Wednesday, 27 February 2008
Sometimes it pays to feel a little silly!
Sometimes, it pays to do things that make you feel a little silly at the time. To be clear, I’m talking about doing something that you may not otherwise do – not the sort of sheer stupidity that leaves us humiliated, guilty or ashamed.
At first, exposing our silly side may make us feel uncomfortable or a bit anxious. We might also feel embarrassed about what we are doing and not want anyone else to know about our little quirk. But, the silly things we do can often lead to valuable insights and memorable experiences.
What’s this got to do with writing? More than you might think because the best thing you can do to improve your writing is to read it aloud. At first, you will feel silly because it will feel strange to read your words aloud with no one listening. But,if you persevere, you'll find the quality of your writing improves.
This is because reading aloud is the best way to ‘hear’ your sentences. You’ll get a much clearer idea of how well your sentences flow and whether you need to restructure the ideas. You’ll hear any abrupt changes of subject or clunky sentences. You'll also know your sentence is too long or needs commas, if you run out of breath.
The other advantage is that reading your work aloud makes you focus on every word. When we edit online, it’s easy for our impatient eyes to skip over spelling or grammatical errors.
So, next time you have to write something, try reading it aloud at least once before you send or print. You may feel silly but I think you’ll find it’s worth it.
At first, exposing our silly side may make us feel uncomfortable or a bit anxious. We might also feel embarrassed about what we are doing and not want anyone else to know about our little quirk. But, the silly things we do can often lead to valuable insights and memorable experiences.
What’s this got to do with writing? More than you might think because the best thing you can do to improve your writing is to read it aloud. At first, you will feel silly because it will feel strange to read your words aloud with no one listening. But,if you persevere, you'll find the quality of your writing improves.
This is because reading aloud is the best way to ‘hear’ your sentences. You’ll get a much clearer idea of how well your sentences flow and whether you need to restructure the ideas. You’ll hear any abrupt changes of subject or clunky sentences. You'll also know your sentence is too long or needs commas, if you run out of breath.
The other advantage is that reading your work aloud makes you focus on every word. When we edit online, it’s easy for our impatient eyes to skip over spelling or grammatical errors.
So, next time you have to write something, try reading it aloud at least once before you send or print. You may feel silly but I think you’ll find it’s worth it.
Labels: writing tips; writing for business
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