What's in a word? Plenty

5 good writing tips from a pro

1. Push for specificity. Corporate writing is generally too vague, so you should invoke E.B. White's Rule No. 16 from The Elements of Style: "Prefer the specific to the general, the definite to the vague, the concrete to the abstract." Instead of the abstract, demand writing that is about something we can grasp. Focus on the interesting, not the mundane.

2. Use more words. There's a bunch out there waiting to be plucked from obscurity and entered into the corporate lexicon. Companies use the same words over and over, and many of them have lost their meaning. If everything is strategic, then what isn't? We are stuck in the language of corporate life. English gives us anywhere from 250,000 to 1 million words to express ourselves, but it feels like most companies keep using the same 12.

3. Find better verbs. This is where the language really fails most corporations. Companies talk to each other, and their customers, in stilted, dry language; and verbs are the biggest culprit. Strong verbs drive sentences; dull verbs slow them to a crawl. The problem is that companies are using the same verbs to explain everything. We're leveraging our synergies. We're implementing core competencies. Use action-oriented verbs that paint a picture.

4. Pursue the active voice. Make it a rule that writers turn their sentences around and focus on the subject+strong verb+object construction. Active writing is faster and cleaner, and it requires fewer words. This one simple act instantly lifts your writing out of its lethargy.

5. Omit needless words. Not only are we choosing the wrong words or the same words, we're using too damn many of them. Most corporate writing could stand a decent haircut. Here's a little test: Count the number of words in your story, print it out and then cut it by 10 percent. Don't take out any useful detail or information; remove only words that didn't have to be there in the first place. Then, take a hard look at your first sentence. Make it shorter.