Feb 15I, Me or Myself?Have you had ever had trouble deciding whether to use ‘I’, ‘me’ or ‘myself’ in a sentence? It’s pretty easy to make a mistake, especially when speaking. It’s also easy to avoid making an error when you know a couple of easy tricks. The subject of the sentence: I When ‘I’ appears in a sentence it…3 min read
Feb 6Take A Peek At PiqueIs it peek, pique or peak? Some writers genuinely confuse these words. Don’t worry. You can move towards Better Writing — one word at a time. In my work as an editor, or just in general reading, I see words and phrases used wrongly all the time. …3 min read
Jan 12The Plural SolutionThe plural solution is often an easy way to turn a faulty sentence into a better one. In this example (from a novel) the fault is in the non-agreement of the noun and the possessive adjective that refers to it: ‘In a lot of murder cases, it transpired that the…Communication2 min read
Nov 12, 2021All Right Or Alright?All right or alright? Lots of people are confused about which to use. Here are a few tips that might clear things up, without getting too technical. All right or alright? All right is never going to be wrong. So, if in doubt, use that option. Alright, although some of us dislike it, is…Communication2 min read
Nov 10, 2021SMART Meetings For Smart ManagersWe’ve all heard about SMART goals. Have you ever considered the concept of SMART meetings? Leaders and managers who make their meetings SMART are showing one of the qualities that employees value: respect for the time, the energy and effort, the skills and the dignity of the individual. …Meetings2 min read
Nov 8, 2021Glorious Imbalance: Live, Work, Stay WellIs the concept of ‘work-life balance’ not working for you? There could be good reasons for that. The main one is that you, your family and your staff are human beings. …Human Behavior4 min read
Aug 7, 2021Hopefully, Sadly, and Other Abused AdverbsMy ‘lazy language’ file gets fatter every day. It’s absolutely bulging with examples of errors in written texts, made by those who should know better. Misplaced adverbs, for example, can turn a sentence into a piece of nonsense. Hopefully I hope I’ll bet the very next time you hear the word ‘hopefully’ it…Common Grammar Errors3 min read
Feb 26, 2021Are You Missing The Point?Writers are totally, and probably literally, missing the point when they talk about ‘the stigma surrounding . . .’ something. You’ve probably read it many times, and even used it yourself. The problem is that a stigma doesn’t ‘surround’ anything. The stigma of lazy language A stigma is a mark, with a negative connotation. If…Communication2 min read
Feb 22, 2021Babies Who Smoke: Misplaced ModifiersThere should be penalties for women having babies who smoke. I agree. Babies smoking! Whatever next? Seriously, though, the big problem with the opening sentence is a common one: the problem of misplaced modifiers. We see them everywhere. They can totally mangle the meaning of a sentence. …Language3 min read
Feb 14, 2021Networking — Let’s Spell It OutNetworking is one of the essential ingredients of success. Ask a successful person! It might not be as easy as A.B.C. It’s more like N.E.T.W.O.R.K.I.N.G. N — New people, new ideas, new approaches Any time spent in networking is time well spent. …Networking Tips4 min read
