W RITTEN C OMMUNICATION
5. Effective decision-making: Old documents help effective decision-making in a great way
■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ 1. Future references: The limitation of human mind and poor retention power cannot be overlooked. Written messages can be preserved as records and reference sources. Various media of communication can be filed for future reference. Thus, keeping records are essential for continuous operation of the business.
2. Avoiding mistakes: In transmitting messages, earlier records help in reducing mistakes and errors and also prevent the occurrence of fraud.
3. Legal requirements: Written communication is acceptable as a legal document. That is why some executives think that even if some messages have been transmitted orally, they should later be confirmed in writing.
4. Wide access: Communication media having become very fast, written communication enjoy a wide access. If the communicator and the receiver are far from each other, written communication sent through post or e-mail is the cheapest and may be the only available means of communication between them.
5. Effective decision-making: Old documents help effective decision-making in a great way.
Decision-making process becomes easier if old records are available. Because the messages provide the necessary information for decision-making purpose.
6.3 PRINCIPLES OF EFFECTIVE WRITING
1. Unity: Unity of writing implies a condition of being one. The principle of unity applies on three levels. First, the individual sentences must be unified. Second, the individual paragraph must be unified. Third, the totality of the message must be unified.
2. Coherence: To achieve clarity in a written communication the principle of coherence should be there. Relation and clarity are two important aspects of coherence. The principle of coherence applies to sentences, paragraphs and to the message as a whole.
3. Avoid jargon: As far as possible, the writer should avoid jargon. Jargon is a language which is special to science, commerce, technology, trade or profession. In private language with persons in the field, jargon may be incorporated. In other cases, jargon can be used, but the only thing is that the words used must be clear to others as well.
4. Accuracy: The subject matter must be correct and accurate. The manner in which the message is transmitted must be correct. Accuracy in writing can be achieved by careful checking and editing.
5. Brevity: A writing should be shorter by using few words for many. Brevity not only saves the time but also gives grace to the writing. Business communication must be brief and direct.
6. 7 Cs of communication: Please refer to Chapter 2.
Written Communication
• Can reach a large number of people simultaneously
• Helps to fix responsibility.
Contd....
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• Time consuming
• Expensive not in terms of postage but of the time of so many people
• Quick clarification not possible.
Exhibit: 6.1
6.4 WRITING TECHNIQUES
6.4.1 Adaptation and Selection of Words
Effective writing techniques gives stress on simplicity while using words, short sentences and brief paragraphs and simplicity in terms of adaptation. Adaptation of words according to the message addressing to the specific reader. All the readers do not have the same ability to understand a message, they do not all have the same vocabulary, the same knowledge about the subject. Thus, to communicate clearly we should know the person with whom we wish to communicate. The message should fit the person’s mind. For this reasons it is advisable to adopt following techniques during written communication.
• Use familiar words
Unfortunately, many business writers do not use familiar language enough instead, they tend to change character when they begin to put their thoughts on paper.
Endeavour – Try
Ascertain – Find out
Terminate – End
Demonstrate – Show
Utilise – Use
• Choose the short over the long word.
Generally, short words communicate better as a heavy proportion of long words confuse the reader.
There are some long words such as hypnotize, hippopotamus and automobile are so well known that they communicate easily. And some short words, such as vibes, vie (to complete), vex (annoyed or upset), scab (worker) are understood by only a few.
Thus you will be wise to use long words with some caution. Further, you need to ensure that those you do use will be familiar to your reader.
• Use technical words with caution.
All fields have technical words i.e., ‘jargon’, which becomes a part of our everyday working vocabulary. In fact, so common will it appear in your mind that you may assume that people outside the fields also know it. And in writing to those who is outside from your field you may use these words, which leads to miscommunication.
6.4.2 Masculine Words
Sometimes the use of particular words can support unfair or untrue attitudes towards as particular sex, usually women. For example using the pronoun ‘he’ to refer to a doctor, when you do not know if they are male or female, might support the belief that it is not normal for women to be a doctor.
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■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ Many people while speaking or writing English, prefer to avoid using language that is sexist. The modern non-sexist use of language is sometimes called inclusive language.
Sexist language Non-sexist
Male pronoun he, his, him are used even though the sex of the person is not known.
• A gardner is usually proud of his garden.
• A child needs to feel that he is liked by his friends.
They, them or by the combination she/he, him or her.
• A gardner is usually proud of his/her garden.
• A child needs to feel liked by friends.
Words formed from ‘man’ are used when referring to people generally.
• Man is polluting the earth.
• This is the largest man-made lake in Europe
• Man is not the only animal that uses tools.
Use other words when referring to both men and women.
• People are polluting the earth.
• This is the largest artificial lake in Europe.
• Human beings/Humans are not the only animal that uses tools.
Many jobs/activities are strongly connected with a particular sex.
Use expressions/pronouns that do no support sexiest assumptions.
• Teachers must not be late for their classes.
• A manager has a duty towards his/her workers.
• The fall in price is a great news for consumers/ shoppers.
Job names are used which refer unnecessarily to the sex of the person.
• The chairman can not vote.
• Jane is a camera woman.
• We’re meeting a group of business men.
• Workman/salesman
Use job names that apply equally to women and men.
• The chairperson can not vote.
• Jane is a camera operator.
• We’re meeting a group of business people/ executives.
• Worker/sales representative or agents.
Male words are frequently put before female words in common combinations.
• Men and women; boys & girls; husband
& wife; brother & sister; mother &
father.
Try to balance the ordering of male and female pairs.
• Men & women; girls & boys; husbands
& wife; mother & father; sister &
brother.
Note: The written forms he/she, her/him etc. are also possible.
Exhibit: 6.2
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6.4.3 Choosing Words with Right Strength and Vigour
Words have personalities, in same way words are like people. Some words are strong and vigorous.
Some are weak and dull and some fall between these extremes.
1. Good writers should understand these differences and consider them carefully.
2. They should use the words that do the best job of carrying the intended meaning.
3. To select words wisely, one should consider shades of difference in meaning of words.
Tycoon Successful business person Mother Female
Boom Period of business prosperity.
Note: In selecting strong words, you should be aware that verbs are the strongest words. Noun is second. Adjectives and adverbs are weak words.
6.4.4 Thesaurus
1. A thesaurus is the opposite of a dictionary.
2. We turn to it when you have the meaning already but don’t yet have the word. It may be on the tip of our tongue, but what it is we don’t yet know.
3. It is like the missing piece of a puzzle.
4. A thesaurus, says the dictionary, is ‘a treasury or storehouse, hence a repository, especially for words, as a dictionary.’
"To p rotect from sun ligh t"
S h ie ld D e fen d
6.4.5 Writing Effective Sentences
Clear writing is not limited to the words alone. It also means using clear sentences. Writing simpler sentences largely means writing shorter sentences. The sentence can be a statement, a question, a command or in the form of an exclamation.
In writing, there is no hard and fast rule for deciding upon the length of sentences but short sentences are simple because they are easy to understand. They do not create problem by presenting complicated structure. Short sentences should be framed as longer sentences have greater changes of having grammatical errors.
Efficient authors manipulate and experiment with the combinations and number of short and long sentences for various purpose in mind as per the requirement of the text.
Characteristics of Effective Sentences
1. Unity: A sentence containing one idea at a time with all its parts contributing to strengthen