The Writing Edge for Business Writers: 10/28/16

Oct 28, 2016 | Resource Lists

You’re a businessperson. You may not think of yourself as a writer, but you know that writing well can boost your results and your career. Naturally, you want to do better. Every week I point you to articles and blog posts that I think will teach you something or spark an idea or two. Some weeks there are more pointers than others.

This week I’m pointing you to pieces on history as a strategic resource and on clear writing for business

From the Judge Business School: History as a strategic corporate resource

“The past isn’t past: company managers could better utilise their firms’ historical narratives as a key strategic resource for the present, says new study published in the journal Business History, co-authored at Cambridge Judge Business School, University of Cambridge.”

From Josh Bernoff: Your Writing Isn’t as Good as You Think It Is

“You have to write from time to time as part of your job. You probably think you’re fine at it, even as you notice the poor quality of the writing that reaches your screen from others. As I found when I surveyed 547 people who write as part of their job, there is a central problem here: We all think that problems of writing quality are somebody else’s fault.”

From Chuck Csizmar: The Message from 30,000 Feet

“I read the note and the attached form. Then sipped my morning coffee and stared at the letter. Then I read it again. After the second reading I realized that what sounded like an important message about my retirement funds had failed a basic communication test. I couldn’t explain the message to my wife.”

Sources I Check Regularly

I find the posts and articles that I share with you on The Writing Edge in many places. But there are a few that provide insightful pieces again and again. Here they are.

Frances Caballo

Jane Friedman

jeffbullas.com

Joel Friedlander

Joanna Penn

Melissa G. Wilson

Men with Pens

Merce Cardus

Problogger

Becky Robinson’s Weaving Influence