ideal.

Listen, some people are born with that ‘gift’. They can pick up on something and jump into any conversation whenever they want. Most people aren’t built that way. Let’s dive in and look at a few ways to improve. The goal is not to be the Anthony Robbins of your office, but perhaps with some work, you can take your game up a notch.

Here’s how to make professional connections.

Focus on first impressions and non-verbal behavior
Communication is both verbal and nonverbal. We don’t only send messages with words, but also with our behavior, expressions, and tone of voice. When making a first impression, be sure to have good posture, shake hands firmly, use a clear and confident tone of voice, and make eye contact.

Nonverbal communication is the real key to gauging what someone is thinking and how they are feeling, so make sure you’re sending the right message from the get go.

Adapt to match their behavior and emotions
To make a connection with someone, be aware of their state of mind and personality. Matching and mirroring others characteristic no-verbal behavior is a wonderful way to build rapport. When some mirrors our expressions, such the way we sit and move, it can feel like they’re similar and relate to us.

This offers a feeling of comfort and safety, where it becomes easier for the other person to open-up and act natural.

In general, gauge how the other person is feeling from their expression, posture, or tone of voice, and try to connect on their level.

For instance, have you ever been extremely tired and someone with boundless energy comes around talking a mile per minute? It can be irritating and obnoxious.

We simply like people who we connect with and who are like us. Building rapport through non-verbal behavior is a key to building trust and getting positive results from others.

Mutual Respect is Crucial
Learning to be assertive is very important for healthy relationships. Assertiveness is a way of communicating with mutual respect. We show respect to others while at the same time not compromising self-respect. Don’t get aggressive and belittle others, and similarly don’t be a passive pushover and accept disrespectful treatment.

Here’s how to get our needs meet while still respecting the needs of others.

• Learning how to organize assertive statements
• Use “I” statements rather than “you” statements
• Be willing to listen and stay calm
• State the facts and focus on the problem
• Express personal thoughts, feeling, and opinions reflecting ownership
• Use clear direct requests or commands when you want others to do something rather than being vague or indirect.

Consider assertiveness in your everyday life and start practicing. Who do you have trouble being assertive around? What is happening during these times? How do you usually respond?

We all have a personal bubble
Understand people have different boundaries. Everybody has a comfort level of how close they are willing to get to others emotionally and physically. Some people have more rigid boundaries and are not open to getting close to people they don’t know. Someone with rigid boundaries may be difficult to get to know or seem uninterested, but in the long-run these can be very loyal friends and colleagues.

Other people have very open boundaries and are willing to get close and be more personal. These people have no problem being open and expressing their personal feelings.

Understanding these differences can be helpful in dealing with people in professional situations. If you have very open boundaries be careful not to offend others. You may want to test the waters and be a little more reserved at first.

Similarly, if you’re a little closed off, you may need to work on being more assertive and staking your claim if you desire to network and expand your influence.

The goal is to be balanced. First learn to understand your own boundaries and know what you feel comfortable with. Then approach others with their personal bubble in mind.

Find similarities and know people’s interests
Find what you have in common with people in order to build rapport and establish a relationship. This helps to navigate the numerous social interactions we have each day, and helps to stand out as someone who considers and pays attention to others.

For instance, by remembering peoples’ interests you’ll know that:

Pam is the music lady, Rob loves talking about astrology, and Frank is always focused on sports.

You get the point. By knowing what others are interested in, you can make it about them and get them to open-up and start connecting. Everyone enjoys talking about themselves and their interests, so make it about others.

Don’t forget to be real
It’s never advised to try and be someone you’re not, however at times we must adapt and utilize our social intelligence in order to build relationships and manage conflict.

When incorporating the above ideas don’t forget to be authentic. If you seem unnatural, all the focus will be drawn to your awkward behavior instead of making a natural connection. Start practicing the tips and little by little they will become more natural.

Similarly, it’s important to actually care about talking to others and have a positive attitude in process. Take a sincere interest in others, show respect, and act natural, and you’ll be making connections and networking in no time.

4 Steps To Find Your Passion

What gets you out of bed in the morning? Most people would answer that question with “my alarm?” I contend that the happiest people in the world could jump out of bed in the morning without the use of an al

arm clock! Why? Because they have a burning passion to change the world!

Now, to clarify, if you are currently not jumping out of bed in the morning, that’s ok. What that more than likely means is you are waking up to go to “work”.

W – with

O – out

R – really

K – knowing (why I’m here)

So the question remains…why ARE you there? If you do not have a burning passion to fulfill your purpose at work, then you are just punching a time card. Nothing wrong with that, you just won’t be jumping out of bed in the morning (unless it’s the weekend!) So how do we discover our passion? How do we gain perspective over the why in life? These 4 steps will help you decipher your passion and ignite your spirit!

1.

What do you enjoy doing? Usually people are happiest when doing something that causes joy. I am not a fan of flying, so becoming a pilot wouldn’t be a great plan! I do, however, love writing, so here we are! What do you really enjoy doing? How can you do more of that every day? If you thoroughly enjoy doing it, someone will probably want to pay you for it! You could even be your own boss, if you figure out how to monetize it!

2. What abilities were you born with? Each of us were born with a certain set of skills. You have things in your skills arsenal that I wouldn’t be able to do with 100 years to practice! What gifts were you born with that could contribute to society? How can you leverage those skills to bring more enjoyment to your life? We always do better work when working within strengths!

3. What kind of personality do you have? The thing about personalities is they are PERSONAL! You are not the same as the person next to you. Stop trying to fit into a mold crafted by someone else! Be yourself! If your personality is introverted, stop trying to be a salesman. If you personality is extroverted, get out from behind the desk! If you are working somewhere that is counter-intuitive to your personality, YOU WILL BE MISERABLE! Where would your personality fit best? How can you transition your life that direction? Don’t wait until next year….your joy depends on it!

4. What generates a righteous anger inside you? When finding your passion, look inside to the injustices that enrage you. For me, I absolutely go bananas when discussing our current health care system! So many people are being medicated for lifestyle problems. People don’t need medication, they need EDUCATION, specifically on how they can take ownership on their own health to make better decisions! (don’t get me fired up!) What causes you to get upset? What injustice do you want to right? How can you use # 1 – 3 above to fuel this anger to make a difference in the world?

These 4 steps will help you discover your passion and ignite your spirit. Once you have discovered your passion, then you need to act on it! You will never be happier than when you are living your passion out daily! What’s your passion? Have fun diving deep inside to find your answer!

Six Simple Steps to Better Time Management

Being able to manage your own time is a crucial skill in the workplace.

If you work for yourself, it’s even more important – poor time management could spell the end of your business, or at least make you less successful than you’d hoped.

Poor time management can be at the root of many problems.

If you find yourself taking work home in the evenings, for instance, it might not be because you've got too much work but because you’re not managing your time well during the day.

And if you’re often stressed out and frustrated by your work, this might be a time management issue too:no-one likes feeling disorganized and behind with things.

If you know your time management skills aren't quite up to scratch, try these simple steps to improve:

#1: Use an Organizer

It doesn't matter what kind of organizer you use – some people like a paper diary, others use Google Calendar, and others have a favorite software program. What’s important is that you have an organizer and that you use it.

Your organizer should let you keep track of your appointments. If you've ever forgotten a meeting, or double-booked yourself, you’ll know why this matters!

You’ll also want to keep a note of key reminders (“Buy anniversary card for spouse”).

It’s also useful if there’s space for a daily to-do list or similar…

#2: Write a To-Do List Every Day

How do you begin your working day? Many people start off by checking their emails, and then begin tackling whatever happens to have come in. It’s easy to end up spending the whole day on minor tasks, rather than tackling the work that really needs to be done.

At the start of each day, take five or ten minutes to write down a list of what you want to accomplish. You’ll probably have a few mission-critical items (“Finish client’s report”) and a few things that are essentially just reminders of small tasks (“Phone Joe”).

Writing down the big items helps you focus on them right from the beginning of the day; writing down the small ones means you don’t have to use up valuable mental energy trying to remember them.

#3: Prioritize by Importance

How do you decide which tasks to tackle first? If you go for the ones that seem most urgent – with the closest deadline, or the pushiest client – then you might end up shoving aside more important things. Sometimes, prioritizing by urgency makes sense, but as a general rule, you should be tackling the important tasks first.

One way to do that is by dividing your day into two halves: work on important, longer-term tasks in the morning, and on urgent tasks in the afternoon.

If those urgent things truly need to get done by 5 pm, you’ll probably manage them just fine — without spending the whole day caught up in them.

#4: Understand Your Peak Times of Day

Are you a morning lark or a night owl? Do you find it easier to focus at 8 am or 8 pm? We all have peaks and troughs of energy throughout the day – and it’s useful to get to know when your best (and worst) times are.

For me, mornings are the best time: I use them for my most creative and energy-demanding work, which is writing. Afternoons are when I deal with editing, admin, emails, and other smaller tasks.

I have a slump around 4 pm – 5 pm, when I’m grouchy and unable to focus. I can easily accomplish twice as much between 9 am – 10 am as between 4 pm – 5 pm. Your ups and downs may be very different from mine – but by figuring out when they are, you can plan your work and manage your time more effectively.

#5: Take Regular Breaks

This might sound a little counter-intuitive – but are you taking enough breaks? If you’re aiming to improve your time management, you might try to do so by working steadily for hours without stopping … but this isn't going to make you more productive. By taking regular breaks, you give yourself a chance to switch off and recharge.

Most people can only focus for around 25 – 45 minutes before needing a brief break (even if it’s just five minutes to get up, grab a glass of water, and move around a bit).

Planned breaks are crucial: don’t simply work until you get stuck or run out of steam. If you know you’re going to take a break at 11 am and it’s 10.40, it’s easy to stay focused – you may even find yourself working harder to get a task completed before your break.

#6: Check Email Less Often

Do you keep your inbox open constantly? Or do you find yourself checking emails every half-hour? If so, you’re destroying your ability to get into the zone with your work. Yes, your clients and colleagues might like it that you always reply promptly – but if this pulls you away from your actual work, you aren't doing anyone any favors.

Try checking email a bit less frequently. That might mean every two hours, or just once or twice a day, depending on your industry and the expectations of your boss or clients.

You’ll find that you’re not only more focused, you’re able to get through your emails in less time, because you can tackle them as one batch.

How to Ask Smart Questions

Perhaps this is from my sales background but it has occurred to me that most people ask silly questions.

I am not talking about asking questions that a 3rd grader would know the answer to, I am talking about asking questions that do not illicit a favorable response.

Let me give you an example:

YOU: “Boss, what can I do to get a promotion?”
BOSS: “You have to hit your deadlines and the goals we set during your review”

Well, no kidding. That response did indeed answer your question and although YOU asked for it, the response was generic and you are going to walkaway thinking your boss isn’t interested in your development. Right?

Let’s try it my way. Here is another example:

YOU: “Boss, assuming I hit my goals and deadlines, what else can I do to put me in a better position to get promoted?”
BOSS: You really need to get involved more in the strategy of our department as opposed to simply getting projects done. The more you can add to our direction, the more you will be seen as a visionary and a resource to our team.”

As you can see, your wording severely impacts the response you receive. The key is to address the obvious answers within your initial question. You want to make the other person elaborate on what you already know. That’s the entire point of a question isn’t it?

So let’s make a short list of key things you need to do in order to get the response you want:

• Go to the source: A lot of people ask questions to those that they are most comfortable talking to. This is a huge mistake. It obviously will depend on the situation but using the promotion scenario mentioned above, I don’t see any reason why you can’t accidentally run into your boss’ boss in the hallway and ask, “Oh, hey Mary, I wanted to ask how can advance in the company assuming that I reach all of my objectives.” Why not? If anything, it will tell Mary that you have a ambition. You can then take that information and strategically insert it into a conversation with your boss – remember you now know something your boss doesn’t.
• Be Specific: Do not generalize. Be as specific as you can in your question, “How to I do X, Y, Z?”

• Follow-Up: I don’t care what you ask or who answers it. If the question is important, have the answer reiterated. You can do this in one of three ways:

• The Recap: “So you are saying that if X and Y occur, Z will happen. Is that about right?”

• The Dummy: “Ok. Can you expand on that a little (I want to make sure I understand)?”

• In other words: “Ok great, if X and Y happen, I should expect Z because…” Use totally different wording and add a benefit to the end. Even if a benefit was never stated, your adding one will attach something valuable to the conversation.

Asking questions is seriously an art. We can all ask how to do something but only a thinker can ask it in a way that will illicit the desired response. Try it out tomorrow – try asking people questions a little differently and I guarantee you will get more detailed, specific responses.

5 Ways to Be a Better Listener

Some of the most successful entrepreneurs have yet to hone their listening skills--and it could be working against them.

If you take the time to hear what others have to say--particularly your employees and customers, whose feedback is invaluable--you will build a loyal following for your brand. But be careful not to judge or criticize; just simply listen.

Here are five techniques to do so more effectively:

1. Open up your body language. Your body language reveals your interest or disinterest in a story. When actively listening to someone, lean slightly forward and make eye contact. A simple smile and the occasional nod will show that you're interested and engaged.

In situations where you feel slightly uncomfortable--such as a networking event--you may have a tendency to cross your arms, put your hands in your pockets or exhibit other forms of nervous behavior. These small physical barriers can discourage others from approaching you.

2. Stay engaged. If you're in a busy area, focus more on the person you're with and less on what's going on around you. Similarly, while on the phone, turn your back to your computer and give the person you're talking to your full attention. When you're distracted by technology, it makes others feel unimportant.

3. Resist the urge to interrupt. It can be tempting to finish someone's sentence to show you comprehend their message, but it can come off as rude. Listening builds trust. If you interrupt someone--even with good intentions--it denies the speaker the opportunity to fully express her feelings or opinions. To ensure that you won't interrupt, always pause for a few seconds before responding.

4. Ask questions. The two most powerful words in a conversation are, "Tell me." People will perk up when you ask them pertinent questions and listen attentively to their responses. If you take an active interest in the lives of others, they will return the favor.

Open-ended questions provide the best opportunity for people to elaborate on a given topic and will keep the conversation flowing smoothly. If you don't understand the point someone is trying to make, ask for clarification or specific examples.

5. Practice empathetic listening. Listen not only with your ears, but with your eyes and your heart. You don't have to necessarily agree with the speaker, but imagine how he or she feels. Put yourself in another person's shoes to fully understand their point of view.

Unfortunately, most people don't listen to comprehend; they listen to reply. Don't focus on what you're going to say next. It's distracting and hinders the conversation. Focus on the speaker's story. Ask yourself, "How would I feel if this happened to me?" And once you've fully absorbed what the person has said, respond thoughtfully

How to use mediation

When workplace conflicts first appear, organisations often turn to mediation to find a middle way. Scott Beagrie discovers why more companies are using mediation and even training their own staff to become mediators

Mediation is still much misunderstood by many managers, occasionally confused with similar practices like conciliation or arbitration. While there might be overlaps with these, mediation is concerned with helping the parties involved find a solution to their problems and is ideally brought in at the earliest stages of a dispute. If mediation is successful, conciliation and arbitration stages should never be reached.

As Acas explains in its guidelines, "the overriding aim of workplace mediation is to restore and maintain the employment relationship wherever possible. This means the focus is on working together to go forward, not determining who was right or wrong in the past." Mediators do not make judgments about the people or issues involved, but instead facilitate a discussion between the two sides by asking questions that get to the root of a problem.

01: Understand the importance

Mediation is swiftly moving up the corporate agenda as a way of resolving a breakdown of working relationships and preventing issues and grievances escalating into full-blown disputes. It's proven effective at preventing both personal workplace litigation as well as large-scale industrial disputes, but is equally useful for settling more minor disagreements which could escalate into something more damaging or disruptive.

While specially trained mediators are brought in from external organisations such as Acas, there is also a move to train more managers in mediation skills. John Crawley, founder and chair of workplace dispute specialist, CMP Resolutions, has been campaigning long and hard to get mediation recognised as a core management skill. As well as mitigating the risk of increased industrial-workplace disputes, he reckons it ultimately makes managers and leaders more effective.

Try to get people to step away from the blame frame as people love blaming the other side

John Crawley, founder and chair of workplace dispute specialist, CMP Resolutions

"I know a lot of people that have had that training who have become better managers and their careers have advanced," he explains. "It helps your judgment as you don't make decisions without getting good information first. Impartiality is great too, because if you don't make your mind up about people, you learn a lot more about them." The immediate task for managers is to understand the role of mediation and know when to employ its use.

02: Know when to use it

Mediation has considerably less chance of a positive outcome once people's views and attitudes to one another become entrenched. Crawley suggests that while there's far more awareness at policy and management level of the need to "get in and have a conversation sooner rather than later", organisations still leave it too late. While mediation frequently enjoys success (Acas claims around four in five of its mediations are successful), it won't work in every case. Crawley warns that if principles and values are involved it can be difficult because people may already hold set views about the other side. "What often happens is that people get very stuck out of sheer arrogance as they really have no notion at all of where the other side is coming from," he explains.

03: Keep things impartial

The mediator will first talk to both parties separately about the situation. He or she will listen to concerns and learn more about the facts surrounding the dispute. Each will be asked questions that will help build a fuller understanding of the situation and to get them to think and discuss what they hope to come away with. A suitable time and place is arranged for the mediation which typically takes place on the organisation's premises. Acas recommends at least two private rooms so each party has one. Either party can break off the mediation at any time and talk to the mediator separately or take a rest from proceedings. Acas guidance underlines that any agreements will not be legally binding unless the parties wish them to be so. In such a case, individuals should be allowed to seek legal advice before agreeing to anything.

04: Work towards a solution

The mediator's role is to keep both parties talking and listening to each other. It's about "moving them away from the past to the future and from the problem to the solution," explains Crawley. "Also, try to get people to step away from the blame frame as people love blaming the other side."

There are still a lot of myths about the role of the mediator. "There's a misunderstanding that you must solve the problem for them, but you'll be much better off if you make these people less dependent on you by getting them to take ownership," says Crawley, adding that this more enlightened approach will benefit workplace relations in a broader sense. "Managers shouldn't do all the work. If we can embed this belief into leadership and management, we could start to see a considerable culture shift in how disputes are dealt with."