Swimming in the Stream of Consciousness

By: Kim Kaiser, Kimi Co.

http://writeonspot.wordpress.com/author/kaisertraining/

A blur of words is what your reader sees when you apply stream of conscious writing to your emails. Fair warning this is not proper etiquette and will almost guarantee your message lacks effectiveness and results. When you write with this technique you literally are writing what you think as you think it. Usually looks like a long-winded paragraph that goes on and on and on. This type of delivery is filled with run on sentences and one thought stacked on top of another without any pause. These messages lack the formatting and structure that allows your reader to easily read through, pick up on your key points and take action if needed.

• Do you recognize this type of writing when you see it?
• Do you get lost trying to keep the writer's ideas straight or even spot the key points?
• Do you feel like someone has wasted your time by not taking the time to organize their message and present it a readable format?
• To avoid this major communication mishap you can apply the following techniques to improve the quality of your message.

Tips to avoid drowning your reader in the stream of consciousness

• Use sexy headers to point to the main ideas in your message
• Organize your message in an outline format
• Prioritize the message by ordering the information
• Use bullet points
• Highlight key points with underlining, italics and bold
• Break your message into short paragraphs
• Keep your message to a one screen length

If the message is long or there is lots of information to convey - attach it in a separate document
Good writing takes thoughtfulness and some planning. Follow the rules of etiquette and your readers will thank you by responding appropriately.