Freestyle about Christmas

Christmas is a time of year when friends and family get together, exchange gifts, and feast on elaborate dinners, but isn’t there something more to it? As a Christian, I’ll tell you how I celebrate it and what it means to me. Christmas is a time to celebrate what happened over two thousand years ago, the birth of my Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. Notice how in the word Christmas is the word Christ. That’s why when I think of Christmas I think of CHRISTmas, who should be the center of our celebration.

In my family, to help us remember the true meaning of Christmas, we do a couple of different things. One is to light the advent candles every Sunday in December and read Bible verses about His birth and why He came. Advent means “coming”, so we are reminded of our coming King. We also put up a nativity scene and decorate the house with little decorations.

One of the things my parents make sure that we do is give our gifts to others before we receive are own. We try to wait patiently while we open them one by one, making sure to thank the giver as we go.


Since I get lots of presents on Christmas and my birthday, I don’t really know what it’s like to be poor and not have any presents. Jesus, on the other hand, was poor and, other than the gifts of the wise men, probably never received any. I try to think about that when I write my Christmas list, but sometimes it slips my mind, especially when I see all the gifts under the tree on Christmas morning. It’s easy to become selfish, focusing on your self and what you want. The greatest gift that was ever given was Jesus, who came to earth and sacrificed his life so we can have eternal life. Jesus came to give and so is our example.

Response to Tayler Black

I agree with Tayler’s assessment that we have learned a great deal about professional communications. I have found my writing to be more consistently professional and just plain better. I feel confident in writing memos, proposals, or any other number of communications used in the professional field because I know the basics. The email communication is also useful and I do believe it will come in handy in my career. Like Tayler I enjoyed having guest speakers and learned many things from them. It was interesting to hear from people who a good at what they do and are able to answer questions.

From this course I learned to think of my readers while drafting a communication, which may be the most important lesson since it was repeated in almost every chapter. Tayler made a comment that she was glad she took this course. I am too and believe I am a much better writer. I would recommend this course to anyone, professional or not, who wants to better their writing skills and become a more valuable employee.

What I Learned...

I have learned a great deal from this class. It has been helpful to learn about professional writing in many different forms not just for the business world. The memos were definitely a good type of writing to practice. I feel very confident about writing them in the future. The proposal was also a good document to cover, and I think the knowledge I learned will come in handy. I found it interesting to learn about freelance writing. I enjoy writing and may someday choose to try a pitch if I find something exciting to write about. I enjoyed the group project. It was fun to work together to make up a company.

This class helped me to learn how to write in a more concise way and make my voice more professional. In the future, I believe many of the topics covered in class will help me to be a better employee.

Response to Traci's Chapter Reading Post

Traci highlights some important points from chapters 17 and 18. She explained that she doesn’t enjoy public speaking and often gets nervous. I liked my public speaking class and although I was nervous, I definitely improved my skills. Visual aids do need to be short and to the point. People often try to use their aid to talk for them which can ruin a speech. Also, if the visual aid is unclear or doesn’t truly represent your topic you can confuse people. It is a good idea to keep the speech short and structured to make sure you don’t get lost when delivering and to help your audience follow you. As the chapter said, always keep your audience in mind.

The web can be used to communicate with a target audience. Always, again, keep your viewer/audience in mind. It is easy to leave a web page so it is important to catch your readers’ interest quickly. The text must be interesting and well written. Like Traci, I never considered tailoring a web page to the disabled. On the other hand, I have never designed a web page.

Chapters 17 and 18

Oral presentations are difficult and Chapter 17 gives some good tips for making them great. I like the idea of thinking about your listeners and communication goals. This goes back to always thinking about your readers when writing communications but is especially important when giving oral presentations. Making sure you are within the time limits is also important. Visual aids always offer added difficultly. Trying to juggle them around and know what your saying can be hard. I have always done an outlines talk which makes knowing what to say easier and you will probably feel more at ease. The book lays out that you should make certain your listeners are able to follow what you are saying. I suggest presenting to someone for their input before the actual presentation.

I have never designed a web page or website but chapter 14 has some good ideas about how to make them great. Anticipate you readers and know what they want. Without this you will never have any readers. Mapping out the site is always a nice touch for usability. Visually, the site must be appealing so people will want to stay and see what you have to say.

Resonse to Son's Chapter Reading Post

Son gave great insight on chapter 2, 9, and 10. Chapter two went over writing with the reader in mind. We have been learning this all semester but now it is being applied to different types communication such as resumes and application letters. Son listed three aspects to a reader-centered approach: be clear and concise, use simple wording that gets the points across, and use appropriate persuasion. I liked Son’s thought that we have to “brainwash” readers to do what we want. Hopefully, they are already agreeing with us and all we have to do is convince them to take action.

Chapters nine and ten offered interesting ideas for opening and closing communications. Son said that, for him, the hardest part of a paper is the introduction. I have trouble writing conclusions. I feel that I good at writing attention grabbing introductions that make people want to read my papers. When it comes to the conclusion I have a hard time finding enough to say and also have difficultly rewording my main points. The book offered many good ideas for both introductions and conclusions helping both Son and myself.

Chapters 2, 9, & 10

Chapter two gave great insight on how to write a professional resume. Writing concisely is very important in order to keep the resume down to one page. When I recently redid my resume I had to eliminate information. It was hard because I thought all the information was useful but I had to think for an employers’ perspective and try to see what they might want to know. The professional objective is something I have heard of but never used. It can be helpful for employers to see what you want to do for the company to show that you’ve thought about it and really care.

Chapter nine had useful tips on how to begin your writing. Some ideas I found interesting were: a persuasive subject line in emails, state your main point, offer to help your reader solve a dilemma they are facing, and provide readers with the necessary background information. These ideas will definitely help your readers actually read what you give them and not skim.

Chapter ten gives tips on how to close a communication. Repeating your main point is especially important to help your readers remember what you were saying. Referring to a goal stated earlier can help to call your reader to action by reminding them of the reason for your writing.

Response to Melissa Bonneville--Ch. 14, 15

Melissa makes to points that most of us have gone through peer review in our English courses. It is very helpful to receive insight from people who know and understand the assignment. It is useful to also read your work from the perspective of your readers if you are unable to have someone read over it. I liked Melissa’s thought about reading papers out loud and slowly. This can give great perspective and make it easier to find errors or places where the wording doesn’t work. When revising, it helps to read the paper several times correcting for different aspects of revision each time.

Melissa discusses the performance test in which someone reads the document and tries to complete the task as outlined. For manuals, this can be a great way to test for usability. Although, I will not be writing directions in my career, I believe this approach can be used for many topics. After having someone read over your paper, you can ask them what they believe the assignment was, what your main points were, and what was the thesis. This information can help you to decide if the paper makes sense and if your writing is clear.

Chapters 14 and 15

Chapter 14 had some good ideas for revising papers. I liked the idea of reading your draft more than once. It often helps to step away for a moment and then come back to whatever you are doing in order to have a clearer mind. I find that just giving my mind some time to relax I am able to see what mistakes I have made in papers and make them better. The point about making the most significant revisions first is also a good idea. This way you aren’t trying to go through the entire paper and fix everything at once. It is possible to become too overwhelmed and miss small mistakes.

Chapter 15 gave good insight on making documents useable to others. I like to let others read my work to make sure it makes sense and is doing what the assignment asked for. What one person might find important information others might not so it is important to get several points of view before finalizing papers. If your document it supposed to persuade people to action it is also good to see what exactly you are communicating to them. It is important that the readers see what they need to do and feel the need to do it without putting bias in your writing.

Response to Robert-Journalism

Robert made many good points in his post on journalism. I agree that there are many ethical decisions to make everyday in the newsroom. I would have a hard time trying to distance myself from my work. Reporters have to shake off all the terrible things they hear everyday. This is one of the reasons I don’t watch the news and the reporters can’t escape it. When a positive story comes up, the reporters seem to become more human and get excited about sharing the piece.

Jesse makes difficult decisions everyday about what stories to cover. He has to decide what people need to know and what is appropriate. As Robert said Jesse finds this career worth it because he is in the know.

Attribution may be a way for the media to report on a story without worrying about getting in trouble later. As Jesse said, the reporters couldn’t possibly fact-check every part of a story and still get it our in time. Still, shouldn’t there be some accountability without just taking the police’s words out of their mouths?

I too learned a lot about the media. It was good to get an insiders view and not just speculate on what goes on behind the camera.

Journalism

It was interesting to here from someone who produces to news. The same day Jesse came to class my Political Science class was discussing the media. We discussed whether the media had a liberal bias and the issue of sensationalism. Jesse confirmed what we concluded which was that although many newscasters are liberal the owners of the corporations are not.

On the topic of sensationalism, my POLS class decided that it was a negative thing. I now realize that it is more the fault of the viewers than the broadcasters for the triviality in the news. The stations must do what they have to get viewers and make money. If people want to see crime, drama, and movie stars the news must report on those stories or risk losing money. If people were really concerned about what was being broadcasted they would try harder to make their voices hear and change what is on the news. It is really our fault for not demanding news that really matters. Although, the news may be more entertaining we may be missing out of what we really need to hear to make informed decisions. We often let the media tell us what is important and make judgments accordingly. I hope that the news will be able to retain some of its objectivity and report on issues that Americans need to hear.

Response to Jessica Soule-News

Jessica makes a good point about how long it takes to watch the news. The little bits of information that the TV news provides could probably be said and done with in about ten minutes. The commercials are also annoying and waste more time. By looking the news up online, you can find all that you want to know and more in just a few minutes.

Jessica states that she admirers the reporters. It must be hard for them to report sad, terrible news and then switch to a happier note. They have to distance themselves from their stories. I remember a story from a few years back about a man who killed several young girls and buried them in his backyard. Before he was discovered, one reporter talked with him many times about the tragic event of which he claimed he was innocent. When he was convicted the reporter expressed that she was very upset because she had gotten so involved with the case. I am sure it was hard for her to be so connected with a story and then have to move on when it was over. Reporters have difficult roles to play within stories and must report without bias which can be hard.

The News...

I have never been a big fan of the TV news. In fact, I often blame to news for the depressed state of society. This probably isn’t true but try watching the news for five minutes and you’ll know what I mean. Today, for instance, I watched a broadcast of Koin news and was bombarded with the most mundane and tragic information I’d heard all week. There was a double murder, some guy got beat up by people selling something on Craigslist, and I learned that the obese don’t enjoy food. Now I am full of great knowledge.

Triviality in the news and media in general has been a growing problem. Many people are more interested in what some celebrity had for lunch than what is really happening in the world. No doubt what is really happening in the world is bleak but it doesn’t need to be publicized for all. It often seems that new programs exploit terrible situations just to get viewers. I have no idea what the news should really report on but I rarely watch what is broadcasted now.

I don’t think that all news is bad; in fact, the weather segment helps me decide what to wear everyday. I usually look this up online because it seems a waste of time to watch twenty minutes of news for one minute of weather.

Responce to Rhiannon's Freelance Post

Rhiannon makes some interesting points about freelance writing. The freelance writing world is probably competitive so it is good to always be looking for just the right angle on a story to make it interesting and let the editor know that you have the greatest story. Writers do have a great amount of freedom on the topics they choose. In contrast to the journalist, who is generally assigned topics, a freelance writer gets to pick any story that they find interesting. This doesn’t always mean that anyone else thinks the topic is remarkable. A freelance writing must be able to persuade the editor that their readers will want the information they have. I think freelance writing may be as much about rhetoric as it is about good writing. Even a good story can be passed up if the writer’s pitch is boring and unconvincing. Or, if the pitch is persuasive enough they may sell a story that has already been covered by convincing the editor that the story is great and will sell more copies than ever before.

I liked what Rhiannon said about not being tied down to one publication. A freelance writing allows a writer to write for whatever publication they want.

Freelance Writing

I learned many things about freelance writing during our last class meeting. I never knew it was so profitable or easy to get into. At one point, I wanted to be a writer of some sort, probably a journalist, and this career would have been great. Writing about whatever you find interesting is definitely a pro. There are so many magazines that the possibilities are endless.

There are some downsides to freelance writing as well. First, it is unpredictable. One day you may have just the right story and angle and the next you might be completely off base and not even know it. Also, the waiting time must be terrible, especially if you don’t have another job. I like a schedule and freelance writing is stressful because of the uncertainty so this is not something I would want to do full-time. It would be a good option for a second income or in retirement for extra cash and a fun way to spend time.

Freelance writing sounds very appealing and although, it’s not for me I think it is a courageous endeavor. It is amazing to know that many of the articles I have read have been written be freelance writers.

Responce to Tayler Black's Ch. 8, 19

Tayler brings up some good points about chapter 8, which goes over developing voice and style in professional writing. Tayler was correct in her statement that it can be difficult to have your voice come out in a professional document, especially when you are just beginning to write professionally. There were also good points made about the effects of kindness in the workplace. People are always much more willing to complete an assignment when prompted by a cheerful, encouraging attitude than one of annoyance. It is also important to watch what you say in your writing because it may be preserved as rude. Thinking about how others may perceive your tone before you send any important document can save you from embarrassment. I always like to have someone read over my work and get their thoughts on my writing.

Tayler’s points on chapter 19 are also good and she hits on a useful idea to communicate regularly with your clients. They need to know what you are doing and you may need their input to make your project the best possible. Also, if there is a disagreement it is good to fix it in the middle of the process versus the end when it would be much more difficult.

Chapters 8 & 19

Chapter six is about developing an effective style. First, one must find out what is expected. This is very important and something we have already discussed in class. When writing professionally, is it good to know what is expected of you so you don’t elaborate on the wrong information. The best way to find out what people want to know is to ask them or talk to someone else who knows them. The idea about saying things in your own words is important. If you are ever asked to read your writing out loud and find yourself stumbling over the words or phrasing then you may sound unprofessional. Also, it is very important to avoid stereotyping. You may not know who is going to read your writing and if you accidentally make a rude comment you may ruin your reputation.

Chapter 19 goes over communication with clients. It is important to figure out what your client wants so you can tailor your writing to your clients so they are satisfied. Creating a plan is always a good idea to be able to stay on track and not go over on the budget or the time you have. Be prepared to share your materials with the client so they can disagree or agree with the communication you are preparing. This approach will help to make the final product the way the client wants it.

Response to Melissa Dawson's Thoughts on 6 & 7

I also found that chapter six presented an interesting approach. So far in school I have only had to research for myself. In a job situation, you have to research for others and try to meet their needs with what you are writing. Trying to find what others might view as useful is a daunting task. But, if done correctly, can really help whomever you are presenting your information to. This can be challenging if you don’t know what the reader(s) want to know or if you don’t know them. To try to help figure this out it would be good to use the ideas that were presented in class: talk to others about the person, read things they have written or requested to know about the topic, etc. Hopefully, we will be able to practice more of this before we find ourselves in the workforce writing only what we find interesting and useful.

Good old topic sentences. I have written many of those over the years. Combine topic sentences with transitions, echo words, and forecasting statements and your reader will be significantly more likely to understand and follow what you are trying to say. Headings are also helpful when appropriate, which they are many times in professional writing. All in all, you had great insight into chapters 6 and 7.

Chapters 6 & 7

Chapter six gave plenty of useful information for conducting research. Guideline three went over the value of checking each source for leads to other sources in your topic area. I have found this to be very useful when researching. It is great when your source leads you to another that is just as helpful. The book’s point on carefully evaluating what information you find is very important. There are many times when I have been researching and found my sources are incorrect and biased. Especially with the internet, it is easy to find sources that look well-researched when in fact it was written by someone in high school who didn’t know what they were talking about.

Chapter seven has some interesting information about creating ideas. Personally, I am not in to freewriting just because I don’t like to write with no specific purpose. However, the book presented the idea tree and clustering which I remember from middle school. I haven’t used these approaches in a while and am now considering using them for my research paper. The last idea about conducting a survey seems a bit daunting but if the right questions are asked I believe much information can be gathered.

Rhetoric

Rhetoric has a rather negative connotation because of its use during the election season. In reality, rhetoric is something used daily in every conversation often without any though of deception. Rhetoric is persuasion and is a must-have in professional writing. All rhetoric falls into three categories: ethos, pathos, and logos.

Ethos is self; the “I”. When using this type one is trying to persuade on the basis of their reputation or expertise. When a doctor tells a patient that he needs surgery the patient usually listens and agrees. If an accountant tried to tell that same person that they need surgery they probably won’t listen. This example shows that the doctor’s reputation persuaded the man to have the surgery.

Pathos is the emotional persuasion we see in many TV ads. There are many commercials out today that start off showing a poor child digging through the garbage for food. The narrator then begins to describe a day in the life of this boy and many others like him. This commercial touches us and causes us to feel compassions for the boy and want to help by sending money. This is an example of the emotional rhetoric called pathos.

Logos is the logical rhetoric. When the weatherman says there is a storm coming and you should stay indoors it is logical to do what he recommends. When someone tries to persuade you with logic they are using logos rhetoric.

I hear rhetoric all day long and it is good to be able to determine which kind I am hearing and try to determine why I am being persuaded.

Chapters: 4, 5, 16, 23

I found these chapters interesting and useful for my professional writing technique. Chapter four brought up some points that were helpful like trying to identify the information your reader needs. Instead of presenting the information you find most important tailor your documents to what your readers really needs to be reading about. I also liked the idea of putting your bottom line first. This way your reader will know your main point without having to fish for it or stop reading.

Chapter 5 also had interesting points I thought were helpful. The point about not only using sound reasoning but also convincing your readers that your reasoning is sound. This goes back to the ethos rhetoric. To persuade your readers you must be logical and also make them see that you know what you are talking about and that they should respond to your writing.

Chapter 16: developing shared understanding of the communication’s objectives. You must learn about your reader’s values and needs. If you find out what they want you can appeal to it and become a stronger persuasive writer. The idea about making and sharing plans is very important because if your group members are not all on the same page it can be difficult to achieve your goals.

Chapter 23: writing descriptive and understandable instructions can be complicated because what you find understandable may not seem that way to everyone that will be reading the instructions. Being organized and through is the best way to go.

Response to Tayler Black

I agree that the book gave many insights on how to focus your writing. I found it interesting when the book pointed out that you should write in a way that reflects your relationship with your readers. In many situations you may have little to no relationship with the people you are writing to so I guess you just have to take that into account and write as clearly as possible.

I found what you said about the recent graduate and your experience in the workplace to be interesting. Writing skills are so vital and grammar is usually difficult to grasp. One missed comma on a presentation in a meeting could mean people get the wrong idea about what you are saying. I always try to have someone else go over my work before I turn anything in or give a presentation. The credibility issue is also very important. When you are new to a company people don’t really know what to expect. If you come into a business meeting to give a presentation and you spelled something wrong your credibility is probably damaged a bit.

I also found that I had already heard most of the information in the book but they presented many tips in a new light and I still learned information that will help me in the future.

Chapter 3

I found chapter three to be very interesting and useful. I never realized before how much thought must go into a written document. This chapter described so many different ways to consider your reader. I liked what the book said about the Goal State. If you really want something done you must make sure your writing will appeal to the reader and cause them to seek action. If anything can be misinterpreted it might result in a different, disagreeable result. The way the reader reads is also very important. If they tend to skim you can use heading or tables to catch their eye. It is also important to realize that your reader may not see a “problem” the same way you do. Therefore, by the end of reading your writing you may have to change their mind and get them to agree with you proposal for a solution.

The information about cross-cultural communication was helpful to me as well. I thought it interesting that it is a general rule not to show hands in pictures to ensure you are not making rude gestures. When writing to someone from a different culture it is best to do some research in order to avoid being misunderstood or perceived as rude. This chapter helped to open my eyes to all the different ways to consider the reader and get the point across without changing the meaning.

Freestyle on Writing

I have always enjoyed writing. I like to sit down and put words on paper in a way that is creative and expressive. I considered majoring in journalism but decided against it when I became interesting in accounting. Accounting will require me to have professional writing skills that I will learn in this class. One of the many reasons I enjoy writing is because I had an excellent English teacher in the fourth grade that made writing fun and exciting. She gave me a good foundation that made it easy to write any type of paper. I have enjoyed all my other English classes since. I also had a great teacher for ENGL 101 and 102 which made writing that twelve-fourteen page research paper a piece of cake. Sometimes I feel like writing a book, but I get about four words on a page and I give up.

Of course, all the writing I did in the past was descriptive and wordy. I have never really had to de-clutter my work as much as the book described. I have never been told that I should use fewer words rather than more, so this class should be a good place for me to start creating and perfecting my professional writing style.

Thoughts on Chapters 1, 20, & 22

After reading these three chapters I feel much more prepared to write any type of professional document. Here are some points I found interesting and helpful:

• Chapters 1 and 20 both expressed ideas about shortening written documents to help the reader(s) to focus and acquire the information that they need. I found the idea of talking to your readers to be interesting. This would make sense considering the fact that people can have such are hard time understanding each others meanings.
• I liked how the author is following his own ideas, which can definitely help when I start writing my own documents. After reading his work this new way of writing should flow more smoothly.
• One thing I know I have a problem with and was addressed in chapter 20 is the "you" centered approach. It seems natural now, after writing may research papers, to continually use the word "I" and to write about my opinions. I am going to try to structure my sentences so that the reader can see themselves being considered in the text.
• I thought the information on proposals was well presented and useful. I have never written a proposal before so this will help me immensely. I liked the way the chapter was structured and the examples they gave at the end. This very clear method should help me when I go to write a proposal.