What is really at heart a neutral force, but is hated and blamed for all the planet’s problems, and given a very bad rap? Yes, it causes distress and hair pulling, and the 3 am anxiety attacks? Well, yes, it could be money, but today, Business Writing takes the ARGH! Spotlight. Are money and business writing old kissing cousins? Devils in drag? Jedi torture tests? I’ll have more later on why this particular writing can be so damn challenging. For now, let’s cut to the chase to give you tips to keep moving through the muck. Stay tuned…
Several of my clients were so excited last week, as they started taking steps to either start, refine, or reinvent their work/business life. I could hear their eyes sparkle over the phone. I sent them off with a few writing assignments – and within a week, the sparkle had changed into… OH NO! The dreaded Doldrums….
Definition (from wiki): The Doldrums–the region just north of the equator, where light, shifting, and sometimes completely absent winds–are notorious for trapping sailing ships for days (or even weeks) without enough wind to power their sails. Colloquially, to be in the doldrums, said especially of a person, is to be listless, despondent, inactive, stagnant, in a slump.
What do the doldrums of business writing look like? You head to the page to write, and you get the urge to run. Laundry becomes critically important to be on top of. Or the kitchen. You write, then revise, then revise, then think you need to scrap it and start all over. You despair you will ever unveil the heart of your message.
The business writing doldrums keep you going in circles, keep you from getting anywhere near clients and the people you want to serve. The people, may I remind you, who are waiting in the wings for the solution with their name on it, which you will pen.
Remember, it could be worse – your life could actually be in danger – instead of just feeling like it! Luckily, there’s a bit of wind afoot, though it could just be some hot air – let’s check. (More on doldums: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doldrums)
PLEASE STOP THE PAIN, THE BRAIN BLEEDING
Writing is a very useful tool for many reasons. You may not be writing about your business – you may want to attract a better job. And because you sat down to write out your skills more clearly, you were able to say convincingly, Yes, I can do X in this impressive manner, thereby decreasing customer complaints by 30%. Bingo! You are speaking their language dear and all because you clarified your own.
You might use business writing for a talk, or to make handouts for your talk. You will definitely need it for your website, and for any type of package or product you create for your clients. But the main area business writing comes into play, is when you compose the materials that you’ll use to market yourself.
Marketing yourself is a whole ‘nother topic, but I did want to say that there can be a lot of gifts you give through writing, at the same time that you inform people how you work. Marketing can be a healing service, as well as a stepping stone for your clients. Yes, this business writing that is causing premature baldness, as you wish to virtually pull out your hair, will eventually be healing balm to some who read it. A useful fact to keep in mind, with all the aversion there can be to marketing, sales, and the like.
The other thing about good marketing and good business writing is that it’s another one of those killer personal growth accelerators. You know how money gives you feedback on how you’re doing with your abundance work? Well, business writing and its results will give you similar feedback on how well you are doing with naming your clients, and serving their needs. It’s a tough job at times, but it’s so worth it when a client or reader says to you, “That’s totally me – how did you know?” when they relate to your writing.
7 TIPS FOR BUSINESS (ARGH!) WRITING
In my own rewriting of this article, I had to edit about half of the tip suggestions, just to keep this article from getting too long and your eyes from glazing over. But fear not, intrepid future author – I now realize I will have to indeed make a mini e-book of this very article, which you will be first in line to receive as a subscriber. For now, let’s start with 7 tips.
1) Perspective for the long haul
What if I were to tell you that business writing is a process which takes a while to master? If it might take the equivalent of a year of full time work to get your marketing materials to the point that they bring in business, how would that inform your writing practice?
The key point is this – it may take time to get to the place where this gets easy enough that each newsletter, web page and sales page is not an excruciating experience. So how can you make the learning curve period more ease-filled? If I were to look back, I might lighten up on the perfection need, and bang things out more quickly. I’d set an hourly quota of writing to do each week, and set a regular time to do it in. Marketing guru Robert Middleton talks about doing his newsletter writing every Monday; he sends it out each Tuesday.
For you – what do you think you need to do to get serious about your writing for the next leg of time? Make a note for yourself here.
2) Mind Mapping
Have you heard of this method of outlining as you set out to write? A mind map is a more right-brain outline method that encourages brainstorming and the naming of all your ideas. Your turn the page sideways, or landscape view. You circle your ideas, and connect with lines any that relate. You can Google mind mapping; you can find books and software on it.
An even quicker method that also is a good resource: I recommend Daphne Gray-Grant, the Publication Coach. She has a weekly newsletter which is a quick, helpful read, and her mission is to help you write better, faster. Plus, her free gift is a mind map explanation.
More mind map description from Wikipedia:
(Though the example there is way more complicated than it usually is, don’t get put off by that sample.)
The purpose of the mind map is to get all of your ideas on the same dance floor, until you get to the point where you are so inspired, ready, and full – you just have to put that mosh pit of words to the page. You can use it at the outset to get started, and then in midstream, if need be. For example, I stopped and did a mind map to reorganize the tip section here. You do it until you just must start writing again. Give that a try.
3) Go to a café or library
Just as a mind map can get you started, heading to the café or library can be useful for facing some writing that feels challenging. I’ve had great success doing this to get a particular writing project started. Then I can go home and type it up, and usually keep it going. This can be good for several reasons in addition to getting started. It is sometimes nice to get out in the public domain (provided you are not too distracted by your fans), and it can be a way to treat yourself for staying committed to the sometimes tough work you’re pulling off. You can also people watch while musing, without losing as much time as a full blown nap at home.
4) Experiment, start with short shifts
When your business writing is in the hair pulling stage, you have to be strategic. That may be like that line from Mary Poppins musical – A spoonful of sugar helps the medicine go down (hence the macaroon at the café). Or it can be just taking it 20-30 minutes at a time, with a timer set. I think an hour to two hours is really a good amount of time to work at first, but you may need to build up to it. A mind map might only take 5-10 minutes, and if you just rough it out quickly from there, you could have a good start in a half hour. Experiment, remember to take breaks, and throw in a walk too – some writers swear by walking to clear the mind and open up the focus a bit.
5) Research your topic or your niche
You don’t want to get lost in this one, say through endless web searching, but some good research can be a great way to get your synapses firing on a topic. You can even research your target client group, and see how other people write about this area. I tend to avoid that because I want to first find my original way of naming the thing. This has probably caused me to take more time to find the ease with writing, but I guess I had more hair to lose.
6) Talk to your clients or people you think might be like them
One of the most enlightening things in terms of learning more about your clients of the future is to talk to them! Or even, better yet, work with them. I mean that’s what all this writing stuff is supposed to lead to, right? Well, and it can be a way you get ready for your work, or shift it, this writing. But watch that it doesn’t keep you so internally focused that you miss the parade of clients walking by.
To talk to live humans in service of developing writing copy, you could offer to buy coffee or tea, and talk about a particular area (specificity of topic is good especially if the niche is a big foggy yet). Ask about their struggles with X, what keeps them up at night about it. What they’ve tried to do to solve it. What it would mean to resolve this challenge, what it would look like to have it behind them. How that would positively impact their life. What they think they need to do. Etc. These are just some standard marketing questions – adjust and craft your questions to reflect your subject area, or the client problem area you work with. Take good notes or ask to record it, because capturing quotes and exact phrases is important, and will make your writing much more compelling. It is often a benefit to your interviewee to talk and be well-listened to – this may get them moving to the next step without any push from you.
If there is a particularly captivating quote, you might ask, can I use that? You wouldn’t use their name, but they might appreciate this request anyway. (If you do want to quote them at length, versus capturing a short powerful phrase, that’s more like a testamonial – and you would need permission for that.)
7) Separate your writing from your editing time
The part of your brain you use to write wears different clothes than the part that edits. They use different pens and drink different coffee – wait, that side of your brain prefers Assam tea. Who knew? And please, don’t offer him biscotti. He’ll punt kick it. Seriously, writing and editing are two different animals. Separate them into different hours, different days even if you want. You could use one shift for the writing, one for the editing. What you don’t want to do is write, look back and edit, write some more… you get the picture. That will definitely slow your progress and make your writing voice more bumpy. So go ahead and write without the editor on, and then put on that funky Clark Kent hat when it’s time for the red pen. That can be a good thing to do at the café too – the red pen, not the hat change. And please, make it a croissant, with strawberry rhubarb jam; not the biscotti.
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Business writing can start out as a necessary evil, but with a good attitude, practice and patience, it can turn into a great skill that heals as it attracts your best clients. Before you leave this discussion, pick three things you’ll try from the above, or your own ideas, to get more committed to your writing. I welcome your declarations, your comments, your ideas below – and please, easy on the hair!
Best wishes with your business and your writing,
Denise Barnes