Wordiness—style problems that lead to overstuffing your writing—can make readers turn from digesting to skimming, negating all your hard work. Business Writing That Counts! focuses on wordiness from several angles in our workshops (live online or in-person), courses, one-on-one coaching, and consulting. Here are a few: 1. Reliance on filler words. Sentence transitions can prove tough, even though they can help writing flow. But when you are too hung up on them, you tend to ad

Jargon jars, especially in writing to clients, who either don't get the terms or repel at the sight of some of your techie or business-speak. With better writing, you will rely less on jargon to get you through. This also for nabbing good employees, too. A recent analysis of 6.3 million job descriptions posted online looked for 40 common (and dare we say, overused?) phrases. They broke it down geographically (across the U.S., Canada, Australia, and the UK). And guess who "too

How often have you been told to focus, from childhood to today? Sure, it can take a focus of steel to complete some business tasks, writing included, and we help managers and employees stay on task during tough writing projects. But is it really so awful to let your mind wander? It might even lead to easier and better writing. A recent study wanted to know what functions are served when babies and young children's minds wander. The authors studied how thinking moves dynamical