Be clear, not clever

💌 159 words ⏳ 1 minute

Get to the point of your message in your first sentence - otherwise, you lose readers. Clever messages are good for your ego, not the reader.

Why it matters: We all have too much information to consume. As a manager you want your message to reach people, so you must value their time and intelligence. No one reads your message because of beautiful language or clever formulations.

Dig deeper:

• Be rigorous while editing. Question every word’s existence; is it necessary?

• Put the important stuff first. Ask yourself what’s the one point the reader has to take away and put it in the first sentence.

• Structure your text with bullet points. It’s easier to read and understand.

• Use tools like Hemingway Editor to find wordy and hard-to-read sentences.

• Remove phrases and cliches that don’t add value.

How clear was this newsletter? Tell me.

— Daniel

P.S.: If you want to up your writing game, check out the book Smart Brevity.