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  • Back before telegraphs, telephones, or the Internet, the handwritten word was where it

  • was at.

  • Letters took weeks to arrive, and people wrote pages and pages to one another in flowery

  • language. They used to describe EVERYTHING.

  • Today, we have more rapid communication, but we're still flooded with writing. Texts.

  • Emails. Memos. We even cut out words with emojis.

  • With this constant flow of information, it's easy for people to get overwhelmed.

  • So, how do you make sure that your email doesn't get lost in the morning sludge pile? That

  • your memo gets its point across to the right people? That your report tells the story you

  • intended?

  • I'm Evelyn from the Internets. And this is Crash Course Business: Soft Skills.

  • [Intro Music Plays]

  • Writing plays a big part in building your professional reputation.

  • Whether it's a quick message asking for a sick day, a letter to a client, or a report

  • that could fast-track you for a promotion, you want to make sure that what you've written

  • is persuasive.

  • Before you type a single word, remember that the content and structure of your writing

  • all depends on who you're writing for.

  • This goes back to influence. You can't expect to convince anyone of anything if you don't

  • understand what their needs are.

  • That's why it's important to conduct an audience analysis.

  • You want to tailor your main message to who they are and how much they're going to critique

  • your work.

  • If your audience is more involved, they'll need more evidence and logic. If your audience

  • is less involved, they'll respond more to emotional appeal.

  • Crafting a persuasive argument goes back to the foundations of rhetoric. Logos, ethos,

  • and pathos. We could do a whole episode on these, but we don't have that kind of time.

  • So, boiled down, logos is an appeal to knowledge, or facts.

  • Ethos is an appeal to the character, authority, or reputation of the speaker.

  • And pathos is an appeal to emotion, or humanity.

  • If The Doctor were trying to convince aliens not to destroy Earth, she could use logos

  • by explaining factual reasons why Earth isn't a threat, ethos by using the power of her

  • name to inspire awe, and pathos by talking about the human spirit and the power of kindness.

  • By connecting to your audience, you draw them into your message. So it's important to

  • figure out how involved they are to know which elements you should use.

  • And there are three questions you can ask to figure it out.

  • First, does your audience think you're credible?

  • This has to do with your reputation -- remember how trust is the foundation for business skills?

  • It matters whether people think you know what you're talking about.

  • If someone already trusts you, they'll be less involved and you won't need to justify

  • your message as much.

  • Say you're trying to convince a client to reassess their social media marketing strategy.

  • If you're a fifth year associate with a killer Instagram and YouTube channel, you'll

  • make a case much more easily than a summer intern in the accounting department.

  • Next, how important is the decision to them?

  • If your message is going to directly impact someone, or if there's risk, they'll probably

  • be more involved.

  • A suggestion about where your company should open a second office would need way more detail

  • than where your coworkers should go for happy hour. [Gotta keep your enthusiasm for tex-mex

  • casual and brief!]

  • Finally, are they hostile or resistant to what you're saying?

  • A hostile audience doesn't mean they're out to get you.

  • It just means that they may be more involved and less receptive to your idea, because it

  • might conflict with their current beliefs.

  • Think about the trust you have with someone, and frame your message around it.

  • Like, say you were trying to convince two roommates to let you get a cat.

  • One likes cats, so you could straight-up tell her how happy a cat would make both of you.

  • But the other isn't an animal person. So it might make sense to describe problems a cat

  • could help with, like, "I know you've been worried about rats in our apartment building.”

  • And you might need to address concerns, like, "don't worry, you wouldn't have to take care

  • of it, and I'd get one that's hypoallergenic."

  • Considering your audience is clearly important for the message, but it can also help you

  • figure out the type of thing to write.

  • Every workplace is a little different, so we can't tell you exactly what to expect.

  • But generally, many offices use some messaging app, like Slack, to communicate quickly.

  • An email can be used to get across day-to-day stuff or request further information.

  • Memos are generally one page or less. And they're used to convey important or official

  • information to internal sources -- like other departments.

  • Letters are similar to memos, but they're used with external sources, like other companies

  • or potential investors.

  • Reports are generally thicker and usually contain a summary page, discussion, and charts

  • or graphs. [If you want to have a really wild weekend, you can browse through hundreds of

  • reports on pretty much any government website.]

  • But no matter what you're writing, you want to give your audience the essential details.

  • To see what I mean, let's go to the Thought Bubble.

  • Imagine you were a freelance food blogger writing about a new restaurant in town that

  • claims to make a mean burger.

  • You'd start by sharing when you went -- last Tuesday, on a quiet night out. You'd describe

  • the cozy diner vibe with retro booths. You might list the most mouthwatering menu items,

  • including the special burger of the day and creamy shake you ordered. And then you'd

  • wrap it up with a solid four-star rating.

  • You're probably dealing with foodies searching for up-and-coming hotspots, or fellow millennials

  • looking for a cheap meal and a killer 'gram. So weaving a detailed narrative gives your

  • audience everything they might want to know!

  • But let's say you were managing a small chain restaurant and needed to let your boss

  • know about a new competitor. That's a different story.

  • Would you write up your elaborate personal experience? No.

  • General managers only spend anywhere from 10 to 25% of their day working alone at their

  • desks. Which means they might not have time to read all those details.

  • In corporate writing, the name of the game is: Efficiency. Efficiency. Efficiency. So

  • watch for redundancy.

  • You can also try to answer the 5W's and the H.

  • Who does this information affect?

  • What is your main point?

  • When does this information matter?

  • Where should you pass it on?

  • Why is it important?

  • And How should you move forward?

  • So, this new burger place is pretty important news, but it's more casual than official

  • information. So maybe not a memo.

  • You don't need graphs of sauce ratios or delivery speeds, so a report would be overkill.

  • But you could write a concise email sharing that a competing burger restaurant with an

  • extensive menu opened one week ago. They pose a threat because your repeat sales have been

  • declining. And you recommend talking about sending coupons in weekly mailers to increase

  • business.

  • Clear, concise writing ensures that your boss has time to read it, and your effort doesn't

  • go to waste.

  • Thanks, Thought Bubble! Writing directly is often trickier than it sounds. Thankfully,

  • there are a few easy things you can work on to limit your word count, but not your impact.

  • First, identify your argument.

  • Your argument is your main point. What are you trying to say or get people to do?

  • If I wanted someone to invest in my cute cupcakery, an argument might be that small cakes make

  • people happy, and everyone deserves a little more joy in their lives.

  • You can try jotting down 2 or 3 of your key points before you start writing to stay

  • on track.

  • That can also help you make sure that what you're sending has a purpose. No one wants

  • to read an email that really has no point. This is not a vent session, okay?

  • Second, don't bury your lede.

  • If I'm trying to make some quick blueberry muffins to start my day, I want that recipe

  • in front of me. Some of us do not have the time to

  • read about your journey to find free-range eggs and pick blueberries on a farm, Karen!

  • So whether you're writing a one-page memo or a ten-page report, be sure to emphasize

  • your key points up front. It will save your readers valuable time. And in the business

  • world, time is money.

  • But again! Here's the tricky thing about this series. This advice isn't one-size-fits-all.

  • Remember when we mentioned how your audience can be hostile? If what you're saying might

  • not be taken well, you might want to share supporting facts before your main conclusion.

  • So, if you were trying to convince zombies to stop eating brains, you wouldn't start

  • off your letter by saying it's bad for humans. [They don't care!]

  • Instead, you could start by listing the benefits of another food source, like pizza.

  • It's quick and delicious. 95% of surveyed zombies like pepperoni.

  • And making pizza involves less time and risk than attacking people.

  • Then, you can end with your logical conclusion that eating humans is, in fact, not worth

  • the effort.

  • Third, avoid uncertain language like 'maybe, 'I think,' 'in my opinion,' 'it

  • seems like,' or 'it might be.'

  • Remember what we said about emotional influence: confidence is key. Confidently explaining

  • your point will make your business writing more persuasive.

  • You can also do this by using active voice. Put your subject before your verb and limit

  • your use of 'to be's'.

  • Instead of saying, 'A new dietary choice of freshly prepared pizza will be preferred

  • to human material,' you would say 'Zombies prefer deliveries from Tony's, over actually

  • eating Tony.'

  • Fourth, what you write is always more important than how you format, but it's worth mentioning.

  • You know in Star Wars movies, how they have that super long wall of text at the beginning?

  • It's cool in theaters. Not the workplace.

  • At some point, we've all seen long, bulky paragraphs and thought, “Ugh. I have to

  • read THAT?!” So use headers to divide your writing into smaller, manageable chunks.

  • And finally, check for typos.

  • Proper spelling, grammar, and punctuation show that you're competent and can be trusted.

  • Typos and grammatical errors don't. Especially if you mess up someone's name.

  • And don't just rely on word processing software. It doesn't always catch common errors like

  • they're, there, and their.

  • Plus, it can't check for meaning. So a sentence like “I read thorough our paste

  • budget reports.” might get through, even though it's not coherent.

  • So read your work at least twice! Even better, give it to someone else to proofread.

  • When checking for typos, it's also important to look for acronyms or initialisms. Just

  • because your company uses something all the time, it doesn't mean everyone else understands

  • it.

  • Think about the number of times The Doctor has explained the T.A.R.D.I.S. [Time and Relative

  • Dimension in Space. Just like a deceptively small .zip file, it's bigger on the inside.]

  • And now. W. C. E. F. T. [*pause*]

  • That means We've Covered Everything For Today. [See what I did there? Explaining acronyms?

  • That's why I'm the host.]

  • We've talked about a lot of ways to make sure your writing packs a punch. So, if you

  • remember nothing else from this episode:

  • Your audience is the key to what you write and how you write it.

  • Substance matters more than formatting. It doesn't matter how nice your work looks

  • if it doesn't make a point. Double check your work for spelling, grammar,

  • and miscommunications.

  • Writing is just part of communication, though. Next time, we'll get into verbal communication

  • to help you nail public speeches and morning meetings, so you're not just the person

  • that brought doughnuts. [You're the person that brought doughnuts and made their point.]

  • Crash Course Business is sponsored by Google and it's made with the help of all these

  • nice people and Thought Cafe is our amazing animation team.

  • Crash Course is a Complexly production. If you wanna keep imagining the world complexly

  • with us, you can check out some of our other channels like The Art Assignment, where host

  • Sarah Urist Green explores art and art history through the lens of things happening today.

  • Also, if you'd like to keep Crash Course free for everybody, forever, you can support

  • the series at Patreon; a crowdfunding platform that allows you to support the content you

  • love. Thank you to all of our patrons for making Crash Course possible with their continued

  • support.

Back before telegraphs, telephones, or the Internet, the handwritten word was where it

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