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Hello! Welcome to those of you who haven't received my newsletter before, and welcome back to those who have! My biggest news this month is my feature in last week's newspapers. There was an article in Melbourne's The Age and Sydney's Morning Herald about running a home business, and I was listed as the case study for the article. It was pretty exciting to get so much coverage - my photo was half a page and the article was the other half! If you're interested, I have a scanned copy here. I spent a few days away from the computer this week, which is always a challenge for someone like me who loves to write and keep in touch with people! I strained a joint in my neck (while I was sleeping mind you!) and could hardly move for a while so the physio banned my from the PC. I'm glad to be back, I assure you! Hopefully, you have all had a calmer week than that and enjoy a lovely October. Tash
PS My message about some delay in
replying to emails is still on my site. However, the delays should now be
shorter and work is getting done for clients, so please let me know when you
need my help!
It isn't a good start
...
As much as possible, avoid starting any sentence with a pronoun. Sometimes the pronoun will clearly refer to one person, but often the pronoun is confusing so it is safest to avoid it. I recently read the following in a book: "As Linda came back into the room, she saw Claire was back from lunch. She smiled at Marie then called Bill." The question is, who smiled at Marie and rang Bill? The author meant Linda but grammatically the 'she' of the second sentence is Claire. In business writing, that sort of confusion could lead to misunderstandings about who was to do certain tasks, or just annoy the reader so they will take their business elsewhere. Use a name or title to start a sentence for clarity.
If you're not careful with the pronunciation, allusion and illusion can sound very similar, and they are occasionally incorrectly swapped for each other. An illusion is not real; so someone may have a false idea or see something that isn't really there - they are facing an illusion. Allusion is a reference to knowledge you assume your reader/listener understands, especially when referring to literary or art knowledge. For instance, I will make an allusion to Shakespeare's work when I write: the young couple considered themselves to be as tragic as Romeo and Juliet. I can assume that most people know the story of Romeo and Juliet so the allusion explains a lot in few words. To remember which is which, consider that illusion starts with I and often relates to a trick of the eye. Allusion starts with A and usually relates to Art and literature.
Business Documents When running a small business, time is limited and there are many tasks to be done. Most business owners understand the importance of appearing professional and making a good first impression. However, business owners don’t always remember that anything they write and give to potential clients is also part of their presentation. Thus, it is essential to make your documents professional too. The following tips apply to documents as simple as a quote or order and as complex as a tender or annual report.
Word processing packages will spell check your work for you, and everyone therefore expects your work to be perfect in this regard. Don’t forget, though, a spelling or typing error can be missed by spell check so a manual check is a must.
Protect yourself at the
computer For anybody spending a lot of time sitting at a computer desk, it is important to make sure the good positioning is achieved. Having a sore back, eye strain, RSI and other conditions are not only painful and frustrating, they are avoidable if you take care and follow some simple procedures. Research has shown that small business owners are much less conscious of Occupational Health and Safety (OHS) requirements than big businesses, but they are at no less risk of injury and strain. Find out how to protect yourself in this article
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© 2005, Tash Hughes