Tips for Succinct Writing

By Alex Primett, RHG Consult Learning Coach

As we reach the end of Effective Communications month, one of our Business and Management Learning Coaches, Alex Primett, has given an insight in how we can all communicate more clearly with the written word.

People are busy, particularly those who you need to inform, influence, or instruct. Writing succinctly will keep your reader engaged and ensure they read and understand the main points you want to make without losing interest halfway through.

The key to writing succinctly is to use as few as words as possible without compromising the quality of your writing.

For example:

“Please send the report to me by email by close of business on Wednesday 27th July 2022.”

A succinct version of this is:

“Please email me the report by 17:00 on 27/07/2022.”

That is the same instruction with 8 fewer words. Imagine the impact of saving this number of words on every sentence you write!

Below are my 5 top tips for writing succinctly.

1. Delete intensifiers

Intensifiers are words that strengthen or weaken the meaning of something. Common examples include “really”, “very”, “extremely” and “so”.

We commonly use these in writing, but they are often not needed. For example, “that movie was very, very good” could be changed to “that movie was great”. Though its only one word, these small changes make a big difference.

2. Don’t duplicate descriptive words

When describing someone or something, consider what words you use to describe them.

For example, describing someone as both “bright and intelligent” … Don’t they mean the same thing?

Why use multiple words when you could use one?

For example, describing someone as “happy, excited and full of energy” – all three words could be replaced by “exuberant”.

3. Delete redundant words

We often use words that simply repeat what we have already said. For example, “a true fact”. Aren’t all facts true? Or “their own personal opinion”. Don’t all opinions belong to the person saying it? Far more succinct to use ‘fact’ and ‘their opinion’.

4. Make your point and stick to it

There is a purpose for your writing. Don’t use the opportunity to rant about something else, or to push another point or agenda. Focus your writing on its intended purpose. By deviating away from this, your writing loses impact and you will be using words that aren’t adding value.

5. Proofread

Always proofread what you have written. Proofread once to check your spelling and grammar is accurate. Proofread twice to check that you have deleted weak intensifiers and redundant words, and not duplicated descriptive words. Proofread a third time to make sure you have stuck to the point or points you wanted to make.

As former American President Thomas Jefferson said:

The RHG Grow Academy offers a broad range of webinars that will help you improve your communication skills. More details about all of our webinars can be found here