Writing with Spin: Making Your Readers Happy with Bad News

Perhaps you have heard the adage “No news is good news.” In contrast, sometimes the news is bad. How are you going to communicate that bad news?

Your last employer fired you. You are writing a financial report to stakeholders, and the company is losing money. You were required to perform specific duties and meet objectives, but you didn’t. You have a job to do, and it’s taking longer than expected. You failed a class in your undergraduate program. You have to miss work—again. You need to raise taxes because your budget is too high. Too many patients are dying. Etcetera.

A. The Purpose of Spin

Now you have to put the bad news in writing. One benefit of writing is that you can craft your words very carefully to say what needs to be said, honestly, but in a manner that reduces the negative impact. You can tell the truth, but tell it in a way that gives a better impression than the news deserves. This is called “spin,” or “spinning,” the news.  Read more...

Posted: 25th November 2009 under Writing.
Tags:2c, Adage, Bad News, Benefit, Budget, Happy, Job, Making, Money, Negative Impact, News, News 13, Readers, Revenue Streams, Spin, Spinning, Stakeholders, Undergraduate Program, Unpleasant Truth, Writing, Writing Report
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How to Write a Report: Writing Reports

REPORT WRITING – HOW TO STRUCTURE AND WRITE REPORTS

Writing reports: why write reports, structure in report writing, how to write a report.

Report writing skills are sought after. Knowing how to write reports is useful. The techniques of writing reports are simple.

Report writing is in daily use. Writing reports is involved at school and at work. Students have to write reports. Writing reports is part of a teacher’s job. Report writing is routine in the public and civil services. Before a law is passed a select committee writes a report. Business executives write reports.

Employees and students find it difficult to write a report. If they have to write a long report they get confused. Keep your cool ~do not end up as in one of the anecdotes of the Cypriot columnist and teacher the late Orhan Seyfi Ari, about a radio broadcast of a boxing match between Abdi and Bandinelli annoucing the winner as Abdinelli -do not get excited. Learn the techniques of writing reports.The techniques of writing a report are easy to learn. Report writing is not difficult. Writing reports is easy -whether short or long reports.  Read more...

Posted: 1st November 2009 under Writing.
Tags:Abdi, Anecdotes, Ari, Bandinelli, Boxing Match, Business Executives, Columnist, How To Write A Report, How To Write Reports, Orhan, Practical Solution, Radio Broadcast, Radio Match, Report, Report Business, Report Writing, Reports, Select Committee, Work Students, Write, Writing, Writing A Report, Writing Report, Writing Skills
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