"Writing makes you stronger." is not a new concept to many of us.
However, writing in a second language makes you feel weaker at work. Coming from a different cultural background, often we find it very challenging to write clearly and succinctly. Sometimes we become obsessed with fancy words we see in others' emails and use them 'at all costs' in our writing. Other times, we presented multiple points in our output without a proper structure, making it very difficult for our audiences to navigate.
When we write without proper planning, we are weaker
When we write without an applicable structure, we are weaker
When we write without appropriate use of words and sentence structures, we are weaker
When we write without proofreading, we are weaker
Most importantly, when we write without realising we can write so much better, we are weaker.
I was one of you, thinking that I did Ok. After all, we have passed numerous English writing tests in pursuit of our degrees and qualifications. But it wasn't until 2015, when I received my procedure document draft back from my leader with half of them crossed out or revised, that I realised I had such a huge opportunity to improve.
From then on, I am committed to improving my English writing at work. I am still halfway in my journey, but I no longer feel weaker when I write because I celebrate progress and reflect on improvement opportunities when I come across them.
With this, I would like to invite you to join me on this challenge. Let's reflect on your writing and see how you can improve effectively. No more time to waste, and change starts from now!
