Business Writing and Grammar Skills Made Easy and Fun! Seminar

Presented by SkillPath Seminars

Gain dozens of field-tested strategies relied on by today’s most effective business writers.

Course Description

You’ll learn …

• The “pre-writing” technique that’ll have the words flowing effortlessly!
• How to know if your paragraphs are in a confusing, illogical order … and the best way to fix the problem
• How to avoid the trap of wordy opening paragraphs that leave the readers wondering “Huh?”
• The 12 most damaging blunders in business writing
• And much more!

Gain dozens of field-tested strategies relied on by today’s most effective business writers. Learn how to present your ideas clearly and persuasively … select words that fit your meaning … spot misused verbs, pronouns and punctuation … avoid communication misfires … and much, much more.

Day One: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Getting started: Transforming a blank page into a bold message

• Freewriting: What it is and how to use it to produce a great first draft in half the time
• Are your paragraphs in a confusing, illogical order? Here’s how to tell and how to fix the problem
• Great words and phrases for linking paragraphs together so your readers don’t have to stumble through your document
• How to guard against the deadly mistake of leaving important points out because you’re so focused on the little stuff

Understanding the ground rules

• Take the confidential Writer’s Discovery Analysis to identify areas you want to polish
• Understand how business writing is uniquely different from other types of writing
• Discover your natural style—it’s the key to reader-friendly, interesting writing
• How to “do your homework”—you’ll be amazed at how effortlessly the words flow after that
• Put the “Know Thy Reader” commandment into practice and double the impact of your message

Perfecting your grammar and usage skills

• The most troublesome words in business and how to erase any uncertainty about using them
• When a personal, casual style is important—never underestimate the power of contractions
• A concise refresher on how to correctly use verb tenses, subject-verb patterns and pronouns and their antecedents
• The “best-of-the-best” desktop references you’ll want at your fingertips for quick answers
• Ensure or insure? Affect or effect? Making the right choice between confusing words like these just became a whole lot easier!
• When it’s okay to bend the “rules” to make your point clearly
• Are abbreviations and acronyms really proper in business writing? This insight will shed light on the issue
• The unwritten rules about the appropriate and inappropriate use of jargon
• BONUS: A handy reference list of conjugations for 120 irregular verbs!

Avoiding embarrassing mistakes

• Can’t remember if the punctuation goes inside or outside the quotation marks? Here’s how to avoid this pitfall
• Follow this widely accepted guideline for when to spell out numbers and when to use figures
• Avoid these blunders when using apostrophes—they scream “Rookie!”
• When adding hyphens, dashes and other marks for emphasis … know when you’ve gone overboard
• To capitalize or not to capitalize? These tips will eliminate any question
• A refreshing overview of how to use punctuation marks correctly every time
• Your guide to international correspondence—follow this to the letter to ensure you put your best foot forward

Spelling every word correctly every time

• An intriguing spelling technique that many national spelling champs secretly rely on
• How to stop having to look up the same word in the dictionary over and over
• Prefixes and suffixes made easy
• How to take the confusion out of pluralizing letters, abbreviations and numbers
• DANGER: If you think your spell-checker takes the place of the human eye, you’re asking for trouble

Day Two: 9:00 a.m. – 4:00 p.m.

Grabbing your reader’s attention with powerful openings and closings

• The “bible” on how to write openings that reel readers in
• How to construct a closing so action-oriented it’s like a shot of adrenaline to your reader
• Real-world insight into humor and when—if ever—it should be used in business
• How to avoid the trap of wordy opening paragraphs that leave the reader wondering “Huh?”
• Tough but necessary questions to ask yourself after you’ve written the opening paragraph

Persuading, influencing and convincing for results

• Super techniques that give you powerful psychological leverage over your reader
• The proven connection between the use of personal pronouns and the results your business writing gets
• Undeniably effective tips for winning the reader over to your way of thinking
• How to make a strong and logical written argument without coming across like a bulldozer
• Stop! If you want to avoid a negative reaction from the reader, take this precautionary step

Projecting credibility and professionalism

• The 12 most damaging blunders in business writing—sidestep these at all costs
• How to curb the use of worn-out business clichés and what to say instead
• Hard-and-fast rules when working with a team on a writing project
• How to develop a sixth sense for damaging, biased and sexist language so you can make absolutely sure your writing is “clean”
• Get a firm grip on how to deliver bad news in writing—without a doubt, you will need this someday

Expanding your professional skills

• EXCLUSIVE: How to choose a style manual that works for your organization
• Just released! The latest, most professional business writing formats … for letters, memos, proposals, reports and more
• A crash course in building winning business proposals
• How to write memos and e-mail that today’s busy professional can digest in 60 seconds or less
• Field-tested letter-writing techniques that pay off in 3 big ways
• Don’t miss a single one of these 6 elements when writing a report … they’re all essential!
• Straight from the mouths of direct mail pros: Creating sales letters that bring in the orders
• How to write a press release that gets glowing coverage your company president will thank you for
• The art of writing crisp, clear instructions

Editing and proofreading like the pros

• 4 amazing proofreading secrets that will automatically push your accuracy rate to 99%—or higher
• Editing and proofreading symbols the pros use to simplify and speed up the revision process
• Relax … this team approach takes the fear out of proofing technical or financial data
• How to proofread quickly and accurately under pressure
• How to shut out phones, voices and other distractions when proofing in a busy office (It’s like sitting in an airtight bubble!)
• Catching typographical errors—yes, it’s tricky, but these tips will help shine the spotlight on them
• Keep your sanity with this proofreader’s checklist that ensures perfection down to the very last detail
• Proofreading a foreign language? Here are helpful rules that will calm your nerves
• How to do a final “sanity check” before your document goes out the door so you can sleep like a baby that night
• Editing techniques that will work miracles on your document

More Seminar Information

SkillPath Seminars Summary Gain dozens of field-tested strategies relied on by today’s most effective business writers. Delivery Method  Seminar Also Available As  On-Site Training Who Should Attend Business Professionals

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