Letter to Cousin

September 3, 2014

Dear Sarah Olsen,

I am excited by your interest in learning about technical and professional communication. To begin, technical and professional communication is referring to communication between individuals in a professional setting. When I am speaking with you as your cousin and your friend I would use different words than if I were trying to communicate with you in a professional manner. I imagine this first paragraph alone is worded in a way that you find different and peculiar to our general communications.

When we are speaking to our friends and acquaintances the communication we use is often focused on humor or maintaining relationships. The priorities for professional communication are slightly different. Two priorities that I would like you to remember are that professional communication needs to be clear and concise. The objective in communicating in a professional environment is to get a specific message across. You should refrain from unnecessary extra words. The shorter the sentence can be and still retain the desired meaning, the better. I know you enjoy song writing and writing poetry. Often in poetry things are unclear intentionally to convey a certain feeling through a metaphor or other literary device. Your poetry is excellent and I love listening to your songs as well, but professional writing is very different. Remember your goal is to be clear and concise.

Avoid using contractions. Contractions can often be confusing and eliminating them from your communication will help you be clearer. Remember to proof read everything you write in professional setting. No matter how large or small the written communication is you must proof read it.

Punctuation and grammar are very important in technical and professional writing. When you are writing an email or a letter in a professional setting your credibility is important. One way to quickly destroy credibility in a professional communication is to have improper grammar or punctuation. You enjoy watching Youtube videos and you have mentioned to me how humorous it is when someone is trying to make a criticism about a video and they make a blatant spelling error. It robs them of their credibility very quickly. It is the same in professional communication. If you use incorrect grammar or punctuation you will lose credibility.

From what I have explained it might seem that in professional communication the message is more important than the way you express the message. While it is very important to be clear and concise, it is also critical to be polite and thoughtful in your communication. Communication is lubricant for life and learning to be polite in addition to clear will make your life run smoother. Avoid using words that could be construed as vulgar or impolite. Do not ever use words that are considered swear words in professional communication. Always show respect to who you are communicating with regardless of their professional station.

I know you will have no trouble communicating on a professional level. You are as intelligent as you are kind, and you are one of the kindest persons I have ever known.

Thank you for your time,

Sincerely yours,

Ben Fredrickson