Archive for March, 2009
The Five Things That Can Make Or Break Your Resume
1. Area Of Expertise
If you have areas of expertise, make sure to include them in a way that highlights them on your resume. Being able to demonstrate that, by listing your experiences and accomplishments that directly apply to them, is the single most important factor sought out by those evaluating your application.
2. Professional Summary
With lucrative [...]
Writing A Resume: Structure & Format
Having a hard time putting your resume together? I don’t envy you. Writing a resume is difficult enough. Laying it out to get you the best results is a quite the ambitious prospect.
Unlike many forms of writing, resumes work best when they follow a rigid structure. Many of the best English writing software I’ve seen [...]
Writing Contracts In English That We All Can Understand
Contracts are scary things. Legally binding, they can set you up for serious trouble when you agree to them without knowing what the terms actually entail. Problem is, many contracts are written in ways that are set up to be difficult to understand and are just plain turgid.
Isn’t it time we put an end to [...]
Using Brackets And Parentheses In Your Writing
As much as possible, I try to refrain from using brackets and parentheses in anything I write. If you work hard enough, you can usually find a way of expressing a fact that’s a little more creative than having to enclose them in separators like those two.
If you’re trying to keep your writing to a [...]
Crafting Your Out-Of-Office Message
When you’re taking time off from work, it’s only prudent to craft an out-of-office message to make sure your contacts both inside and outside the organization don’t waste time thinking you’re getting their communication when you’re actually not even reading it. It’s a great way to make sure both clients, suppliers and co-workers don’t get [...]
Business Emails: Stay On Topic With One Topic
One of my pet peeves when exchanging business emails is the propensity of most people to use the same email thread to discuss things unrelated to the original topic.
For instance, I recently had an email communication with a client about an order for certain pieces of content for three of their websites. We exchanged communication [...]
Setting The Background In Your Writing
Backgrounds are one of those things that you’ll need to decide whether to include in your writing or not. For most types of writing, setting the background is a wasteful and unnecessary use of your time. There are quite a few situations, though, when detailing the context will be necessary.
Waste Of Space
For a lot of [...]
Spelling Errors: A Common Problem We Can All Avoid
Oftentimes, as we rush to make deadlines and finish tasks faster, we end up with easily avoidable spelling mistakes in emails, contracts and other communications. While most folks would understand, too many of these errors just make your pieces difficult to read.
Misspelt Names
Spelling someone’s name, especially when your writing to them, is downright crucial. If [...]
English Writing Software And The Tricky Trap Of Using Commas
Commas are the sound of silence. When you add a comma right after a word or phrase, it indicates a short pause, setting it apart from the long pauses that you normally get at the end of each sentence. Apart from providing the necessary pace to your delivery, though, it can also be used to [...]
Showing Your Appreciation In Words
When a person, product or a service has truly made even a small difference in your life, it’s only fitting that you show your appreciation for them. It feels good to be appreciated. For individuals, such an acknowledgement can prove a real boost to the spirit. For businesses, it lets them know they’re on the [...]
