00:00:01
Okay, the next C on our list for
00:00:03
discussion is cohesion. And cohesion
00:00:06
really has to do with how you sentence
00:00:08
your structures. Um, so that you're
00:00:10
contributing
00:00:11
um to the overall clarity of the piece
00:00:13
that that you're producing. Um, and
00:00:15
you're contributing to that by making
00:00:17
the the entire, you know, all the ideas
00:00:19
in said piece seem like they're
00:00:21
interconnected, right? Um, so I said in
00:00:23
the previous video that I might add, um,
00:00:27
consistency to this list of C's. Um, and
00:00:30
by consistency I mean that you're if you
00:00:32
make a choice for example to have a
00:00:34
heading that all of the headings you
00:00:36
include are formatted similarly. Um, and
00:00:39
I indicate we'll talk a little bit more
00:00:40
about that, you know, in terms of
00:00:42
visuals because it's especially
00:00:43
important there, but it's important in
00:00:45
writing too, but really consistency
00:00:47
contributes to cohesion, right? Cohesion
00:00:49
is the sense that the whole thing works
00:00:51
together. Um, and so that's probably why
00:00:53
Graves and Graves don't talk about it as
00:00:55
a separate issue. What they do talk
00:00:57
about is how to structure your sentences
00:00:59
so that familiar information builds to
00:01:01
new material, right? That's really
00:01:03
important. If you think that um familiar
00:01:06
information, i.e. stuff that your reader
00:01:09
um already knows about um is like
00:01:11
designated by the letter A for instance,
00:01:13
whereas new material is designated by B.
00:01:16
If you have a paragraph that goes a bb a
00:01:18
a a b a b a a b um think about how
00:01:21
dizzying that sounds, you know, even to
00:01:24
hear that and if you read it, what it
00:01:25
feels like is you're being dragged
00:01:27
between points and you're getting
00:01:29
absolutely no assistance connecting
00:01:30
those dots. Um the goal of cohesion is
00:01:33
to help your reader connect those dots.
00:01:35
All right? Um and there's two main ways
00:01:38
to do this. you you connect your ideas
00:01:40
from start to start, meaning the
00:01:42
important stuff is at the beginning of
00:01:43
all your paragraph or all your sentences
00:01:45
in a paragraph or from end to start. Um
00:01:48
so um and and this is for the record why
00:01:52
introductions or um well yeah
00:01:54
introductions in any context frankly
00:01:56
whether it's a more traditional academic
00:01:58
essay where you're building towards a
00:01:59
hypothesis or thesis um or an
00:02:02
introductions section for a you know
00:02:05
some kind of scientific writing or tech
00:02:07
writing that you're doing for your job.
00:02:09
Those are always really hard for for
00:02:11
people to write. Um especially when
00:02:12
you're first starting out to to write
00:02:14
whatever piece you're working on because
00:02:16
that's where you establish all of the
00:02:18
kind of context for what should be
00:02:19
familiar information for the whole
00:02:21
paper, right? Um so it's a lot of work.
00:02:24
So if you're going to connect start to
00:02:26
start, um and I've pulled these examples
00:02:28
from Graves and Graves, you can look at
00:02:30
at 76 and 77 for more details along
00:02:32
these lines. Um so you have in bold here
00:02:36
all of the connecting familiar
00:02:38
information right various techniques
00:02:40
have been used. One technique is simply
00:02:44
to another is right. So there you have
00:02:48
you know your various techniques is the
00:02:49
familiar subject um and then you have
00:02:51
one technique another technique the next
00:02:54
sentence might start out with the final
00:02:55
technique. Right? But that's how you
00:02:58
have those connections at the beginning
00:02:59
of each sentence. The alternative is
00:03:02
from end to start. Right? So there's no
00:03:05
universal guidelines for the level at
00:03:07
which glucose intolerance should be
00:03:08
diagnosed as gestational diabetes
00:03:10
currently for such a diagnosis. So one
00:03:13
sentence ends with that important idea
00:03:16
about diagnosing gestational diabetes.
00:03:18
The next sentence picks up with the ide
00:03:20
idea of diagnosis. Right? Um and to not
00:03:24
sound formulaic, a lot of people try to
00:03:26
kind of go back and forth between these
00:03:28
two forms of techniques. just make sure
00:03:30
that you're making those choices
00:03:31
intentionally.
00:03:34
Um, and then we need to think a little
00:03:36
bit about concision. Um, straightforward
00:03:38
when it comes to writing, especially in
00:03:40
professional tech, uh, and technical
00:03:42
communication is best. It reduces the
00:03:45
chances for error and miscomprehension
00:03:47
alike. Um, and you know, simple writing,
00:03:50
and I'll using that kind of idea in
00:03:52
smart quotes. I my little fingers up um
00:03:56
because no writing is simple in my
00:03:58
opinion. But you know the idea that
00:03:59
simple writing is somehow easier or you
00:04:02
know um less interesting. It's just
00:04:04
simply not true. It's one of those
00:04:06
stereotypes, right? And it's kind of if
00:04:07
you think back to what I said about
00:04:08
techcom and in in general, a lot of
00:04:11
people think techcom is boring. Well,
00:04:13
it's cuz if you read a document that's
00:04:14
not really thoughtfully and creatively
00:04:16
put together, it probably is boring and
00:04:18
it's also probably confusing and
00:04:20
frustrating and you want to throw it out
00:04:21
the window, right? Um, same thing with
00:04:23
simple writing. It takes a lot of of
00:04:25
skill to explain complex ideas simply so
00:04:29
that your audience can understand them.
00:04:31
Like a lot of skill. Okay. Um, so if you
00:04:34
can say something in four words instead
00:04:36
of 10, you should do that because it
00:04:37
makes a document more accessible to the
00:04:39
readers and it reduces possible
00:04:42
comprehension errors, right? Um, you can
00:04:44
also think of it from kind of the
00:04:45
business angle. If you are printing um a
00:04:49
document to be sent out with, I don't
00:04:51
know, every new Nintendo Switch you're
00:04:53
sending out there, um printing something
00:04:56
costs money, right? So, the more words
00:04:58
you are printing, the longer your
00:04:59
document has to be. So, it's expensive.
00:05:02
Um now, if you're just sending a card
00:05:04
home with that switch that says, "For
00:05:06
more information, go to our website." Um
00:05:08
and then you send somebody to the
00:05:09
website. If you look at on online
00:05:11
writing, um paragraphs and be are much
00:05:15
shorter in online writing because you
00:05:16
don't want somebody to have to scroll
00:05:18
down their screen. Um whether it's a
00:05:20
computer screen or their phone screen or
00:05:21
their tablet screen, um they should not
00:05:24
have to scroll multiple times to get
00:05:25
from the beginning to the end of your
00:05:27
paragraph. If your paragraphs are
00:05:29
shorter, guess what? Your sentences are
00:05:30
always shorter. So, think short, think
00:05:34
concise. All right. Um engraves and
00:05:36
graves on page 78 go over kind of the
00:05:38
the basics. They go over five or I
00:05:41
should say four at the word level and um
00:05:44
six at the sentence level. Um so this is
00:05:46
figure 49 10 tips to make your writing
00:05:49
easier to read. So at the word level
00:05:51
they say use words that are accurate,
00:05:54
appropriate and familiar. Use technical
00:05:56
jargon sparingly and eliminate business
00:05:58
jargon altogether. And if you use any
00:06:01
kind of technical jargon make sure that
00:06:02
you define it. I would kind of add that
00:06:05
as a footnote here. Um, use active verbs
00:06:08
most of the time. We've already talked
00:06:09
about that. Use strong verbs and not
00:06:12
nouns to carry the weight of your of
00:06:14
your sentences. And then at the sentence
00:06:16
level, tighten your writing. So
00:06:18
eliminate those unnecessary words. In
00:06:20
other words, vary sentence length and
00:06:22
sentence structure. So again, go back
00:06:24
and forth between those cohesion um
00:06:26
practices. Use parallel structure. Um,
00:06:30
put your readers in your sentences. Uh
00:06:32
so if you're you know g sending that
00:06:34
how-to guide for the switch then you
00:06:36
should say you should one or one should
00:06:38
it depends on the context but you and
00:06:40
one are the most uh common ways to
00:06:43
insert a figure into technical and
00:06:44
professional writing. Um begin most
00:06:47
paragraphs with topic sentences and use
00:06:49
transitions to link ideas. All right. Um
00:06:53
and again they go over they have you
00:06:55
know more examples along these lines in
00:06:57
the text which in in the book which you
00:06:59
should kind of look over. Um going back
00:07:01
to the online um business English
00:07:04
textbook for a second um table 92 in
00:07:07
section 93 goes over the basics of kind
00:07:10
of how rhetorical awareness so if you
00:07:12
think about that you know um the
00:07:14
rhetorical triangle which you might have
00:07:16
encountered in I don't know 1102 for
00:07:18
instance right logos pos ethos it breaks
00:07:21
down the rhetorical awareness along with
00:07:24
these cognate strategies um as well as
00:07:26
how both contribute to meaningful
00:07:28
business communication visav examples of
00:07:31
sentences. So, that might sound like a
00:07:33
lot when I'm saying it, but if you look
00:07:34
at that chart, especially if you think
00:07:36
yourself uh a visual learner or if
00:07:38
you're somebody who likes visual
00:07:40
confirmation of what you've just read,
00:07:41
uh I think you'll find that table in
00:07:43
particular interesting uh and useful
00:07:45
hopefully. And that same textbook,
00:07:47
section 94, discusses style. Um right,
00:07:51
so most business communication is formal
00:07:53
or colloquial. Colloquial just means
00:07:55
conversational. So, um, right. So,
00:07:57
formal if you think if you're writing a
00:07:59
memo or an email to your boss, right?
00:08:01
Um, colloquial or conversational if you
00:08:03
think of that switch how-to guide.
00:08:05
That's when you insert your audience
00:08:06
into your piece, right? You say you next
00:08:09
you hit this button, right? Um, so it
00:08:13
uses direct address and familiar
00:08:15
references or reference in other words,
00:08:17
and it's almost never casual. Um, so
00:08:19
there's a big difference between talking
00:08:20
to somebody like you're walking them
00:08:22
through something and talking to them
00:08:23
casually like they're your best friend
00:08:25
visav text message. It's never that,
00:08:27
right? Um, so, um, when to use what
00:08:31
style is going to depend very much on
00:08:32
context. So, I think that will be
00:08:34
relatively straightforward as you start
00:08:35
employing them. Um, and then in section
00:08:38
95, um, you get kind of information on
00:08:40
how language is inherently abstract,
00:08:43
right? Since there is no direct
00:08:44
relationship between an item and the
00:08:46
word used to describe it, we've kind of
00:08:48
made all of these words up. Um, that's
00:08:50
triply true of ideas, right? Because
00:08:52
there can be a million ways to describe
00:08:54
or define success. For instance, you
00:08:56
can't just say, um, I want to be, if
00:08:58
somebody says, where do you see yourself
00:08:59
in 10 years as part of an interview? If
00:09:00
you just say, I want to be successful,
00:09:02
that won't mean anything to them unless
00:09:03
you tell them what that means to you.
00:09:06
Um, so some words are more concrete than
00:09:09
others and thus easier to agree upon.
00:09:11
Nouns that describe things that we can
00:09:13
see and touch are concrete nouns. For
00:09:15
instance, you want to use concrete nouns
00:09:19
um and concrete words, frankly, whenever
00:09:21
possible to avoid misrepresentation in
00:09:23
your writing. The more specific the
00:09:26
appeal you are making, the more
00:09:27
effective it will be. Okay, so this is
00:09:30
kind of building off of those tips that
00:09:31
I just read to um read to you from
00:09:33
Graves and Graves. And then in 96 of the
00:09:36
online text, um, it overviews some of
00:09:39
the kind of basic barriers to effective
00:09:41
written communication. Um, and you know,
00:09:44
here I'll just highlight a few of the
00:09:45
biggies, right? Pay attention to
00:09:47
spelling and grammar. Make sure your
00:09:48
meaning is clear. Um, so you don't want
00:09:50
bypassing. Again, that's they define it
00:09:53
for you in this section. It's missing
00:09:54
the main point, right? You don't want
00:09:56
that to happen. Concise, concrete
00:09:59
language is key to avoiding bypassing.
00:10:02
Consider non-verbal components which
00:10:04
include formatting and design and we'll
00:10:06
do that a little bit in a subsequent
00:10:07
video and give yourself time to review,
00:10:10
reflect and revise. You're never going
00:10:12
to get it perfect on the first go. So,
00:10:14
let go of that. Okay. Um, revision is
00:10:17
your friend. Sharing drafts with people
00:10:18
on your team or your, you know, somebody
00:10:20
you trust outside of your job. Um, and
00:10:23
and I would include your job as student
00:10:25
right now. That is all key to success.
00:10:27
All right. this idea early in careers
00:10:30
and I think everybody goes through it
00:10:31
where you should know everything and be
00:10:32
able to do it yourself. You're setting
00:10:35
yourself up for failure if you hold on
00:10:36
to that. All right, let it go. Um, and
00:10:39
make use of resources. Um, okay, we will
00:10:42
stop here and we'll pick up with forms
00:10:43
of techcom in the next video.
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