I've been doing a lot of business writing and editing over the last few months. It's been interesting because the key to business communication is to be succinct, and get to the point while still building the relationship.
I was thinking about how that applies to all writing. Succinct is good. Getting to the point directly, powerfully is what separates great prose from turgid pap.
Most writing and mass communication nowadays is purposely aimed at a grade seven level. You are coached to communicate at that level. That is the level at which people will spend some of their precious attention to see if they like what you are saying. If they like it, then they will read further to see if there's value for them in your words.
Ideally – it's said – you must entertain. People are conditioned to be entertained. It's a TV society. People are conditioned to soundbites. The 30 second commercial. They scan and grab relevant information off of the webpage or article.
Where's the line between succinct and bland? Between detailed and dry? Between original – deep and a simplified rehash of the same old, same old?
Keeping things at a simple level works as far as drinking from the firehose of info we are all faced with every day – that bombardment of data that our world has become.
The world's knowledge is increasing at an incredible pace… is it something lke we double the data every couple years now? Where is this going though?
Anything new and breakthru is based on complex and detailed information. To become excellent, we need to drink deep from the lake, not sip from the firehose. Yet offer things of substance and you'll starve. No one has time to dig deep. When they see something complicated and valuable, they run!
Something like 40% of all digital products sold actually get listened to or watched. Marketing has become the consumption of the useless…
If we are always communicating at a level lower than our intellect, simplifying complex ideas down to pablum, are we participating in the dumbing down of society?
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Focus For Productivity
Focus is a tool. Focus is also a skill. Interestingly, it also has three distinct, useful results. I'm going to describe and go into some detail on these results and then offer some proven effective exercises and tips.
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One of the "Deep Secrets" of Greatness and Genius
Confession time – this has been a hard article for me to write. It frankly is one I've hesitated on… Why?
The research behind this "puts the boots" to all the statements you might have heard about someone's "potential" or they're "naturally gifted" or she's "a born singer…" or whatever. Research by Anders Ericsson, professor of psychology at Florida State University in Tallahassee gets to the core of genius, achievement and excellence in a way that is irrefutable, and ultimately… inspiring. And a bit hard to take in my case!
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Balance, Your Brain and Creativity
Balance is an interesting and fun skill that has been proven to activate large and widely varied parts of the brain. As covered previously, anything that activates more parts of your brain always allows you to access more of your innate creativity. All those interconnections, nudges, hints and messy entanglements that happen from connecting your knowledge around and throughout your brain will always lead to greater creativity and fresh insights.
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Gaining The Skills Of Your Favorite Writer… Fast!
Modeling is a way to "represent" a real thing in a more convenient or smaller or different way. When modeling your favorite author, the idea is to imagine yourself being as much like them as possible, in order to borrow their skills and creativity.
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Information is the basis of all writing.
Information that you have researched, learned, sorted and organized into your own unique way of looking at it is a reason to express what you know. Research is a necessary step whether for a novel, college thesis or self help book. Here's the process I recommend to conduct internet based research in a time effective way.
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Read what you have written out loud — and record yourself speaking it.
Next, while listening to that, write notes on ideas that occur to you as you listen – pieces to add, directions to explore, additional insights or inspiration to explore. Set an intention to listen and not edit what's there, as well as to pause and write all ideas that occur to you while listening… again without editing!
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Hand Copy Your Favorites
The basics of writing are well understood and time tested.
Learn grammar until it's unconscious. Most of us have this down pat in our native language. Knowing all the "labels" might help in English courses, but if you can talk and be easily understood, you have the basics of grammar and communication. That's what you need to write and be understood!
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The Tell a Friend technique.
Tell the story (or viewpoint) to a friend; real or imagined… She asks,"And then?" Answer her. And if you're just imagining, answer out loud. (Record and transcribe it later…).
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Speak your writing and record it.
Stuck? Often just talking about what it is that you have in mind, can bring a lot more ideas and developments to mind. So record what you want to communicate, then transcribe it and edit it later.
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