MBA Students Need Stronger Writing Skills

“MBAs’ rusty composition skills could benefit from a brush-up,” said a recent article in Business Week. Writing classes aren’t usually core requirements at business schools, though more and more schools are recognizing the need for writing classes and workshops. Business writing is significantly different than academic writing, says Roseanne Bane, a business writing professor

Does E-Mail Delay Raise Your Status?

I was browsing through a PostSecret collection today when I read a postcard from someone who confessed waiting several days to respond to friends’ e-mails.  Just to seem busier. Most of us are probably guilty of postponing a response for similar reasons, but does e-mail delay actually make us look busier or more glamorous?  I thought back to delayed e-mails I’d received — delayed e-mails from writers who certainly weren’t overwhelmingly busy

Write It Well Delivered E-Mail Writing Skills Training to High School Students in Richmond, CA

Write It Well delivered a pair of e-mail writing workshops at Leadership Public High School in Richmond on Tuesday, December 2, 2008. In this era of high speed electronic communication and high-profile e-mail misfires, e-mail messages are in the spotlight. The workshops were designed to help high school seniors improve the quality of their e-mail messages and learn what’s appropriate as they prepare for college applications, summer jobs and internships, and the demands of the business world

That vs. Which

The distinction between “that” and “which” is a little blurry. In many cases, you can interchange them without confusing your reader. Even thoroughly experienced writers switch them around sometimes — the New York Times After Deadline blog this week found examples in the paper where writers had confused “that” and “which”

E-Mail Efficiency vs. E-Mail Etiquette

Why do we give workshops on “E-Mail Efficiency” instead of “E-Mail Etiquette” like other people do? The short answer: our workshops cover more material. To use e-mail most effectively, of course you need proper e-mail etiquette. You won’t get much done with offensive, boring, or badly-timed messages! But you also need to know how to keep a tidy inbox, for example, and how to write persuasive e-mail messages — not to mention the nitty-gritty details of professional grammar and clean prose