Critical Thinking
1. Why do you think employers prefer messages that are not written like high school and college essays?
2. How can the three-phase writing process help the writer of a business report as well as the writer of an oral presentation?
3. Discuss the following statement: "The English language is a land mine-it is filled with terms that are easily misinterpreted as derogatory and others that are blatantly insulting...Being fair and objective is not enough; employers must also be so."
4. Why is writing in a natural, conversational tone difficult for many people?
5. If computer software is increasingly able to detect writing errors, can business communicators stop studying writing techniques? Why or why not?
Chapter Review
6. How can a writer make a message audience oriented and develop audience benefits? Provide an original example.
7. List the three phases of the writing process and summarize what happens in each phase. Which phase requires the most time?
8. What six factors are important in selecting an appropriate channel to deliver a message? What makes one channel richer than another?
9. How does profiling the audience help a business communicator prepare a message?
10. List three specific techniques for developing a warm, friendly, and conversational tone in business messages.
11. Why is it OK to use instant messaging abbreviations (such as BTW) and happy faces in messages to friends but not OK in business messages?
12. Why does positive language usually tell more than negative language? Give an original example.
13. List five examples of sexist pronouns and nouns.
14. List at least five principles of the Plain English movement.
15. Why should business writers strive to use short, common, simple words? Does this "dumb down" business messages?
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