You’ve been working on a project full-time for six months and now, you’re required to outline its entire content and purpose in 250 words. Does that sound challenging? Is it also familiar?
Writing short is often more difficult than writing a long piece.
And it is especially difficult if you have a lot to say. How do you fit inside 250 words or less everything you need to say in an email, a report, a client brief or a pitch for a start-up?
To do it well takes practice and effort because it requires two skills; writing and editing, the ability to reread your work as if you are seeing it for the first time so that you can identify where and how it can be improved.
You need to recognise which words, sentences and paragraphs are effective and which need to be rewritten. Sometimes, unfortunately, it’s best to abandon the entire first draft and start again.
Don’t give up. Writing short is a skill that can be taught and can be learnt. Working with a coach to access valuable feedback on your writing can help you to speed up the process of acquiring this much needed skill.
