Put Your Best Foot Forward

It seems more and more that so many of these online articles we view are very academic, list-oriented, or they just plain read like high school calculus textbooks. While many of these articles are indeed very helpful and beneficial and leave us having no doubt that the writer was extremely qualified; they read too often like a how-to-do-it-yourself blueprint.

What is lacking is some character and personality or better yet what is needed is the writer leaving his/her indelible stamp of life experiences, funny anecdotes and short stories. I, for one, find it both refreshing and provocative to read something that has a very personal spin from the author's point of view typically based on their encounters.

Picture the approach to your article as if you were giving a speech. Even if the topic is a sobering one that will require an overtone of seriousness, there is always room for a few humorous junctures that can often be critical in capturing your audience and wowing them let alone keeping them awake. This is crucial no matter how eloquent a speaker or how much of a notable expert you may be on your topic/essay/lecture, etc. It is also important to consider that your audience may have had a trying day and their level of focus and attention may already have been well tested by the time you get to them.

For example, I wrote an article a while back entitled "Conventional management vs. Out-of-the-box thinking." It referred to managerial styles in small business (not corporate) back in the late 80's and early 90's. At the time, I ran a couple of small offices with about 15-20 personnel each and being a predominantly sales oriented business, it was required to shake things up a bit from time to time or they got stale and boring. Two ideas that I came up with at the time. Bare in mind that I was still in my 20's so they may seem a bit off the wall. One was to use a block and tackle and raise all of the desks and chairs through the skylights and onto the roof for a cloudless week of salesmanship while drinking in the North Vancouver mountains and the staff really responded and their spirits rose considerably. The other was a bit crazy but my people definitely knew to never know what to expect after I called a staff meeting on a nude beach and they, of course, had a choice of being clothing optional.

Whatever the call of the day when writing an article or delivering a speech - keep it light and frivolic where possible - and that will keep your audience in the game. Remember, short is better especially if in doubt and you only get 15 or less seconds to make a good impression - even less on paper - so put your best foot forward!

Copyright 2006 New World Opportunities Inc.