BusyBee Bloggers promotes meticulous professional writing in an ever-changing marketplace that relies so much on just that; writing. With so much at stake, BusyBee Bloggers wants to ensure you are currently up to date down to the finest details in your daily business writings, no matter what the medium. Check back often for tips, tricks, and guidelines to be the most effective writer in the work place!
Conflict is expected, and NOT100% avoidable in a Collaborative Projects. Conflicts can be easily handled and controlled if properly executed or appropriate steps of caution is exerted.
Ideas for Reducing Conflicts:
Address Business Matters
Take Action on Dissatisfaction
Ask Questions, if Clarification is Needed
Listen to Each Other Carefully
Establish Areas Your Stuck At
Oppose “Us vs. Them” Scenarios
Take a Break!
In today’s working environments it is crucial to incorporate various, effective and useful conflict resolution techniques. Resolving issues ranging within, externally or both are required to help a project grow.
"Leadership development is self-development." Barry Posner.
Did you know that everyone can learn leadership and that leadership can be taught through
-leadership education,
-training,
-development, and
-engagement ?
Leadership begins in our hearts. It waits for the right moment, when we recognize our talents and passions and become ready to create change for common good. It evolves through relationships with partners, peers, and colleagues, when we solve complex tasks and work on projects. Leadership can exist and blossom only through interdependence with others within our local, national, and global community. Leaders choose to act and act because they care, developing the atmosphere of trust, building motivation, and having the ability to be present in the moment.
A perfect example of a dedicated leader is the leader of our Blog Team, BusyBee Bloggers, Chris Vignieri. During last six weeks, Chris communicated with us, his team, with simplicity, respect, encouragement, and gratitude. Chris truly enabled and empowered himself to lead our team to success, contributing his skills and talents, providing support and care.
Leadership is responsibility and wisdom. You can only choose how to act if you are aware of your beliefs and assumptions. Our thoughts reveal themselves in behavior, and we need to notice our actions and try to uncover the beliefs that led to them. So, don't wait, and as Margaret Wheatley said: "Access your own wisdom!"
References
Avolio, B. J. and Gardner, W. Authentic Leadership Development. The Leadership Quarterly.16 (2005) 315-338
Higher Education Research Initiative. Social Change Model of Leadership Guidebook. University of California, Los Angeles.
Park, S.D. (2005). Leadership can be taught. Harvard Business School Press.
Proofreading and editing letters by Clara Thompson
Why is it always a good idea to proofread any type of written work before submitting it? Well, ever heard the saying “two heads are better than one”? When it comes to proofreading, a form of editing, it is always a good idea as in other things to get at least two opinions. Proofreading is your final opportunity to catch your mistakes and review your content before submitting it. It is important to review your work because one small mistake can create a big problem. For example, one misplaced decimal point can create a staggering budgetary error. Incorrect or imprecise instructions can cause injury to a worker. After all, you don’t want one grammar mistake to make you seem like you have no knowledge of how work is to be presented do you? Well, below you will find tips on how to become a successful proofreader/editor of your work or anyone else’s.
• Read it out loud and silently. • Use a spell checker and a grammar checker as a first screening but don’t depend on them. • Have others read it • Give a copy of the document to another person and keep a copy for yourself. Take turns reading it out loud to each other. While one of you reads, the other one follows along to catch any errors and awkward sounding phrases.
For more tips on proofreading and editing, please follow the link below.
So you want to write an advertisement but don’t know where or how to start. Here are some quick and simple tips from BusinessLink.gov that can set you in the direction to effectively write attention-getting advertisements.
Quoted from BusinessLink.gov, “A good advertisement should have:
A well-targeted headline Clear design Well-written copy”
You must keep the reader’s habits in mind when planning your advertisement. If you are planning to have a broader public audience, you should be writing a shorter advertisement that does not go in depth as much as one would in a magazine that specializes in a certain topic.
Headline – The headline should catch the reader’s attention and induce an interest that will make them want to read on.
Clear design – Having a cluttered and extremely busy advertisement can actually deter a potential interest. Too much material can confuse a person, irritating them and eventually turning them away. On the other hand, too little material will give the advertisement an anemic look, which gives the impression that one must test the validity of the company. Be sure to have no more than two types of font in the advertisement.
Well-written copy – Be sure to backup claims with facts. The quality of the print must be kept in mind when choosing your font and format. Never leave an argument unanswered or a problem unsolved. Let the reader know how they will benefit from this service or product.
You might go through multiple designs and formats for your advertisement before you find the perfect one for the job. Although this may sound like a tedious task or one that will never allow you to finish, you must remember that this will be the first impression of your product or service to the public.
References
The Chartered Institute of Marketing. "Tips on writing a print advertisement Business Link." Business support, information and advice Business Link. 19 Apr. 2009 . http://www.businesslink.gov.uk/bdotg/action/detail?type=RESOURCES&itemId=1073790765
Writing a thank you note in the business world is a very courteous thing to do and is very often overlooked. A simple letter that shows your appreciation can seriously be the difference between a job or not, a contract or not, etc.
A few things to remember when it comes to writing thank you notes: -One should typically write a thank you note as soon as possible. -Make sure it is addressed to a specific person, not necessarily just a thank you card labeled with a company's name. -Do not write a long, drawn out letter. Be short and sweet. -Make the thank you note specific to the incident you are thanking the person for. No one likes receiving a generic thank you card.
When it comes to writing a thank you note for an interview, it is important to write the note within 24 hours. Obviously one would want the recipient to get the note before their decision has been made.
Tips For Writing Thank You Letters-By Nathan Newberger-http://www.worktree.com/tb/MB_thanklet.cfm
Collaborative writing, what is it? A group of individuals working cooperatively to create or design a written document of sorts, ranging from brochures to manuals.
Key Ingredients are LEADERSHIP, EQUAL WORK AND RESPONSIBLITIES, SUPERB COMMUNICATION, and RESPECT.
6 Steps in Planning Process:
Brainstorming
Researching
Planning (Structure/Outlining)
Writing
Editing
Reviewing
Advantages:
Make the most of an individual’s strengths
Inspiring originality, imagination to acquire ideas and designs
Less time spent on a project, due to teamwork
Disadvantages:
Can be challenging if poor writing skills exist
Lack of respect, communication, flexibility can end in a tasteless, cheap and impoverish finished product
Take more time, if conflicts in schedules and poor communications
In the world of professional writing or any environment that demands strong writing skills, it is important to write clearly. Your reader needs not only to be able to read your composed piece but also understand it. Below are a few tips on writing clearly.
-Know your objective- Have a clear understanding of what your subject is and be familiar with it enough to be able to write about it. Also, know where you are going and what you want to accomplish. When you know what your goals are, it is easier to achieve them.
-Create an outline- An outline will help you to organize all of your information and present it in an easy to follow manner.
-Use plain language-simple words and plain talk. Write in short, easy to read sentences. To communicate effectively, simple is better.
-Concentrate on your reader-Help your readers get involved with your topic, help them to understand it and remember it. Watch your use of pronouns. The use of "you/yours" instead of "me/mine" takes of focus off of you and onto your reader.
It is important that you are able to catch your readers attention and keep them reading the entire piece of work. This calls for a strong introduction. Without it, the reader will loose interest and fail to read the entire document. For more helpful tips, please see the link below.
When it comes to writing effective meeting minutes it’s important to never forget TACT and SKILL.
Time. It may seem obvious, but meeting minutes document at what time the meeting began and ended and how (approximately) each minute of the meeting was spent.
Attendance. It should be noted who was at the meeting, what they were assigned and when it’s due and when each person arrived and left.
Clarification. Revisions may be necessary. After each person has reviewed the minutes it’s important to correct any discrepancies.
Topic. Meeting minutes state what type of meeting it was (emergency, planned…) and what the topics covered were.
Show & Share. Because everyone at the meeting (and those absent) are responsible for what occurred it’s important to show everyone what has been documented either by projecting it or by making or e-mailing copies.
Kinetics. Were there any motions made at the meeting? Meeting minutes document who made a motion, who seconded the motion and what the final decision was: carried, defeated, postponed, etc.
Important events. Meeting minutes document every official thing that went on during the meeting time. Often time they’re kept
Leaders of the meetings will assign who is to take meeting minutes. This can be a consistent person or a rotation job.
Legal Document. It’s important to remember that Meeting Minutes can be used in a court of law as evidence.
For more information and examples of meeting minutes please visit here or watch the video below for some helpful and user-friendly advice on taking effective meeting minutes.
Oliu, Walter E., Charles T. Brusaw, and Gerald J. Alred. Writing that Works Communicating Effectively on the Job. Boston: Bedford/St. Martin's, 2006.
"Basic Sample of Board of Directors Meeting Minutes." Free Management Library. 12 Apr. 2009 .
CartoonStock - Cartoon Pictures, Political Cartoons, Animations.12 Apr. 2009.
"YouTube - How to Take Quick Meeting Minutes." YouTube - Broadcast Yourself. 13 Apr. 2009 .
The 5 C’s of technical documents. You didn’t think there were any, did you? Well there are! Clear, concise, complete, correct, and courteous. These attributes are extremely important in any technical documents that you will find.
· Clear – make sure that the message you are trying to convey is clear. Whether it be to inform, persuade, or request, always be sure that your purpose for writing the document is apparent at all times.
· Concise – Keeping it concise is one of the most important of the 5 C’s. Using excessive phrasing which can confuse the reader should be avoided. Keep to the point and avoid adding information that is not required.
· Complete – Making sure that your document is complete can be the difference between your reader understanding your point and agreeing with you, and your reader being lost in what you are trying to inform, request, or persuade about. Never leave a question, topic, or point unanswered or unexplained.
· Correct – Proofread. When you are sure your document is grammatically correct and has correct punctuation, proofread again! You can never over-proofread a piece. It will save you the embarrassment of letting foolish mistakes in your writing reach upper-level management or customers, which tend to be the majority of technical document readers.
· Courteous – There is no reason to add exclamation points in technical documents. Remember, you are informing, persuading, or requesting something in a technical document. You are not shouting at anyone. Technical writing should have a calm, neutral tone.
