Does your writing show clear thinking?
Good writing is a sign of clear thinking. Writing solidifies, chat dissolves.
Create a routine to refine your thinking by writing and rewriting.
- What are you trying to say?
- Have you said it?
- Can you say it more simply?
Leave a single thought lingering in your reader's mind.
The only kind of writing is rewriting - Ernest Hemingway
Why Write
Thoughtful long-form writing is the most effective way to communicate across the evolution of a group.
Strong written communication leads to:
- Fewer meetings and fire-fighting interruptions
- Not repeating mistakes
- Faster onboarding
- Collective intelligence that scales
Speaking only helps who's in the room. Writing helps everyone—including people who couldn't make it, or future employees who join years from now.
Timing
Now is often the wrong time to say what just popped into your head. Let it filter through the sieve of time. What's left is the part worth saying.
Time is on your side. Rushing makes conversations worse.
If you aren't sure you have captured the truth, sleep on it before hitting send.
Headlines
The ability to capture the essential truth succinctly.
Good headlines are:
- Value-centric
- Specific
- Summarizing
- Compelling
Structure
Atomic sentences should have clear:
- Subject - the who
- Object - the what
- Verb - the action
Read aloud. Does the sentence sound like something you would really say? If not, edit.
If you want me to speak for two minutes, it will take me three weeks of preparation. If you want me to speak for thirty minutes, it will take me a week to prepare. If you want me to speak for an hour, I am ready now. — Winston Churchill
Leveraging AI
AI can help draft, but clarity of thought must come from you.
Links
What is the most important question you could ask yourself to make progress?