Which One Are You - Part Two

Hello to all!

My last post, I addressed those of us who agonize over every word, every sentence, everything in general. We write every sentence several times, changes words, changing the structure of sentences, changing it all, until the meaning in the first place has been forgotten.

We know who we are. :)

Now, let's have a look at those of us who are in such a hurry to get our words out there, we throw together anything and post it. Never mind that your inner editor is unconscious on the floor from yelling. Never mind that your audience, those people you desperately want to attract, can tell within a couple of seconds that you have literally thrown it together and out there, and hit the 'exit' button.

The worst thing about this scenario is those people you want to attract feel insulted. They consider if you haven't got the courtesy to at least check your spelling, then you really have no respect for your audience. The same goes for basic grammar, and punctuation.

So how can you make things better, without turning into the perfectionist? Give your copy a read-through at least. Take a leaf out of the advice for the perfectionist and give your script 5 minutes or so. Ignore it, walk away, do something else. Even start a new article. That small break should be enough to distance yourself enough emotionally to see it through fresh eyes.

If you can tell from a quick scan that what you have written is something you wouldn't even glance at, then how can you expect someone else to put in time to do so? Not only is this contemptuous of your audience, it is highly rude. You are defeating your own purpose.

Don't immediately decide that you are going all-out to get it all right and spend days on your article or post. As with perfectionists, you don't have to be word-perfect. Take out the imperfections you see, and usually you will find what you have written is going to be good enough for your audience.

They, after all, don't expect you to be a scholar. They expect you to be reasonable with your writing however. This isn't rocket science or being demanding. It is what you expect when you read other people's blogs and articles, so give it to your own readers.

If you think this is going to take you hours, no it won't. Take note of the advice for perfectionists again, and write from your creative side of your brain. As you have tamed your critical side so well, or so totally ignored
it that it no longer even bothers to cry out? Well, time you gave it a small say in what you are writing. Don't allow it full throttle, but just a small kick. You will reap the benefits.

Or, if you genuinely hate writing, then budget to employ someone who can. You really cannot afford to ignore this part of your business. Writing is the life blood of that business, after all, right down to product descriptions( no impoliteness meant!) If you haven't got your copy at least decent, then it doesn't matter how good your services or products are.

Give your readers good copy and they will love you for it. That means with very few mistakes, if any.