Empathy helps to write in plain language
Writing is a creative process, which, just as for any creative process, means it’s very personal.
We may feel that our writing is a reflection of our knowledge and intelligence, of how well we articulate ideas, and of how good we are at spelling and grammar.
But if we think about ourselves as we write, we aren't thinking about the reader and what they need.
We need to think about who will read the text, and use empathy to understand what they need.
Putting aside our own needs when writing for others
At school, and possibly later in the workplace, many of us got into the habit of writing long, wordy sentences. We would use all the big words and jargon we knew. It would show the teacher or our colleagues that we were intelligent and knew what we were talking about.
It didn’t matter if the sentences were hard to follow and it wasn’t clear what we were trying to say (in fact, if we hadn’t thought through our ideas well, maybe that was our intention!).
I’ve written articles on the technical side of writing in plain language. It’s also clear that we need to focus on the audience and think about their needs. And at the same time, we need to make sure that all the information that needs to be included is.
But there’s more to it than that.
As we write, we have to remember that it is not about us – our ego, our position, our job, our status. We need to put aside our own thoughts and needs. It's all about the reader.
It's hard to put aside our own needs. There’s still that temptation to write for ourselves. We might ask: What will I get out of it? How can I show my skills? What will the reader think of what and how I write?
How can we write with empathy?
Writing for understanding with empathy
Before we start writing, we must consciously be empathetic to the reader. Empathy is “the ability to understand and share the feelings of another” (Oxford Dictionaries).
Instead of asking questions like “What does the reader need to know?”, we should go beyond this and use empathy to ask:
If I were in their place
What do I know already?
What is the most important information that I need to know?
How would I find the important information easily?
What format makes it easiest to understand the information on the page?
Sometimes we won’t know the answers to these questions, as we don't have the lived experience of the audience.
But we can also use empathy to learn about the readers and their needs. Researching online is one way to find out, but interviewing representatives of the readers builds a deeper understanding.
If we write with empathy, we will have a better chance of making sure our readers fully understand what they need to know, and that they can easily and quickly take the action they need to.
What next?
For more information on how to write in plain language, see my articles on writing in plain language.
Or, if this all sounds too overwhelming, I can help.
As a business editor and plain language specialist, I will help you publish better business and government content so that
your readers understand your message
your business works more efficiently
your clients trust you.
Contact me today to discuss how I can help you achieve your goals with clear, professional writing.