For people and organizations struggling to find their writing voice

In the business world, the primary purpose of writing is seldom to impart information or even to convey a point of view. It’s to connect with your audience so that they come to know, like, and trust you. Because they won’t buy from you otherwise. [...]

Shift Your Scholar Mindset

If you’re an innovator with an academic background, then this video is for you! Here are some communication tips I’ve learned as I’ve transitioned from the world of scholarship to the world of business. Number one tip: it’s never about dumbing down your complex ideas [...]

Business Writing Tips from a “Recovering Academic”

Yesterday, I had the pleasure of delivering a webinar on “How to Write in Layperson.” (Thanks to Springboard Atlantic for hosting this event!) The audience included researchers, entrepreneurs, industry liaison officers from Atlantic universities, and students. As a former professor, I felt very much at [...]

If you’ve written an email today, you’re a designer

This past December, I had the pleasure of facilitating my first design-thinking session for a group of about a dozen project stakeholders. When I first took on this task, I felt intimidated. Who did I think I was to mess with this trendy design-thinking stuff? [...]

Add Alliteration

Did you know that all writing has musical qualities, which you can use to draw attention to your words and make them memorable? Here’s one super-easy technique to try. [...]

Six lies your brain tells you about your writing

We’ve all had times when we’ve felt like the cartoon character with the angel on one shoulder and the devil on the other. That was my predicament the day after I baked the most recent batch of birthday cupcakes. In the one ear: “Go ahead, [...]

Try the freewriting challenge

Boost your writing productivity by trying this 10-minute experiment… and then repeating it over a week, a couple weeks, or a month. This simple technique has transformed me from someone who used to struggle with chronic writer’s block to someone who routinely produces 1,500 to [...]

The Number One Thing You Can Do to Improve Your Business Writing is Completely Painless

Many of the clients I work with struggle with writing because they buy into a common limiting belief: “No pain, no gain.” That old saying may be true about body building. A muscle grows when it works so hard that it tears. Then it heals [...]

Ask direct questions

Tired of writing emails that get no response? Maybe you’re not asking clearly enough for the information or results you want. In this short video, I share a simple tip for creating messages that make things happen. [...]

Hunting for the Philosopher’s Stone of “objective” scientific language

Centuries before chemistry developed as a bona fide science, Renaissance alchemists conducted primitive experiments with various metals. Their dream was to change base metals, such as lead or mercury, into gold. Their quest was to find the Philosopher’s Stone, a mythical substance they believed would [...]