By: Dani Henshilwood
As
a future educator who is in the journey of student teaching, I think about
writing, read other peoples’ writings, and read writing in all different voices
and styles. I read anything from test scores and professional letters, to picture
books and students’ writings. I am constantly seeing the differences that occur
in so many types of writing. Along with reading different writings, I have a
large passion to write and care about writing and communication quite a bit.
My
mom has always been an entrepreneur, so she taught me at a young age to know
what voice and style to use when communicating different ideas and
communicating to different people. I was asked to read through my classmate’s
professional emails in high school all the time because I was considered a “gift”
in writing to people in professional roles. People I hardly knew would ask me
to proofread their emails and teach them how to word ideas in a professional
manner. I’ll be honest, when my mom “forced” me to learn how to do this, I
hated it and thought it was dumb. I know what you’re thinking, what an entitled
preteen thing to think. You’re right. It was an awful entitled thought that
soon changed when I found that I gained much respect from each and every adult
I communicated with through writing.
With
all this being said, I would like to teach YOU the difference between different
types of writings and how to communicate effectively and professionally with
anyone of your choosing. Follow these steps and you are sure to gain respect to
anyone you write to. Another thing to note is that in a business or professional
situation, it could be the professional communications that push you to the top
of the contact list in a job. It’s all about your tone and your voice. Without
further ado, I present to you… Professional Writing 101. \
When
I think about what voice and style I will use when writing to someone, I first identify
the person I am writing to and what kind of relationship I have with them. If I
am sending a text to my best friend; it is sometimes going to look entirely
different than a text I would send to my mom. If I am sending an email to someone,
I have a professional relationship with, it will be worded and written very
differently than what I would write to my mom. Below is just that situation.
One paragraph is written to my mom, while the other one is written to a seminar
leader that I have to communicate with on regular basis (she schedules them all
and they are a requirement for our program to get helpful information for our
future careers).
Paragraph 1: Mom
Okay,
so apparently there are required seminars we have to attend this last year of
my program. I did not know about this because there has been no communication
on that at all. There’s one on August 12th, but I have my licensure
test scheduled for that day. I can’t be there for it. I scheduled that test
back on July 10th and they just told me about this seminar on August 2nd. That is only a ten-day
notice, so even if I weren’t taking my test that day, I would still be working.
For work, I have to give a fourteen-day notice when I need a day off. I can’t
just pop up and say I need a day off after the schedule has already been
released and be like, “Yo, I’m gonna need to take Monday off. Yeah, thanks.”
This lady is not taking anyone into consideration. Just thinking about what
works best for her. She always does it this way.
Paragraph 2:
Seminar Leader
Hello,
I
will not be able to attend the seminar on the 12th as I have my teacher
licensure test that day. Will there be a make up session at some point or
something I will need to do in place of the seminar? Also, this was only a
ten-day notice for the seminar. My employer requires a two week notice for any
requests for days off. How many seminars will there be? Also, is there a way
you could provide me with the dates and times for the other seminars this
semester so I can ensure I inform my employer of them? I do not want to miss
anymore this semester. I appreciate any information you can provide!
Thank you in
advance for your response,
Dani
Henshilwood
After seeing both examples it is very obvious that writing to my
mom is very casual compared to writing to someone in a professional role. The
easiest way for me to write professionally is to think about the following:
1. I think of all the things I
want to say.
I
will actually brainstorm first. This sounds very silly, but just like writing a
fictional story or a research paper, getting your thoughts together is very
important in considering everything you need to include in your communication.
2. I write them all down.
Yes,
you read that right. I just simply write everything down I brainstormed. I don’t
worry about grammar or word usage. Sometimes it isn’t even in complete sentences.
This step is just to simply get the idea down on paper (I mean, the computer
screen).
3. I change the style and
voice to make it sound professional.
Finally,
I will start writing the actual thing. I will start making everything into
complete sentences. Then, I will take one sentence at a time and choose different
words. After that, I will finally make changes to style and voice.
Now,
you may be wondering, “How do I know if it is really professional?”
When
writing a professional text, I ask myself a few things:
1. If I received this from someone, would I feel
that it was professional.
Helpful
tip: I’ve noticed that when writing something conversational like this article,
contractions flow nicely. I cannot say the same about using them in
professional pieces or messages. I think it is because it sounds more
articulate when we use full words, thus making it sound more professional.
2. Would I recommend this
person for a job if asked to?
Helpful
tip: When writing a professional message to someone, always remember to sound
genuinely interested in what is being said and asked. This will let the person
on the receiving end to look at you as a potential employee or coworker, or
just be willing to answer your email back quickly.
3. If I read this from
someone, would I think it was rude and write them off? (NO PUN INTENDED!)
Helpful
tip: Refrain from complaining or using accusatory statements, even if you are
irritated. These things would not be very professional, and it would cause the
person on the receiving end to write you off and pretend the conversation didn’t
even happen.
For instance, I would never give a venting sound of voice to
someone in a professional role. This comes off as complaining, whining,
entitlement, etc. No one wants any of those voices sitting in their inbox, so the
best way to handle a situation is to be professional, especially if there may
be a job opportunity tied to that person down the road!
Remember, perspective is key. If you are unsure of your communication
being professional or not, think, “If I were receiving this email, would I think
this was professional?” Using that question with the above steps and tips will
put anyone on their way to a successful professional writing skillset!
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