Say What You Mean: How To Write More Clearly

You have important ideas to express or messages to convey. When you’re communicating in writing, how can you make sure your ideas come across in the way you intended?

Here are five practical tips to help you write with greater clarity:

1. Start with an outline. Creating an outline helps you get clear on what you want to communicate before you start writing. It also provides a logical structure to your writing. Even the clearest sentences can be confusing if there’s no coherent flow to your piece overall. Start with a strong introduction, make clear points throughout, and make sure that any supporting thoughts have a clear tie-in to the main points. Write succinct transitions from one section to the next, and end with a conclusion that summarizes the main points.

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2. Keep sentences short. Long, multi-part sentences that are full of complex ideas are hard to follow. If you find yourself using a lot of commas to separate ideas within a single sentence, break it up into two or more sentences. This is especially true with complex or technical subject matter. The more complicated your topic, the simpler your sentences should be.

3. Use the active voice. With the active voice, the subject of the sentence performs an action. With passive voice, the action is done to the subject. Which of these sentences is easier to read at a glance?

How can more clarity in writing be achieved?
How can I write more clearly?

Even though they’re both short sentences that express the same idea, the second sentence (written in active voice) is simpler than the first (passive voice). On their own they might not seem very different, but when you write entire paragraphs in passive voice, your readers’ eyes will glaze over and they’ll have to re-read it. Active voice is much easier to understand quickly, especially when the topic is complex.

4. Use technical terms sparingly and define unfamiliar terms. Contrary to popular belief, using technical terms of jargon-filled language does NOT make you look smarter . It takes a much higher level of skill to create clarity in technical report writing by translating those ideas into simple language that anyone can understand. However, if you need to include technical terms or industry jargon—and not every reader will be familiar with those terms—give a quick definition the first time you use the word or phrase.

“Contrary to popular belief, using technical terms of jargon-filled language does NOT make you look smarter.”

5. Use online tools to break bad habits. Use built-in document editing tools to check your document’s readability, catch overly complex sentences and recommend clearer options. Not only will these tools help you improve existing writing, over time you’ll learn to keep it concise and write with more clarity.

As you start to practice these tips, review what you wrote and look for ways to create more clarity in your writing. First, skim your piece to check for overall structure and flow. Then read it out loud to identify any clunky sentences. If you’re doing it in presentation form, be sure to use free coaching software that not only detects when you’re being overly wordy, but also evaluates things like pacing, pitch, use of filler words, informal speech, euphemisms—even culturally sensitive terms. If you come across any parts that cause you to stumble over your words, slow down your pace, or read more than once, consider rewording them.

Above all, keep practicing. Your ideas are worth sharing. Writing with clarity isn’t always easy, but it’s a worthwhile skill to learn.