Reviewing Writing
1-day course for reviewers, in person or online
What it’s about
Is a big part of your work reviewing other people’s writing?
Do you peer review for your team members?
Do you sign off your team’s reports?
Do you okay documents that go to the executive team, board, or minister?
This is the course for you.
You’ll learn what ‘good writing’ looks like
You’ll see how a reader-focused approach is different from traditional writing. Structure, language, and design can work together to make any text quicker and easier to read.
You’ll clarify your role in the document-production process
You’ll make everyone’s lives easier by giving early feedback about coherence, accuracy, and ease of understanding.
This is not a course about proofreading!
Proofreading needs to be done, but probably not by you. Effective reviewers don’t get sidetracked by missing commas.
You’ll practise giving useful, actionable feedback
You’ll give feedback that’s easy to act on and builds the confidence and ability of your writers.
What the training covers
Reader-centric tools
Focus on the reader for success
Putting yourself in the readers’ shoes
What all readers want to know
Bottom line up front
Plain language
What is plain language?
Who uses it?
Why use it? (the benefits)
The three pillars of reader-focused writing
Top-heavy structure
Speakable language
Skimmable layout
The document production process
Where you fit in the big picture
What’s your job as a reviewer – and what isn’t
Toeing the line
Align your feedback with your organisation’s style guide
Link feedback on tone to your organisation’s values
A method for assessing the quality of writing
Get clear on the goal and readers
Assess overall flow and logic
Do a quick visual scan
Assess the writing itself
How to give useful feedback
Give feedback that someone can act on
Give positive feedback without sounding fake
The goldilocks zone – not too much feedback; not too little
The specifics
Who’s it for?
Up to 14 people who review other people’s writing at work
How long?
1 full day at your venue
How much?
All trainings are $8,000 + gst per day plus travel
What format?
In person or online, but not a mix of both
Before the training
You can give me document samples to use in the training (optional)
To bring on the day
Laptops
A document to review
Download the full course outlines
Plus the ROI information you need to make a strong business case for this training
Quick descriptions of courses
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Why is it so hard to get documents signed off? Why is it always a track-changes, version-control nightmare?
You recognise good when you see it but aren’t sure how to help people get their half-assed writing up to standard - and still be their friend. If any of that sounds familiar, this training’s for you!
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You know, you really should know how to write a report. (Read that in a whiny, snarky voice for full effect.)
Ahhhhmm, no, you shouldn’t. Because every report is different. There is no one right way. But I can give you the tools and the confidence to figure out how to write the right report, every time.
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This course helps anyone who writes at work to do it better, faster, and more effectively. We cover emails, reports, and literally any kind of writing from content-writing to legally-binding documents. Increase your confidence, learn the latest best ways to write, and save some time and sanity!
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Tell me your goals for your team's writing.
Give me samples of their writing.
I'll give you the workshop your team never knew they always needed.
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People sometimes ask me how to sound more professional in their writing. How to pad it out. How to use big words. But they’re crazy and you’re not. So you want to know the NUMBER ONE thing I get asked: How do I make my writing more clear and concise? Here’s how.
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We spend SO MUCH time writing emails. What if I told you a simple email formula could get you faster replies? Less to-ing and fro-ing? Get people to do the things you ask and do them fast? Get you more YESes? This shit really is some kind of magic (well it’s actually neuroscience, but, you know…).
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What even is technical writing? Well, if you’re communicating complex information, you’re doing it. And most of us do technical writing without any guidance or qualification. Take a couple of days to find out what you should be doing. What’s current industry best practice? A few powerful tools will make all the difference!
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Although it would be nice to do a Jerry Maguire and scream SHOW ME THE MONEY at the top of your lungs, that doesn’t seem to get the best results in a business setting. So here’s a training to teach you the art and skill of persuading (so people will show you the money).
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If you want to write policies to tick a box and sit on a shelf, find another course! Our focus here is to write policies that both work for your business AND get used by the people who need them. We’ll cover all the good foundational stuff of clear, modern business writing, then we’ll focus on the requirements of policy and procedural writing at a specialist level.