By Edward J. Correia
September 2, 2008 — Any guide to leadership puts communication at the top of the list of good management skills. And good written communication skills start with a command of the language. Whether or not English is your first language, we all might have something to gain by brushing up on grammar and sentence construction.
To assist in that endeavor is Hannah Kirk, senior technical writer at Writing Assistance, a consultancy specializing in contract technical writing and training developers. "To write for all audiences is difficult. It would be nice if there was a way to write documents and e-mails for clients that were easy to understand and reduced confusion," she says. When writing user manuals, she explains, technical documentation teams use Simplified English, a form of English writing that is uncomplicated and easy for any audience to understand.
Kirk says that when writing for a lay audience, it's helpful to think of them as eighth-graders with little or no technical experience, the definition used by many organizations. "If this is the typical audience, writing instructional documents heavy with jargon and technical language will not help them. Many users are above this level of understanding, yet this type of writing does not over-simplify, but rather gives the important information in a straightforward manner that eliminates confusion and communicates the message in the most concise method possible."
Simplified English is not just for instructional manuals; it has applications throughout the business world. "A manager who writes letters or a support staff member who must communicate messages clearly and effectively can benefit from using this style of writing. This method of writing helps readers understand concepts clearly." Simplified English is understandable to readers of most ages and education levels, and can also aid communication with non-native English speakers.
Another benefit of simplified writing is the potential for reuse by other departments. Paragraphs written in Simplified English should be able to stand alone. "For example, documents written for instruction can be used in training...and reused in marketing materials. Writing this way can save businesses time spent recreating the same documents by different organizations. This inevitably saves the company money and frees up time for those employees to do other things," says Kirk.
The principles of Simplified English are these: It uses short phrases while avoiding metaphors, multi-syllabic words and words that have multiple meanings. "If a 3- or 4-year-old can understand a sentence without asking questions about the syntax or what a word or metaphor means, the sentence is probably in [Simplified] English."
Simplified English employs the following concepts:
Concept #1: Write as concisely as possible. When writing a sentence, re-read it and think about how it can be written more concisely. For example, here is a sentence that can be written in a more succinct way:
“When you plan ahead, you are able to think more clearly when you are busy.”
On first glance, this sentence might seem simple enough. It's clearly written and uses common words that have no double meanings. But it could have been written even more concisely:
“You can think more clearly when you are busy if you plan ahead.”
Three words were cut out and the syntax was restructured for a clearer understanding. Yet, this sentence can be cut down even more:
“You can think clearly when you plan ahead.”
The part about being busy was left out. Was it essential to the sentence? It depends on the context. If being busy was a core part of the subject, then it should be left in, Kirk says. "If not, this sentence has just been reduced from 15 words to eight! How short would e-mails be if their writers took the time to do this with every e-mail?"
Concept #2: Use active tense. High school and college students are typically taught to use passive wording, and journalists and academics also typically write that way (for example, this article is written in the passive voice). However, according to Kirk, this is not always the most clear way of writing.
"Even though many people will understand passive tense, new English speakers and translators appreciate the use of the active voice. For example, instead of writing, 'The sign was created for your information,' write, 'The company created the sign for your information.' A good rule of thumb for writing in the active voice is putting a clear doer of the action in front of each verb."
A good start would be to stop using the words is, be and are, she says. "For example, instead of, 'It is appreciated when you pick up your trash,' write, 'The company appreciates when you pick up your trash.' " Thinking about the subject of the sentence, who performs the verb, helps you write in as simple a manner as possible and will almost always keep you writing in the active voice, she adds.
Concept #3: When writing a verb, include the subject of that verb. Beyond the rule for writing in the active voice, this concept eliminates confusion about using pronouns, and helps new English speakers and translators determine the clear subject for each verb. "For example, 'Every time I drive my car to the store, it breaks down!' In this sentence, it could refer to the car or to the store, but there is no way to know for sure just by reading this sentence." The sentence could do without the extra pronoun and be more precise by specifying what it refers to: “Every time I drive my car to the store, my car breaks down!”
Kirk offers these additional tips for writing in Simplified English:
| » | Put phrases next to the words that they modify |
| » | Keep the language simple |
| » | Avoid slang and clichés |
| » | Avoid cultural references (for example, common myths or fictional references) |
| » | Avoid words that have more than one meaning (for example, account can be a verb or can refer to a bank account, etc.) |
| » | Avoid leaving out verbs (or nouns) to make your sentences shorter if leaving them out reduces clarity |
These principles can help you communicate more effectively with any audience, even those who translate your words to another language. And according to Kirk, "Your readers will thank you for making their lives easier!"
