Legal Writing

Thomas W. Cooper has written that Native American chief, actor, and activist Dan George "never spoke without a reason. . . . What was more important than George's words was that such words were born only of purpose. He had a purpose for silence, and a purpose for speaking."

We can learn from this. We business writers shouldn't write until we have a clear sense of why. My friend Oliver E. Nelson, Jr., of Energy Systems Group, says that "knowing what your purpose is not only makes the document better; it helps remove ego problems--because then you know what your job is, to get something done, not to make yourself look better."

This week, before you write anything, ask yourself, "What do I want my readers to know or do as a result of reading what I've written?"