If you have something to write, but not a lot of time to write it in, here are some tips to get your writing done faster.
Don't self-censor or overthink. Writing takes a certain mindset. Whether you’re writing your company bio, a cover letter, a blog entry, a letter of resignation, it’s all very personal. Writing reflects how you speak and how you think. It reflects how you learned the language and whatever lessons you learned about communicating in your formative years. This is all deeply personal so it is easy to censor yourself or overthink things. Stop the ‘this sounds stupid’ or ‘that sounds really bad’ type thoughts. Ignore them, take a break, repeat some affirmations, whatever you need to do to think of yourself positively.
Use voice to text. I’m always advising people to write the way they talk. I know, it’s usually the opposite of what you’ve been taught in formal education. But you sound so much more relatable and human when you do. Editing grammar and sentence structure is easy compared to trying to give voice to a dry text. When I edit, I am always careful to keep as much of the writer’s voice as I can so you sound like you and not like me. Most people can talk faster than they can write so talk out all your ideas. Microsoft Word and Google docs have voice to text features.
Use placeholders. When you get to something you need to research, use some kind of placeholder text to let you know to return to the idea later. Don’t get stuck with stopping your writing to look something up. You can use an X to mark the spot or some other combination of letters and numbers that stands out to you. You can also highlight or leave yourself notes in the text as well.
Edit later. This can be a hard habit to break, especially if you like to edit what you have written before moving on to writing new text. I know some writers have to do this as part of their process. However, it does slow you down. Turn off spelling and grammar check if it distracts you and makes you want to go back and edit. Use placeholders to know what you need to return to at a later time.
Write out of order. No one says you have to write from beginning to end. You are welcome to start at the end or somewhere in the middle. Start at the easiest part or the more exciting part and use that momentum to get you through the rest.
Hopefully these tips will help you sail through your writing assignments. Did I miss any? Let me know.
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