Great writing for work is nothing like what academia taught us

After 12 or so years at school and another few years at university writing 100s of essays, reports and exam papers you'd think that you've probably nailed ths structure and style of how to write — but unfourtnately you probably haven't. The thing is everything we learned at school and university about how to write is basically the opposite of what being a great communicator looks like at work. Here’s why:

1. Purpose and Audience Shift

At uni, your audience was pretty much just your professors and maybe some classmates. The goal? Show off how much you know. The way you got good grades was to literally flex that knowledge by putting it all down on paper and so as a result the goal was to write these super comprehensive, meticulously structured arguments.

At work, you’re writing for a mix of colleagues, bosses, clients, and who knows who else. The goal? Get to the point, help people make decisions, and keep things moving. The goal isn't to flex your knowledge, it's to be clear, concise and to provide actionable insights so you can inform, maybe persuade, or facilitate decision-making.

Your audience couldn't be anymore different!

2. Format and Structure

Remember those long, structured essays with intros, literature reviews, and conclusions? Kiss them goodbye. Those lengthy and dense papers, with a heavy emphasis on theoretical frameworks and detailed evidence are only a think in the academic world!

At work, you’re juggling emails, reports, proposals, and presentations. And guess what? Nobody has time for long-winded explanations. Think bullet points, summaries, and clear headings. Efficiency is key; executives and clients do not have time for lengthy write-ups — everyone is time poor and incredibly distracted by a million things happening (read: we all have tiny attention spans).

3. Writing Style

Academic writing loves fancy words and complex sentences. It’s all about being thorough and detailed with the aim of demonstrating you've done the research and have a super deep understanding of the subject.

Writing at work? Not so much. It’s all about being clear, concise, and direct. Use an active voice, skip the jargon, and get straight to the point. The simpler and faster you can help your reader get through your document and understand your message, the better!

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Despite these fundamental differences, the last time most of us were taught anything about how to write or ever received any formal training was at school or uni. And so naturally, most of us carried those habits and that style into work. That's why it's important to recognize this and actively retrain your writing style so that you crush it in the mdoern workplace.