Building Rapport

Are you stuck in your rut or open to new points of view?

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Thu, 02 Jul 2009 18:22:00 +0000

People are twice as likely to choose to read information that supports their own point of view as they are to consider an opposing idea. Those with close-minded personalities are even more reluctant to expose themselves to differint perspectives.

People are most resistant to new points of view concerning political, religious, or ethical values.

People with low confidence in their own beliefs are less likely to expose themselves to contrary views than people who are very confident in their own ideas.

This article reviews 91earlier studies:
“Feeling Validated Versus Being Correct: A Meta-Analysis of Selective Exposure to Information,”
Dolores Albarracín, PhD, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign; William Hurt, PhD, Inge Brechan, PhD, and Lisa Merrill, PhD, University of Florida; Alice H. Eagly, PhD, Northwestern University, Matthew J. Lindberg, PhD, Ohio University;
Psychological Bulletin, Vol. 135, No. 4 at http://www.apa.org/journals/releases/bul1354555.pdf.)

Classic Larry Ragan on saying it like it is

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 20:52:00 +0000

http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=A2A7714B2C7B40C187806FA25DF0BBF8&AudID=3FF14703FD8C4AE98B9B4365B978201A

Visual language, a new tool

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 18:40:00 +0000

As for future development of plain language, I think we would benefit from what Dave Gray of VizThink describes as “cross-pollination between visual thinking disciplines like information design, information architecture, data visualization, geographers, graphic facilitation/graphic recording, comics/graphic novels, architecture, etc..” Plain language needs to incorporate "visual language" but first we need to learn what it is.

The standards, rules, and definition of visual language is under development right now.

Take a look at the work of Neil Cohn of Tufts University. Start with his video, What Is Visual Language?, available via http://www.emaki.net/blog/ for a hint of what is to come from the visual language movement.

Also, at Brains on Purpose a blog post by Stephanie West Allen offers many other points of access to this field: http://westallen.typepad.com/brains_on_purpose/2008/04/images-paint-an.html

Unleash Your Inner Muse

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Sun, 14 Jun 2009 21:44:00 +0000

Violette is a folk artist who has created a community through her blog at www.violette.ca

I recommend to you Violette's new book, Journal Bliss: Creative Prompts to Unleash Your Inner Eccentric, that you can buy from Amazon at http://tinyurl.com/lxg9ug  
 

Violette, thank you for agreeing to talk to us non-artists. Most of my readers have lives focused on the written word. Getting visually oriented may be an intimidating idea. Yet, many express a desire to get in touch with their creative sides to refresh their capacity for original thinking.

Wow.......well this is an exciting opportunity to share what knowledge I have with them. Thanks for that Cheryl.

You mention in the book how relinquishing the left-brain's constant control allows the right brain to do some creative work. This would also apply to releasing some creative thinking, wouldn't it? 

Yes - for sure!  Across the board - when you look at problems with "soft eyes" without the left-brained, intense focus you can see things more clearly.  That is when solutions and innovative thoughts pop into your mind.  Don't discard these so called "gems" which are probably lining up to find some form of expression whether it be in writing, creating art, dancing, or creating music.

The magic happens when you let go of control and go into flow, or some folks call it riffing (to make stuff up on the spot).  It is similar to the brain dump of the morning pages  that Julia Cameron (of Artist's Way) recommends in order to mine the mind for the gems from your thoughts.

What do you think of visualizing thoughts as a way out of writer's block?

I'm a big advocate of visualization - it so powerful.  If you can picture yourself as successful, writing effortlessly, seeing yourself at your book signing or seeing your article in a magazine using different modalities, then you are much more apt to realize and manifest the dream. Imagine yourself, see yourself but also smell the smells, hear the sounds and if it's appropriate feel the feelings (such as the feel of book pages or magazine pages).

I read somewhere that creative people are creative because they believe that they are.  That is the number one determining factor. Visualization helps you to get to the place of believing.  It's like practicing playing the guitar - the more you play the better you get.

Visualize many, many times and you will believe that you ARE a very prolific writer with countless stories waiting to get out.

Another thing you can do is create a Vision Board for yourself - clip images from magazines which to you symbolize writing and creating effortlessly.  Clip words or phrases that support your vision.  Assemble all of these images on a large piece of poster board. You might even put a picture of yourself in the center of the board.  Put your Vision Board somewhere that you can see it every day.

I appreciate that you provide some simple instructions for some basic art techniques in your book. What do you suggest that beginners buy for a basic set of art supplies?

You really don't need very much.  You could buy a coil-bound sketchbook or do what I do - buy cheap card stock from the office supply store and clip the pages together with a bullclip.

You'll need a couple of good fine-tip felt pens (I prefer Micron Pens), a water colour paint set, gel pens, acrylic paints (folk art paints are fine), water colour pencil crayons and assorted paintbrushes.  I think that's basically all you need....oh and I cannot forget mod podge for adhering your collage items.

You wrote about having a doodle box, even storing flourishes there. What
else goes in a doodle box and tell my readers what it is?

I suggested you store your doodles or doodles that you find in magazines and online.  I had suggested you create a file for inspiration so that you can practice your own doodles and flourishes which will enhance your journal pages.

My doodles and inspiration are stored in numerous places:

I have an inspiration drawer with brochures, art and cards that inspire me.

I have several books of my ideas with doodles and flourishes and ideas for art projects.

One of my coil-bound books is called "imagine" and the other is called "The Idea factory" I created the covers for these two books.

I like personalizing and funkifying everything to encourage myself to use the items.

Thanks so much for sharing with us, Violette. You are my own muse.

Thank you Cheryl!  You are an inspiration to me, too!  I have enjoyed a different line of questioning.  Creativity works in all disciplines - we simply need to tap into it and give ourselves permission to have fun and cut loose.

Another Perpective on Plain Language

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 01:48:00 +0000

Click Media discusses proposal writing, adding:

"Plain language, especially English, is not always simple. Not only do your words need to be efficient and easy to understand, but they need to be warm and engaging as well. Your words need to compel your reader to carry on."

Reading for STC members only (not me however)

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 03 Jun 2009 16:29:00 +0000

If you are a member of STC, take a look at this month's Intercom online

Writing Questions That Are Easy to Answer
By: Caroline Jarrett, Associate Fellow: Have you ever found it difficult to fill out a seemingly simple form? Jarrett explains how to create questions that are easy to understand and accessible by all, focusing on details, the difference between prompts and fully formed questions, questions that need more explanation, and other aspects.
Making Content Understandable: Inherent Usability in Plain Language
By: Thom Haller: Using an example from his personal life, Haller shows how government writing should be simplified to ensure that a reader can understand government documents. He also discusses the importance of passing the Brayley Bill, the plain language bill.

I want this hair

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 02 Jun 2009 21:32:00 +0000

All Hail the Grassroots Campaign

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 19:23:00 +0000

PRNewswire/ -- PlainTaxTalk, a grassroots group announced it has launched a campaign to urge the IRS to use plain language in all its public documents and forms to help the average American taxpayer comply with the tax laws.
"The idea behind our movement is simple," says the group's founder John Klotsche, a former Senior Advisor to the IRS Commissioner, "vastly improve American taxpayers understanding of their tax reporting responsibilities."
"The IRS needs to jettison its archaic habits of obfuscation and substandard communication and embrace the principles of plain language, recognized as the universal gold standard for all written communications," said Klotsche.
The 'tax gap' -- the taxes Americans owe but don't pay -- is estimated by the IRS to be north of $300 billion each year. Deliberate evasion causes some of this but most results from unintentional behavior. This is because taxpayers simply don't understand, or won't take the time to understand, their tax responsibilities. For every 1% increase in tax compliance levels, tax revenues would increase $20 billion.
"Plain language is much more than wordsmithing documents," said Klotsche. "It is reader-focused writing that uses document design techniques to produce clear and understandable information including planning the document, designing it, organizing it and writing clear instructions using plain English."
Tax simplification can come about legislatively, administratively, or both. The Congress endlessly talks about doing something but never does. Will Rogers' contemptuous quip is a reminder of this gridlock: "The difference between death and taxes is death doesn't get worse every time Congress meets." PlainTaxTalk would not bet the farm on a legislative fix and believes the IRS should step forward and take the lead on tax simplification.
PlainTaxTalk believes the IRS should take the complicated mess the Congress has created and using tested, modern-day plain language principles and techniques tell the American taxpayers in simple, understandable words how to go about quickly and accurately reporting their fair share of the taxes they rightly owe. That's what PlainTaxTalk is all about--in plain language.
The cover article published today in Tax Notes magazine, PlainTaxTalk: The Yellow Brick Road to Tax Simplification, presents the case for plain language at the IRS. The group's Blog site at http://www.PlainTaxTalk.org provides a forum for comment.

Clear and conspicuous credit card info required now in U.S.

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Sun, 24 May 2009 19:46:00 +0000

The web buzzes with talk about the new U.S. credit reform law (there is mostly silence on Canada's new law).

A quick look at this tells me that there is no actual mention of "plain language" in the final version of the bill that was endorsed into law last week. Instead the term used elsewhere, mainly in the regulation of advertising, is adopted: clear and conspicuous. Forms, disclosures, and written statements must be clear and conspicuous.

In commentary and court decisions on the term, it carries many requirements for making information appear prominantly in a document, but (concerning language) we learn only that the information must be made understandable to its intended audience of consumers.

Look here for a guideline that is often quoted:

To evaluate whether a particular disclosure is clear and conspicuous, consider:

the placement of the disclosure in an advertisement and its proximity to the claim it is qualifying,
the prominence of the disclosure,
whether items in other parts of the advertisement distract attention from the disclosure,
whether the advertisement is so lengthy that the disclosure needs to be repeated,
whether disclosures in audio messages are presented in an adequate volume and cadence and visual disclosures appear for a sufficient duration, and
whether the language of the disclosure is understandable to the intended audience.

The New York Times plays with setting out credit terms in the familiar style of nutrition notices:
http://www.nytimes.com/imagepages/2009/05/24/opinion/23docuA.html

News

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 20 May 2009 17:13:00 +0000

A collection of Internet tidbits

A good blog post on plain language from Monica on Marketing who "looks at the simple difference between a paragraph from GE and a paragraph from Apple talking about their technology innovations".

*********************
Clear and personable introduction to business purpose:

What do you find at Click Media Works?
Clear & clever communications for real-life people in real-world business, that's what.

*********************

Super language should be a matter for Federal review: Doyle
Money Management - ‎May 13, 2009‎
A call has been made for the Federal Government to include a review of the language used in the superannuation sphere as part of its examination of the ...

*********************

Banning Latin… Classics scholars accuse councils of dumbing down
Not so long ago local councils were being dragged across the coals by academics who claimed that banning Latin for the sake of plain communication was akin to ethnic cleansing. Which is a bit extreme! But surely banning words is as bad as burning books?
*********************
Plain English works best: Suncorp
Thursday, 14 May 2009 12:55pm
Suncorp Wealth Management has overhauled its communication strategy to help members better understand super, starting with a new communications guide for internal staff and a new look and feel to at least 100 types of letters it sends to members each year.

The government-backed Financial Literacy campaign gets a big leg-up from Suncorp after it decided not just to simplify its member letters but also to instill a "plain English" culture internally - starting with a ‘style guide' that staff can refer to when talking to or emailing clients...

Suncorp super platform solves legacy problems
InvestorDaily - ‎May 13, 2009‎
By Wouter Klijn The migration of Suncorp's super clients into a single platform will mean an end to its legacy problems. The migration of superannuation ...

National Institutes of Health Awards

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 20 May 2009 07:32:00 +0000

The 2008-2009 NIH Plain Language Award Ceremony will be held Tuesday, June 2, 2009, 1:00 p.m. Lipsett Auditorium, Bethesda, Maryland and will feature Pulitzer Prize winner Jonathan Capehart, editorial writer for The Washington Post.

The annual NIH Plain Language Award ceremony honors outstanding NIH communication products including revised websites, fact sheets, multi-media presentations, and other materials, including items designed for Spanish-speaking audiences. To view the 2007-2008 event, see http://videocast.nih.gov/. For archived awards information: http://www.nih.gov/clearcommunication/plarchive/index.htm

Read more...

Visual language, a new tool

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Sun, 10 May 2009 18:23:00 +0000

Public Lecture in Toronto, May 14

Neil Cohn of Tufts University and Emaki Productions will give a public lecture at the University of Toronto on Thursday, May 14th at 5pm. His will be the first talk in the Visual Thinking lecture series More information here.

What is "Visual Language"?: What Comics can Tell Us About the Mind

Many theories describing "visual language" have been emerging from diverse fields including computer science, communications, and design. However, often these approaches rely on metaphoric or folk notions of "language" without delving deeper into what Language actually consists of, especially on a cognitive level. This talk will present Visual Language Theory from the view of the linguistic and cognitive sciences to discuss what "language" entails, and thereby exploring just what it means to have a literal theory of a graphic modality of language. The result will be a view of graphic communication and the capacity for drawing that is embedded alongside other mental capacities and divorced from socio-cultural labels that stymie its recognition.

Stuff worth reading--tell me what you think about it

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Sat, 09 May 2009 19:02:00 +0000

How to Write for a Global Audience

If you're advertising or writing about a carbonated beverage, what do you call it? Soda? Pop? Fizzy drink? Mineral? All of these terms are "correct" depending on where your readers are. Today, there is a greater chance of your work being read by someone on a different continent, especially if you write online. It's predicted that by 2011, there will be 1.5 billion people with Internet access, with most new users coming from Brazil, Russia, India and China.^[1] Here's how to tailor your writing to the emerging global audience...

‘People’ or ’service users’ April 1

Writing Tip: K.I.S.S.

Plain English? A Study of Plain English Vocabulary and International Audiences.By THRUSH, EMILY A., Technical Communication

Effective Communications: Learning From Orwell

A continuing theme on the blog: Let me do that for you ...A good Virtual Assistant will help you translate all your written communications into plain language so that every single time you make contact with a customer, prospect, employee or colleague you’ll make a big, positive impact instead of creating confusion and irritation.

Plain Language for the Health Field

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 06 May 2009 04:14:00 +0000

This resource was brought to my attention again, and I figure I should share it with you this time around.

Plain Language Thesaurus For Health Communications

"This Plain Language Thesaurus has been put together by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s National Center for Health Marketing. Our aim is to help make health information clear and easy to understand.
This thesaurus offers plain language equivalents to medical terms, phrases, and references that we often use...
Key sources included
• www.pandemicflu.gov glossary
• CDC Community Strategy for Pandemic Influenza Mitigation glossary
• National Immunization Program Glossary
http://www.cdc.gov/vaccines/about/terms/glossary.htm
• Simple Words and Phrases thesaurus at plainlanguage.gov
• Clear Language and Design (CLAD) thesaurus
http://www.eastendliteracy.on.ca/ClearLanguageAndDesign/thesaurus/
• Harvard’s three Plain Language Glossaries (one for asthma, lupus, and arthritis)."

Plain Language Version ISO Standards

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 08 Apr 2009 05:22:00 +0000

... a plain language translation of the International Standards Organization Standards prepared by Praxiom.

The plain language definitons might prove useful as a resource.

Perceptions of Audience Awareness

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 20:55:00 +0000

When you want to write in plain language, it is important to distinguish between

your concept of plain language and your reader's.

A reader decides whether to read your material based on the reader's judgement whether the material:

looks interesting
appears useful
seems easy to read

Putting aside the reader's search for interesting and useful, what will seem easy to read?

As the reader scans the page and picks out a phrase here and there, the decision is reached according to the reader's idea of easy reading.

I have found that most over-educated people (as in too many years in the ivory tower) have a limited awareness of the average reader's capabilities.

If you aim to write always in plain language, then you should inform yourself. Keep up with the relevant news.

Here are 3 items from today alone:

1.

University professors feel their first-year students are less mature, rely too much on Wikipedia and "expect success without the requisite effort,"
http://www.thestar.com/News/Ontario/article/614219

2.
British teenagers have lower IQ scores than a generation ago, new study reveals
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1139062/British-teenagers-lower-IQ-scores-generation-ago-new-study-reveals.html

3.
First 2 Words: A Signal for the Scanning Eye
http://www.useit.com/alertbox/nanocontent.html

Practice Audience Awareness

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 06 Apr 2009 17:48:00 +0000

Matthew Stibbe of the blog Bad Language posted this:

[This poster] should read:

Psychic Festival

You know where it is.
You know when it is.

And we know you’re coming.

Fabulous new product for plain language translation

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 31 Mar 2009 20:54:00 +0000

Using is knowing

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 18 Mar 2009 18:25:00 +0000

We talk about writing in plain language so that a person can understand and use the information. Someone said something a while back that suggested a person could "use" information if it was in a brochure that they could refer to when needed. This led me to thinking about my different perspective.

I think using information means knowing it and being able to retrieve it from memory whenever it is needed. No reference document. It may be I think this way because of my long experience in training and curriculum design for adults.

I am now pondering the extent to which my internalization of the principles of adult education has influenced my approach to plain language writing and editing.

Just wanted to let you know why I have not been posting. I am working on a new plain language writing manual for general use (meaning not for legal writers) and I am thinking through some issues like this.

Use plain English, appear smarter (and more persuasive)

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 10 Mar 2009 23:37:00 +0000

In case you need evidence, Ray Ward summed it up awhile ago:

I just finished reading Yes! 50 Scientifically Proven Ways to Be Persuasive (hat tip to the [non]billable hour). One of the 50 ways confirms something Bryan Garner says in The Winning Brief (p. 177, 2d ed.): people who use plain language are perceived as smarter and more persuasive than people who do the opposite:

“... Take, for example, the fact that communicators frequently try to convey their erudition via their grandiloquent, magniloquent, sesquipedalian verbosity; in other words, they try to look smart by using unnecessarily long words or overly technical jargon....

“... [R]esearch by [Daniel] Oppenheimer has shown that using overly complex language like this can produce the exact opposite of the intended effect: Because the audience has difficulty interpreting the language, the message is deemed less convincing and the author is perceived to be less intelligent.”

In an endnote, the Yes! authors cite D.M. Oppenheimer, Consequences of erudite vernacular utilized irrespective of necessity: Problems with using long words needlessly, Applied Cognitive Psychology, 20:139–56.

So there you have it: scientific proof that plain language aids persuasion.

A liitle bit about commas

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Mon, 16 Feb 2009 20:12:00 +0000

Since everyone seems to be arguing over punctuation these days, I'd like to share this resource with you.

Three new rules for handling commas
By Don Ranly ranlyd@missouri.edu or www.ranly.com.
http://www.ragan.com/ME2/Audiences/dirmod.asp?sid=&nm=&type=MultiPublishing&mod=PublishingTitles&mid=5AA50C55146B4C8C98F903986BC02C56&tier=4&id=C85B28BBC6394773A57BF442451F7464&AudID=3FF14703FD8C4AE98B9B4365B978201A

For the explanation, you need to read his post. In short he says:
Let me state those five once again before I go on:

1. Always place a comma after words in a series but not before “and” or “or” unless the meaning is unclear.
2. Always place a comma after an introductory dependent clause in a complex sentence.
3. Always place a comma after an introductory independent clause in a compound sentence before the coordinating conjunction.
4. Always set off nonessential, nonrestrictive words, phrases and clauses with commas.
5. Always place a comma after introductory participial phrases.
6. Always place a comma after two or more introductory prepositional phrases.
7. Always place a comma after an introductory interjection, an independent element or direct address.
8. Always place a comma between coordinate adjectives.

Some adjectives are never coordinate. They refer to:

1. Color. Example: The sleek red convertible.

2. Age. Example: The tired young man.

3. Material. Example: The expensive silk dress.

4. Shape. Example: The tall round building.

5. Nationality. Example: The prominent French director.

I particularly appreciate the last list.

Making a Crisis Worse

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 04 Feb 2009 17:41:00 +0000

From the International Association of Business Communicators,
http://www.iabc.com/cwb/archive/2004/0504/mistakes.htm

Making a Crisis Worse: The Biggest Mistakes in Crisis Communication
by Jonathan Bernstein

One of eleven mistakes discussed:

Use language your audience doesn't understand. Jargon and arcane acronyms are but two of the ways you can be sure to confuse your audiences and a surefire way to make most crises worse. Let's check out a few of these taken-from-real-situations gems:

* The rate went up 10 basis points.
* We're considering development of a SNFF or a CCRC.
* We ask that you submit exculpatory evidence to the grand jury.
* The material has less than 0.65 ppm benzene as measured by the TCLP.

To the average member of the public, and to most of the media who serve them, the general reaction to such statements is "Huh?"

How to integrate your message, audience and channel

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 18:14:00 +0000

Ragan Communications provides a real-world, practical report on

How to integrate your message, audience and channel

Blogs on Legal Writing, via Squidoo

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Wed, 28 Jan 2009 20:08:00 +0000

Remember Molly DiBianca? Her list of the top 30 writing blogs listed several blogs on legal writing. Most are on my Squidoo Lens on Legal Writing Blawgs.

The Squidoo Lens provides the headlines to the most recent postings on each law blog, so you could subscribe to my Legal Writing Blawgs to get a quick overview of them. Use your blog feeder to subscribe.

Here is the only blog DiBianca selected, as she described it, that is not yet on my Squidoo Lens:

Disputed Issues, by Stephen R. Diamond, J.D., Ph.D., tackles common missteps in legal writing, as well as the reasons why lawyers write so badly.

Clear Language - plain language by Workplace Education Manitoba (2009)

noreply@blogger.com (Stephens) — Tue, 27 Jan 2009 20:23:00 +0000

An adaptation of one of my articles has been created by Workplace Education Manitoba. My original is available here or here.