Writing

Want your writing to sound smarter? Get rid of pointless, long words!

David Kinnane · 17 November 2015 · Leave a Comment

The worst thing about reading research articles is the awful writing.

Every now and then, an exception pops up: a clear, short article made up of common words spelling out results in Plain English. But lots of research in my trade is replete – full! – of complicated words that get in the way of the points being made.

It’s not just academics at fault: things are bad in the corporate world and “among the legal fraternity”, too. And don’t get me started on those marketing and human resources blogs!

Some professionals seem to think that, if they use big words in their writing, they will seem smarter to readers.

Are they right?

“No,” says Professor Daniel Oppenheimer of UCLA. Quite the opposite.

In one study, Oppenheimer did five experiments to figure out whether “big word writers” were seen as smarter than people who used short words. His results: readers thought “long word writers” were dumber than writers who said the same things in short words.

Why?

Shorter words are easier to understand than long ones. Studies show readers are more likely to think writers who use lean, tight, spare prose are honest, confident, and likable. This explains why fans adore the writing of famous short word users like:

Hemingway ; and
Lord Denning,

despite their flaws.

So why do professionals use long words when shorter, better ones exist? Oppenheimer gives five reasons:

“Everyone” expects long words in professional writing. (“This is what professional writing should sound like.”)
“Experts” understand jargon and technical terms used in their field so don’t feel a need to simplify them. (Too bad for everyone else.)
If writers don’t use big words, peers might judge them as uneducated or “unworthy” to be in their group. (Like teenagers desperate to fit in.)
Writers are most likely to use big words when feeling insecure. (We use fancy, wishy-washy words when we are too scared to say what we mean.)
Intelligent people tend to have large vocabularies, so people use big words to demonstrate they are smart. (Showing off for the sake of it.)

Not good enough! Oppenheimer found complex words neither disguise holes in arguments nor improve good arguments. So who are we fooling?

Professionals should write:

for readers, not their egos; and
to be understood by any educated adult – regardless of whether they belong to the same clique or expert group.

As Oppenheimer concluded:

“Write clearly and simply if you can, and you’ll be more likely to be thought of as intelligent.”

Principal source: Oppenheimer, D.M. (2006). Consequences of Erudite Vernacular Utilised Irrespective of Necessity: Problems with Using Long Words Needlessly*. Applied Cognitive Psychology: 20: 139-156.

Credit: Although I’ve written about Oppenheimer’s research before, I stumbled on this study while reading one of my favourite Internet copywriters, Henneke Duistermaat.

* A quick review of his recent publications list tells me Oppenheimer loves wordplay – especially bad puns. So, yes: his article’s title is a joke.

Image: http://bit.ly/1CmRemp

Hi there, I’m David Kinnane.

Principal Speech Pathologist, Banter Speech & Language

Our talented team of certified practising speech pathologists provide unhurried, personalised and evidence-based speech pathology care to children and adults in the Inner West of Sydney and beyond, both in our clinic and via telehealth.

Classic writing tip: let strong nouns and verbs do the work

David Kinnane · 16 February 2015 · Leave a Comment

Strunk & White’s classic writing guide, The Elements of Style, has been derided recently by Steven Pinker. But one of Strunk & White’s rules stands unchallenged:

Write with nouns and verbs, not with adjectives and adverbs. The adjective hasn’t been built that can pull a weak or inaccurate noun out of a tight place.

Writing experts, including Garner, Flesch and McKee agree.

In English:

you can form a grammatically correct sentence with just a verb (e.g “Go!”); and
the next shortest sentence structure is a noun and a verb, e.g. “Fish swim.”.

Our language is built on nouns and verbs: names and actions. Words that describe nouns (adjectives) and verbs (adverbs) can provide readers with more detail. But if you choose the right nouns and verbs – strong, specific and picturesque – you won’t need them as much.

So you could write:

He inserted vigorously a strong wooden post with a point at one end into the pale corpse that is supposed to leave its grave at night to drink the blood of the living by biting their necks with long pointed canine teeth.

He stabbed the vampire with a stake.

Which is more effective?

Source: Strunk, W. & White, E.B. (1979), The Elements of Style.

Image: http://tinyurl.com/l4t535j

Hi there, I’m David Kinnane.

Principal Speech Pathologist, Banter Speech & Language

Who we help: meet Rakesh and Alice

David Kinnane · 26 January 2015 · Leave a Comment

In addition to traditional speech pathology services for people with communication impairments, we work with professionals, business owners and others who need to improve their professional communication skills to achieve their work and life goals. We’re passionate about helping professionals and business owners communicate more effectively with their employers, employees, colleagues, clients and other stakeholders.

What’s the big idea?

To work for and to compete with the best, you need advanced business communication skills. We’ve seen plenty of talented, smart people held back – in work and in life – by limited communication skills. We wanted to do something about it.

Some clients need specific training in aspects of business presentation and writing skills that are letting them down. We have a wealth of experience communicating complex ideas to sophisticated clients, orally and in writing. We know what’s expected at the top level. And we know from personal experience how to do it.

Can we help you? **Examples of client profiles* for this service**

Rakesh

Meet Rakesh. He’s an A-type perfectionist. He’s smart, ambitious, diligent, and well-read. A born leader. Senior management relies on him to get the job done. To solve their problems, on time, and below budget.

But something’s holding him back. He’s been stuck in middle management for too long. He’s losing momentum, despite his talents and promise. He’s sick of seeing less qualified people promoted above him. It makes him angry.

Rakesh knows people don’t always understand what he’s saying. He often gets asked to “say it again” – especially on conference calls. At a presentation last year, his audience switched off. Some walked out. Perhaps it’s his accent – but that hasn’t stopped others. Maybe it’s because he speaks too quickly – his brain running ahead of his mouth. Maybe it’s a combination of the two. Or something else altogether?

Alice

Alice brings a lot to the table. Her clients love her. So does her staff. In person, she’s a persuasive communicator. But she has a problem. She can’t write a business proposal to save herself. Alice used to get by with help from her team. But management now wants her to work solo on sensitive projects, including pitches and tenders. Though she’s fine on her feet in beauty parades, her business writing is letting her down. Her boss had to re-write her last proposal from scratch, and is concerned Alice isn’t up to the job.

Rakesh and Alice are examples of the kind of clients we help: motivated, smart people let down only by their communication skills.

If you’re a bit like Rakesh or Alice, we’re uniquely placed to help. As senior lawyers, we’ve worked in executive legal and banking roles managing cross-border teams for big multinationals. We know what and who you’re up against. We know what’s required.

We’re also qualified speech pathologists trained to assess and treat motor speech, articulation and pronunciation issues.

We’re proud of our unusual skill-mix. And we’re committed to helping professionals like you improve their speaking and writing skills to restore their confidence and achieve their potential.

So what are you waiting for? Let’s get to work! Give us a call.

* For client confidentiality reasons, clients’ names and other identifiers have been changed.

Images: http://tinyurl.com/kmlzt7h, http://tinyurl.com/m7py4sf

Hi there, I’m David Kinnane.

Principal Speech Pathologist, Banter Speech & Language

25 rules of effective writing from a plain English legend; and my nine all-time favourites

David Kinnane · 21 November 2014 · Leave a Comment

My regular readers know I’m a big fan of plain English and Rudolf Flesch.

One of my favourite writing books is Dr Flesch’s “How to write, speak and think more effectively”. First published in 1946, its tips are as relevant today as at the end of Word War II.

Below, I’ve:

summarised Dr Flesch’s 25 rules of effective writing;
added examples to explain a few; and
highlighted my nine favourites.

These rules work for all kinds of writing: from business communications, school work and even fiction. Many apply to speaking, too.

The 25 Rules of effective writing

1. Write about people, things and facts (not abstract ideas and concepts), e.g. “He voted for Obama in November” rather than “The male person exercised one of his fundamental democratic rights by casting a ballot in favour of his preferred Presidential candidate, the Democrat Party nominee, in the eleventh month of the calendar year”.

2. Write as you talk.

3. Use contractions (e.g. “don’t”).

4. Use the first person (“I”).

5. Quote what was said.

6. Quote what was written.

7. Put yourself in the reader’s place.

8. Don’t hurt the reader’s feelings.

9. Forestall misunderstandings.

10. Don’t be too brief.

11. Plan a beginning, middle, and end.

12. Go from the rule to the exception; and from the familiar to the new.

13. Use short names and abbreviations.

14. Use pronouns rather than repeating nouns.

15. Use verbs rather than nouns (e.g. “Complete the report”, not “The report has now reached completion”).

16. Use the active voice and a personal subject (e.g. “Sara watered the grass” not “The grass was watered by Sara”).

17. Use small, round figures.

18. Specify: use illustrations, cases and examples.

19. Start a new sentence for each new idea.

20. Keep sentences short.

21. Keep paragraphs short.

22. Use direct questions.

23. Underline for emphasis.

24. Use parentheses for casual mention.

25. Make your writing interesting to look at.

Source: R. Flesch. (1946). How to write, speak and think more effectively. Signet, NY, NY.

Image: http://tinyurl.com/zgw9tgv

Hi there, I’m David Kinnane.

Principal Speech Pathologist, Banter Speech & Language

Apologies to Mrs Dixon: taking notes by hand is more effective than by laptop

David Kinnane · 20 May 2014 · Leave a Comment

This surprises some people, but, when I was in grade 1, I was – just a tiny bit – precocious.

I also had terrible handwriting, a fact my long-suffering teacher seemed to relish reminding me about. One freezing Ballarat morning, after being sent back to re-write my daily dictation words in ancient copperplate for the third time, I’d had enough of her taunts:

“No-one cares about handwriting, Miss” I squeaked. “When I grow up, I’ll just type everything.”

“You might try,” snapped Mrs Dixon, glowering like a bespectacled sun. “But you won’t learn anything that way. Nothing sticks when you type. Now go back to your desk and try harder.”

Full of seething rage, I only just avoided an embarrassing tantrum. But, for some reason, ever since, I’ve written all my notes by hand. Even as a mature-age student, surrounded by iPad wielding twenty-somethings and laptop-warriors, I’ve stuck with my trusty yellow pad and pen.

And now, thirty (ahem) odd years later, I know why.

Mrs Dixon was right.

In a study just published in the April edition of Psychological Science, Pam Mueller of Princeton University and Dan Oppenheimer of UCLA conducted a series of experiments to test whether longhand note-taking was more effective than taking notes on a laptop. They found that students who took notes by hand performed better on conceptual questions than their laptop-tapping peers.

The researchers suggest a possible explanation for their results: laptop users tend to transcribe notes word-for-word rather than processing and reframing the content of lectures in their own words. Even when laptops are used only to take notes (and not to update their status on Facebook, gaze at pretty pictures on Pinterest or shop on Amazon), they may still impair learning because they result in shallower processing.

Of course, the other advantage of handwriting notes is more prosaic: you keep your writing motor skills tuned for performance – a handy advantage when exam time rolls around.

So thanks, Mrs Dixon. And, in case you’re reading this: