Life is too short to memorize 25,376 writing tips.

If you’ve ever looked at all the things you need to do to become a better communicator…and panicked…then, this is for you.

You had great intentions.

You were going to improve your business writing skills. So you checked out some relevant websites, dipped into a few books, and maybe even started reading blogs like this one. At first, you loved it. The tips were helpful. The advice made sense. But the more you read, the more you realized how much there was to learn. Originally, all you wanted to do was figure out how to hit a ball with a stick. But now, you’re worrying about the angle of your fingers, strength of your grip, cock of your wrists, direction of your shoulders, bend of your waist, line of your back, placement of your feet, torque of your hips, height of your windup, acceleration of your swing, and angle of your follow through. Now, nothing seems right.

Stop, take a deep breath, and do what the pros do.

Before you tie yourself into any more knots, stop, and focus on the fundamentals. That’s what the pros do. Great communicators stick to the basics and execute them better than anyone. Sure, they try new ideas and pick up fresh tips. They learn all kinds of arcane facts about their game and may even give it their own personal twist. But they never let this distract them from the core fundamentals. Never.

What are the fundamentals for everyday business writing?

When I’m working on a new document – any kind of business document – I’m always thinking about three things: how can I (1) get attention, (2) get understood, and (3) get a response. These three points may sound simplistic, but they’re right up there with, “Relax, keep your eye on the ball, and remember to follow through.” They apply to every business communicator in every situation. Here’s how I tackle them:

1. Get attention – Your document has to say, “read me.”

Everything starts with the reader, and you should assume that yours is in a hurry. He’s busy. He glances at your document. You’ve got to catch his attention. To do this, you have three tools at your disposal:

• Your headline (or title or subject line) – Is it personal or newsworthy or helpful or unexpected? Your headline should say, “Hey, look at this…here’s something that’s interesting or important or both.
• Your first few sentences – Most people believe that your first few sentences should summarize your document. I’m fine with that. But your introduction must also do something even more important. It must give your reader a reason to read the rest of your document. Always ask yourself, “Do the first few sentences make me want to read more?”
• The overall look of the page – At a glance, does your page seem easy to read? Is it simple to scan – with headlines, subheads, short paragraphs and bullet points? Or is it one, long uninviting paragraph after another.

2. Get understood – Your thoughts need to be very clear and orderly.

Business writing doesn’t have to be impressive. It just has to be clear, simple, logical, and easy to understand. So, explain yourself. Be conversational. And organize your thoughts carefully. If it helps, number your points or list everything in a Q&A format. Do whatever it takes to make your message clear, clear, clear.

The key to getting understood is to organize your thoughts the way you clean out a closet. Dump all your thoughts onto the page. Throw away the junk. Organize what’s left. Box it into paragraphs and label it with headlines and subheads. Stack it in a logical, sensible order. I’m convinced that clear writing is really about clear thinking – in other words, organize your thoughts so your reader doesn’t have to.

3. Get a response – You must tell the reader what to do next.

Never forget that the purpose of business communication is to get something done. You want someone to buy a product, attend a meeting, answer your question, make an introduction, understand your point of view, or take some other action. Don’t hint at this. Don’t assume your readers will do the right thing. Ask them very specifically and very politely to act.

Even if you’re simply providing information or an update, you can include a call to action, “Make sure you take this into consideration.” Or, “Let me know if this all makes sense to you,” or “Please contact me if you have any questions about this.”

Are these the only three fundamentals? Of course not. But they’re the big ones.

Get attention. Get understood. Get a response. If you never learn anything else, you’ll improve your business writing just by aiming for these three goals. By all means, look for other writing tips, too. Collect as many as you can. Try them out. See what sticks. But always come back to the fundamentals. Life is too short to memorize 25,376 writing tips. So stay focused on the big ones.