First of all, you need to realize that you will need communication, research, and writing skills later in your life – no matter what you decide to do for a living. Don’t make the mistake of thinking that because you have a computer or an iPod, it will do everything for you. You still have to input material into it. Yes, there are some instances where effective writing is unnecessary. The reality is that education and the workplace need qualified writers in a variety of situations.

Writing is important in almost any area where you want to communicate with someone. It also improves your everyday speech in contact with other people. Writing will always be important. There will always be a point where your particular viewpoint will be needed.

The advantages of writing are:
1. it gives you time to reflect on and research what you want to communicate. You can read the paper and make any changes before submitting it.
2. By reconsidering what you put in your document, your communication becomes more precise and effective.
3. It provides a permanent record of your thoughts, actions, and viewpoint. You can accurately refer back to it at any time.
4. Your reader can absorb the information at his or her own pace. They can reread it for full comprehension.

Throughout your education and career, you will be expected to write clearly and effectively. Even hunting for a job requires clarity and precision. The ability to write well can help you earn higher grades, get the job you would like, and even advance in your career. Even in your personal life, writing will be required.

Effective writing will enhance your reputation no matter what venue you choose as your field. Get to the point as soon as possible. Be direct and concise in your choice of words. While it is true that every document, article, or paper is unique in its own way, the one common ingredient is that the writer is trying to say something. If the reader cannot quickly find the main idea, then the writing is not effective. The main idea should be quite evident in the first one or two paragraphs. Is there any doubt in your mind right now about the subject of this article?

Think back to some of the articles or papers you have read where you had trouble understanding what the writer was trying to say. Did you even finish reading?

Now think of those that you did understand. What is it they had that the others didn’t? You probably knew right away what the theme was. Writing needs to be direct to be effective. Your reader should not have to guess or wonder what topic you are covering. Get to your point in the shortest possible route. In the first few sentences, let the reader know what is your focus. The first paragraph should cover in brief what the rest of the writing is going to say. Save everyone some time and get right to the point. Save a tree by being direct and concise.

Effective language strengthens and organizes the intent of your message in the minds of your audience. If you are writing to be understood and want your ideas to hold validity, then your English skills must be honed. Fortunately, there are a few guidelines that you can use when creating your document.

• Know your audience and write to them
• Never use a long word when a short one will suffice
• Use the active voice instead of passive
• Avoid the use of simile, metaphor, or other figure of speech
• Keep away from foreign words and phrases unless it adds meaning

With the possible exception of fiction novels, most people want to know in the first few words what you are trying to say. They want to know if it is worth their time to read the rest. Do you have something that they need to know? How will it enrich their lives? They may not even want to read your work. They would much rather be doing something fun. Your job as writer is to get your point out quickly to retain their interest long enough to find out the details. We live in a fast-paced world now and people are used to microwaving everything from work to fun. They want it quick and they want it direct.

If your first paragraph or page does not contain the information people are looking for, they are not going to devote any more time to reading the article. You do the same thing yourself. On the next document you read, check to see how soon you know the author’s message. You will find that the writing most interesting to you is the one in which you know the writer’s point in the first paragraph. Ambiguity does not belong in a document trying to impart information to you.

Resist the urge to ramble on and on just to put words down on paper. That type of writing should be confined to a journal or diary that is for your eyes only. Most people do not want to read pages and pages to find out the topic of your document. They will give up somewhere and read something else. They will never reach the place where you tell them your very valuable opinion. All your writing will have been wasted in the blah, blah, blah that preceded your view.

The introduction to your article should grab the reader’s attention and activate their mind so that they will continue through to the end. Most writers do not get to their point quickly enough and lose their audience before the end. If your project has a set number of words or pages, perhaps that is the only criteria that you have in mind. Even so, your opening paragraph can contain a few sentences that express the main idea of the entire work.

Being direct in your first paragraph or page accomplishes two goals. You engage the reader so that they read the whole document, and you set yourself apart from other writers.

When you engage the reader enough to read your entire manuscript, that reader now sees the world from your viewpoint. They may or may not agree with you, but they now have a broader sense of the issue. Now they are evaluating your work on the merits of your argument, research, or conclusions. They are not stuck back at the beginning trying to figure out what you are trying to say. They become engaged in the process to decide if they agree or not.

When you set yourself apart from the other writers, you are claiming your ability and capacity to retain the reader’s attention. If the ultimate goal of the writing is to persuade the recipient to adopt a course of action, does it not make sense to make that person’s job in agreeing with you as easy as possible?

Your last paragraph or page should be a summary of all the points in your paper. Leave the reader with no doubt as to the reason you wrote the document. You are not responsible for their opinion. You are only responsible for clearly and concisely stating the subject of the article.

The idea of your document should always be to impart information to your audience. Always use your common sense judgment when deciding on your words. If an explanation is necessary, then include it. Just don’t ramble on and on.

As you write, proofread constantly. Use your computer to check as you go, but don’t rely completely on it. The software packages miss certain phrasing, context and spelling errors. When you are finished, give it to someone else to proofread, and see if they can understand it.