I have a client who good naturedly says, “Hold, please” when she needs a moment to regroup before resuming the task at hand.
Since I’m taking a bit of a break to celebrate the Christmas and New Year’s holidays, I’m saying “Hold, please” to the Writing Maven Blog until after the first of the year.
Merry Christmas, all!
No CommentsThis blog is about writing, of course, but it’s also about doing business well. And you simply can’t do your job or conduct business well if you’re disorganized. I’m pretty organized (I do have a label maker, you know) but even the most organized can benefit from Elizabeth Hagen’s tips.
The self-proclaimed “Fearless Organizer” is hosting a Fearless Organizing Virtual Day. Set aside Friday, January 18 and get organized for the New Year. For more info or to register, visit: http://www.elizabethhagen.com/virtualday/.
No CommentsOkay, maybe it’s an occupational hazard or maybe it’s a pet peeve. I don’t know. But I do know that misplaced modifiers can create misunderstanding among your readers, customers, employees, podcast listeners and web site visitors.
A misplaced modifier is a descriptor (word or phrase) that is incorrectly located within a sentence.
Here’s an example from a local business owner’s radio ads: “Hi, this is the owner’s husband of Hines Motor Sports.” Sounds like the husband is married to the company! And while that may be figuratively true, it’s certainly incorrect.
What he means to say is “This is the husband of the owner of Hines Motor Sports.”
See how I simply moved the words around? It’s an easy fix but one that’s sometimes missed. Check out my read out loud tip if you need help.
No CommentsI just got back in the office after spending two days with a client and members of my client’s sales team. A mere sixteen hours after meeting (some of us for the very first time), we walked away smiling, hugging and, more importantly, with some solid training materials to our credit.
Together we developed content that will certainly inspire, motivate and equip participants of an upcoming three-day workshop.
When done right, there’s almost nothing better than creative collaboration like this. Working collaboratively leads to better understanding, better decisions, better outcomes, better everything.
Whether you’re writing on your own by choice or by circumstance, I highly recommend sharing a draft with someone else. Ask them not only to check for accuracy and clarity, but also for redundancies, holes and missed opportunities.
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