Module 1 — Effective
writing: Strategies
and principles
| Course Guide | Module 1 | Module 2a | Module 2b |
Desired response and purpose
Defining your statement of purpose
When we write at work, we write to inform, persuade, publicize, convince, record and so on to make a difference to what our readers know. To do this successfully, you must know both the subject and what you want to achieve: your statement of purpose.
Determining the desired response you want from the reader
Good work-based writing defines clearly what you want to happen as a result of what you are writing. In other words, effective writing is very clear about what writers want readers to do as a result of reading their documents. Keeping this concept constantly in mind helps you in two important ways. First, you no longer waste time writing things that neither further your purpose nor meet your readers' needs. Second, you write more clearly.
In an organization like the ILO it sometimes seems there is no communication purpose or objective for you to consider: you write because you are required to write.
This perception is common because you may be given a writing task in very general terms, such as:
- We need something on the working conditions and labour-management relations in the textile industry in Southeast Asia.
- We need a policy paper on increasing the number of women in senior positions.
- We need minutes for this meeting.
Unfortunately, writing without a clear objective is a sure path to ineffective writing that it is both boring to produce and boring to read.
Pinning down your purpose
When you become outcome-oriented in your writing, you produce documents that are more effective and more interesting. As a first step, you must work out what you actually want your reader to do. Word frames can help you to do that. Below are examples of word frames.
As a result of reading my message (report, letter, email, fax), my reader will …
Examples
As a result of reading my letter, my supervisor will arrange for training for the department.
As a result of reading my email, my colleague will meet me at the airport.
As a result of reading my report, our donors will provide additional funding.
Once you have identified the kind of response you want, you will find it easier to phrase your minutes, letter, report, or proposal to get what you want the first time. As you work your way through the production of your document, your statement of purpose gives you a constant point of reference. It keeps you on track and helps you produce brief, reader-focused writing.