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Dear Reader
Can you believe it's March already? Pretty soon there
will be Easter Eggs in the shops! Time really does fly -
especially when you're having fun ... and that's what
I've been doing recently, with some interesting training
trips to Jakarta and Kuching, as well as in Singapore.
Hello to all the lovely people I met.
I also went up to Rawa Island
recently for a weekend of relaxation on my favourite
island in Malaysia. Scroll down to the end of this
newsletter to see a photograph of this beautiful island
paradise.
My apologies to Asia Business Forum and
JobsDB Indonesia for having to cancel engagements.
Unfortunately I have to return to the UK for 2
weeks in March because my lovely Mum has to have another
operation. I hate cancelling engagements and letting
people down, but Mum has had several major
operations over the last few years, and naturally I need
to be with her to support her at this time.
Shirley
| Testimonials for Model Business Letters |
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THANK YOU! THANK YOU! THANK YOU!
To all the people who sent
testimonials for Model Business Letters ... a huge
THANK YOU! I am absolutely flabbergasted by the
wonderful response from so many people - your kind
words and praise are indeed very much appreciated.
The fact that these testimonials are from people in UK,
USA, Denmark, Singapore, Malaysia, Sri Lanka, India
and Australia just goes to show the global appeal of
this book.
If you want to write a testimonial and see YOUR
name in the new edition of Model Business Letters,
please write to me at
news@shirleytaylor.com.
Read some testimonials about Model Business Letters »
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| Confused? We need to KISS more! |
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Jargon can seriously get in the way of business if
no-one understands what people are talking about, or
what they are writing about! I'm sure you have often
come across messages that leave you feeling very
confused, right? This problem happens when people
use pompous or long-winded wording and phrasing to
try to impress rather than to communicate. Yet really,
the end result is that they do neither of these things!
Using jargon can result in one of two things - the
reader will get bored and stop reading, or will spend a
great deal of time trying to figure out what you meant
four sentences ago!
Do you know any writers who sometimes
concentrate so hard on what they want to say that
they become absorbed in their impressive flow of
wonderful words, instead of talking in everyday
language that the reader will understand? Why not
forward this newsletter to them and ask them to
subscribe?
Take a look at these before and after examples found
on the
www.plainenglish.co.uk website:
Before: If there are any points on which you
require explanation or further particulars we shall be
glad to furnish such additional details as may be
required by telephone.
After: If you have any questions please call.
Before: It is important that you shall read the
notes, advice and information detailed opposite then
complete the form overleaf (all sections) prior to its
immediate return to the Council by way of the envelope
provided.
After: Please read the notes opposite before
you fill in the form. Then send it back to us as soon as
possible in the envelope provided.
For more Before/After examples, and some basic rules
for KISSing, please click on the link below to take
you to the
Links to Learning section of my website. More
articles are being added here every month, so please
take the opportunity to update yourself and your
writing skills.
So .... let's all do more KISSing .... that's Keep It
Short and Simple, of course!!
Do some more KISSing here ... »
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| Quiz time |
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LAST MONTH'S QUIZ
Remember, last month's article and the quiz were all
about using the apostrophe correctly? If you want a
quick reminder about use of the apostrophe please
click here.
So, were your answers correct? Check them here.
THIS MONTH'S QUIZ
A Choose a simple way of saying:
-
expedite
ascertain
individuals
locality
kindly
transmit
insufficiency
advise
materialise
the above-mentioned
B Choose one word instead of these phrases:
-
at an early date
until such time as
during the course of
in connection with
despite the fact that
for the purpose of
on the occasion of
in the very near future
on the grounds that
prior to, previous to
Check out the other articles on Links to Learning »
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| Weekend break in Pulau Rawa ... |
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It was nice to take a break this month on
Pulau Rawa,
my favourite island paradise in Malaysia. Lots of rest
and relaxation, a great beach, waves lapping beneath
our waterfront chalet overlooking the South China Sea,
good company and of course good friends there
too.
Thanks to Tom and Joe, and all the staff on
Rawa, for always making me very welcome.
TIP OF THE MONTH
Let's all do more KISSing.
Keep YOUR sentences short and simple
by keeping to an average sentence length of
approximately 10-20 words!
I hope you've enjoyed this issue of Shirley
Says. If you want to see anything special in
future issues, please write to me at
news@shirleytaylor.com.
To my UK friends, I hope to see you while I'm home in
March. To everyone else I look forward to seeing some
of you at my workshops in March - then hopefully you'll
see yourself in my Photo Gallery in April! ;-)
Shirley
PS: You may reprint this e-newsletter or forward it to
your customers and colleagues. However please keep
this copyright and contact information intact:
Copyright Shirley Taylor 2002. Shirley Taylor
is author of several popular books on effective
communication and business writing. She lives in
Singapore and works as an international trainer, seminar
leader, professional writer and conference speaker.
Visit http://www.shirleytaylor.com.
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| Good to meet you! |
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It's been great to meet so many new people at my
recent seminars and workshops. Here's a great photo
of my friends from JobsDB Singapore - always a
pleasure to work with!
To see more photos from my recent training workshops
please scroll down my
Photo Gallery.
SEE YOU SOON AT THESE WORKSHOPS
25-26 March
in Singapore
Two-day workshop
"Transform your Business Writing Skills"
organised by Learner's Choice.
Call Sam Loo on 97562701 or e-mail him at samlch@pacific.net
.sg.
27-28 March
in Singapore
I'm looking forward to making some new friends at
StarHub Pte Ltd
where I shall be conducting a
two-day in-house
business writing workshop.
3-4 April
in Singapore
Two-day workshop
"Business Writing Skills for HR Professionals"
For details please
call Serene Lam at
Jobs DB.com on
96693478 or e-mail Serene.
COMMENTS ON
ISSUE 4
I am sure you have realised by now that there is a
spelling error in Testimonials in your April newsletter!
Only kidding. Your newsletters are really interesting
Shirley.
Tina, UK
Thank you for another informative newsletter
Sanjiv, India
Your newsletters are very professional and will be
useful reading/work for my full-time and part-time
students.
Elaine Howard, Kudos Training, Surrey, UK
And finally ...
Thanks a million to Prachi in India for your very kind
comments. I have asked my publishers Pearson
Education to send you a complimentary copy of my
book Essential Communication Skills. I hope you like it,
Prachi!
Shirley, I feel your articles have the foresight to see
how trends in communication are going to change. I
am sure you are a thorough researcher and have a
profound knowledge of the subject. It feels great to be
your disciple, and, learning from you is always a new
and a joyful experience. I have shared this joy with my
other Trainee Administrative Managers, and I am
sure, very soon they too will be crazy about your
writing. I am confident that Shirley Taylor will be
regarded as one of the communication gurus very
soon. I am waiting for the moment when you will be in
India, so that I can attend your workshops. All the best!
Prachi, India
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