In a world where so much communication happens through texting with incomplete sentences full of emojis, you can imagine why the importance of writing skills in leadership is being questioned.
Much can be said through videos and podcasts. And tools such as Skype and Google Hangouts are a daily part of many businesses. Many employees are happier and more inspired by these ways of communication in comparison to receiving a printed memo or an e-mail.
However, writing skills still play an important role in leadership. They remain essential for any aspiring manager or director.
Grammar May Be Overrated, But Writing Isn’t
Those who may state that writing skills aren’t that important anymore are probably referring to only grammar and spelling. They are likely tired of grammar police telling them that they won’t get an A just because they placed the apostrophe where it wasn’t needed.
But there are two things here to take into consideration:
Firstly, grammar exists to ensure that we can communicate and understand each other, not to make our lives difficult. So, yes, minor mistakes won’t destroy anybody’s career, not even if you are a professional writer. But you can’t just ignore the rules, as you will be misunderstood frequently.
Secondly, writing is about more than just grammar and spelling. These are important skills, but it is also about style, tone, and punctuation. It is about the correct choice of words so you can influence and engage your audience.
What a leader needs to know isn’t just how to put a bunch of words together but how to make them shine.
Written Communication Still Represents Most of Our Communication
The fact that our mobiles, apps, and social media networks have made it possible to communicate through audio and video more efficiently hasn’t decreased the amount of written communication happening between us.
Actually, it is pretty much the opposite. A decade ago, we relied only on phone calls to talk to our family, friends, and partners. Currently, we tend to text or instant message them instead.
As they say, content is king. Emails, newsletters, e-books, websites, blogs, social media profiles, reports, proposals, applications, and press releases are all about written communication. Your materials will have to stand out from the competition.
Bad Writing Can Damage Your Credibility and Reputation
You are probably aware of all the bad jokes that go around the internet due to misspelling and grammar mistakes published online. And despite the fact that most of it are too silly or rude to be taken seriously, it is possible that you have been put off simply by bad writing before.
It’s not just the fact that there is a mistake but that the mistake itself makes the text hard to read or understand.
In the worst-case scenario, you might hurt your credibility by not being clear. And you could end up offending your audience unwillingly.
If you want to be seen as a leader in your industry, you also know that a certain level of writing skills is expected from you according to your qualifications, experience, and expertise.
Reading articles and pieces from other people in your current position or the one you wish to be in can help you examine your own writing skills, so you can set a more realistic standard for yourself.
In Conclusion
Writing skills are mandatory for any leader. Technology has made it even more essential, increasing the amount of writing required on any given day.
You also want to avoid being misunderstood, as you want to be able to influence your team or clients the way they should be.
You can either join a course, book one-to-one classes, or even try one of the many apps available. Just don’t ignore the importance of writing to your career. And remain optimistic by understanding that this is just one more of the many challenges in your life.
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Very good article. Opens up a lot of thoughts on importance of writing skills. I would like to share a couple of critical things which are first steps to a good writing skills
First step into evolving a good writing style is to consciously avoid using acronyms/short-forms etc. – basically avoid the language that messaging world has taught us. And, effort is to be put to write clear and complete sentences, rather than cryptic phrases/half-sentences in mails and written material.
Very Important points noted… You really have to polish your grammars to make the communication fluid. However.. I have had outstanding result getting my documents and articles proofread here.. http://goo.gl/ZvVHlU very efficient, fast and free of the popular mistakes associated with writing.
Thanks for the great article. I totally agree with the author, writing skills are an important part of communication. If you don’t have good writing skills you will have a hard time communicating with your partners. Referring to an article http://www.shewrites.com/profiles/blogs/9-signs-that-you-are-a-writer-at-heart, I am sure that everyone can improve their writing skills in a short time.
Students faces many type of problem when they are asked to do homework and submit it on time. First they don’t know how to draft it and they know they have to research it deeply so that it can look awesome. Also, they don’t have enough time to write it.