In today’s whirlwind business environment, concise communication is crucial. With emails, reports, and memos flooding inboxes daily, the ability to streamline your business writing can ensure that you are the person whose messages are read and understood. Conciseness saves time for the reader, although it might require the writer to apply more little grey cells. As 18th-century British lexicographer Samuel Johnson wrote, “Easy reading is hard writing.” Here are some strategies to help you master the art of brevity in your business writing.

First, embrace the principle that less is more. Instead of padding your sentences with unnecessary words or phrases, aim to be brief. Words like “just,” “very,” and “most” are often unnecessary, as are many adjectives and adverbs. Shorter emails and documents are easier to read and require less time and effort from the reader. In an age of endless inputs, it pays to streamline the reader’s experience.

1. Write shorter sentences

Long sentences dilute the potency of your message. Aim for an average sentence length of around 20 words as measured by Microsoft Word or another readability tool. Disciplining yourself to write shorter sentences makes your writing easier to read and increases the odds that your communication will succeed.

In addition to trimming excess words, pay attention to the structure of your sentences. Aim for simplicity and coherence, avoiding convoluted phrases or awkward constructions. Instead of writing, “Not only did the merger not contribute to productivity, it actually created unwieldy challenges in the corporate culture,” you could write, “The merger did not contribute to productivity and created unexpected challenges to the corporate culture.” Break up long sentences into shorter, more digestible chunks, and use transitional words and phrases to guide the reader through your writing smoothly.

2. Prefer the active voice

Additionally, opt for the active voice whenever possible. The active voice makes your writing more dynamic and reduces wordiness. Instead of writing, “The report was reviewed by the team” (passive voice), say, “The team reviewed the report” (active voice). According to an article in The Harvard Business Review, brain research indicates that we comprehend active sentences more quickly than passive ones. This is because active sentences follow a more natural, subject-verb-object structure, which aligns with how our brains process information. Using the active voice helps your reader grasp your message.

3. Write with verbs

Another tip for streamlining your business writing is to substitute verbs for unnecessary nouns. Rather than saying, “Make a decision,” simply say, “Decide.” Instead of writing, “We are taking it up for consideration,” write, “We are considering it.” When you can choose between using words like “request,” “work” and “need” as either nouns or verbs, opt for the verbal form. So instead of writing, “as per your request,” you would write, “as you requested.” This shortens your sentence and makes you seem more direct. Similarly, instead of saying “provide assistance,” say “assist.” By cutting out unnecessary nouns, you can convey your message more advantageously.

4. Use straightforward language

Minimize using jargon or overly complex language. While it may seem impressive to use industry-specific terminology, it often alienates readers and obscures your message. Instead, opt for clear and straightforward language that the average non-technical reader can understand. Remember, the goal of business writing is to communicate ideas clearly, not to show off your vocabulary.

5. Remember to revise

Lastly, remember to revise ruthlessly. After drafting your message, review it with a brutal critical eye. Great authors revise their work ten or twenty times–surely, you can tweak an email twice. Look for opportunities to tighten your prose, eliminate redundancy, and clarify your message. Remember, every word should serve a purpose and contribute to the effectiveness of your communication.

Well-structured, concise messages convey efficiency and professionalism. They demonstrate that you value the reader’s time and have put your thoughts into a clear, direct format. You might have to stretch yourself to absorb these new habits. However, by keeping your sentences short and to the point, preferring the active voice, and substituting verbs for unnecessary nouns, you can streamline your communication and ensure you deliver your message effectively.

So the next time you sit down to compose an email or draft a report, remember: Less is more.

Click here to read more articles on clear writing:

How to Take Your Business Writing From “Average” to “Great”

The Language Of Leadership

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Sentences that snatch our readers’ attention get positive results. Whether you’re back working in the office or still in your jim-jams, no one has the time or inclination to slog through a convoluted statement. Maybe the content is interesting, but people will ignore it if it’s hard to read.

Perhaps business writers of old could get away with writing 60-word sentences, but for today’s readers, poor sentences are bad for business. By some estimates, bad writing costs up to $400 billion annually in lost sales, productivity, and branding.

We want to be the writers whose sentences people read and understand. So how do we do that? Here are three ways to strengthen your sentences.

1 – Keep it short.

Research indicates that the ideal average sentence length is 15 to 20 words. When the average sentence length is 14 words, readers understand 90 percent of their meaning. Comprehension drops as sentence length increases.

Particularly now, when so many people read on a tablet or phone, sentences must be glance-able. As you write, ask yourself if your reader could grasp your sentence while racing down a hallway on their way to an important meeting.

So keep that average low. You can measure your average sentence length with MS Word’s Check Readability Statistics tool. Note that you can vary your sentence length as long as the average stays low. That means you may write a 25- or 30-word sentence. However, your average will remain within range if you sandwich that long sentence between a couple of 10- to 12-word examples.

Even if you keep all your sentences short, your writing will become tedious if every sentence uses the same pattern. That’s why it is essential to vary the length and structure of your sentences. Grammarly Premium will catch you if you write a series of monotonous sentences.

2 – Omit needless words: Cut! Cut! Cut!

As E. B. White and William Strunk Jr. wrote in their classic text, The Elements of Style, “Make every word tell.” That means each word in a sentence should be there for a reason. If a word is not contributing to your message, throw it overboard.

Sentences sometimes become obese by including unnecessary nouns. Needless nouns creep into our sentences as words that could be used as nouns or verbs. This group includes words like thought, use, work, love, request, and others. Notice the difference between

• “I will give it some thought” and “I will think about it.”
• “Work will start soon” and “We will start working soon.”
• “As per your request” and “As you requested”

Ponderous phrases burden sentences. Instead of weighty nouns, you can choose active verbs. For example, compare:

• “We will perform an analysis” and “We will analyze.”
• “We give our approval” and “We approve.”
• “We will take it under consideration” and “We will consider it.”

Hedge words and fillers also add padding. Words like just, actually, basically, practically, most, and others consume space without contributing meaning.

Follow Mark Twain’s advice: “When in doubt, strike it out.”

3 – Prefer the active voice.

You can improve the brevity and clarity of your message by writing in an active voice. Don’t write, “The mortgage papers were prepared by John.” Instead, write, “John prepared the mortgage papers.” This puts the focus squarely where it belongs: on the one who performed the action. In fact, a recent Harvard Business Review article cites brain research indicating that the brain processes sentences in the active voice more quickly than in the passive voice.

In contrast to the briskness of the active voice, the passive voice leads to convoluted, backward-sounding sentences. Scrutinize your work for words like has been, being, and have. These might be signs that you’ve slipped into the passive voice.

Not only that, using the passive voice automatically lengthens your sentences. For example:

• Passive: “Consideration will be given to your idea.” Active: “We will consider your idea.”
• Passive: “Our products are manufactured in the U.S.” Active: “We manufacture our products in the U.S.”
• Passive: “An email was written to the customer.” Active: “We emailed the customer.”

Now, using the passive voice is not evil; sometimes, it is your best option. However, the passive voice creates blur, evasion, and distance. So if you want to be crisp and direct, avoid it.

Good writing entails many factors. You must think before you write and consider your reader’s needs and interests. But in the end, you have to write coherent sentences. Applying these three tips will help your sentences soar.

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