Painless Pearls to Get Your Message Across

1. Painless Pearls to Get Your Message Across Catherine Younger-Lewis MD MJ

2. All I ever needed to know I learned in kindergarten...

3. ... and Journalism School.

4. See Spot run.

5. Visualize the black and white spotted animal of uncertain breed proceed at considerable speed and with remarkable co-ordination of all four limbs across the green and verdant, chemical-free, lawn.

6. As documented in light physics, the inverted image of canusdomesticus(spotted variant) will fall on the retina of each orb, and be transmitted along the optic nerve fibres, for assimilation and interpretation by the highly specialized neurons of the visual cortex of the brain (see figure 1). This phenomena was tested on 100 boys. Subjects were age of 6, answered to name Dick and wore grey shorts, white shirt and dark tie. Light variation was controlled by confining period of observation to 1600h – 1630h for five days, starting June 1, 2005. Each time, CD (sv) sat for five seconds and then was shown a tasty treat, at which point CD (sv) mobilized all four limbs to cross the relevant space in the least possible time. In order to control against random crossings, only ProPlan treats were used, held in the right hand of examiner and dispensed to CD (sv) only when CD (sv) had transferred across the space in the before-mentioned manner (see appendix 1 (iii)) Einstein A, Bohr N. Preliminary reports from the SPOT study (Spotting Particularly Overt Tailwaggers) JSup Brs2008;153:75-9.

8. See Spot run.

9. Myth: Plain English is only spoken to stupid people.

10. Fact: Plain English is the writing style of choice in written communication.

11. Word processors/ computer programs • Fear of white space • Email/ cyberspace • Associations geared to speaking to government and media, not to members

12. Speakisms: • Government-speak e.g.stakeholder • Media – speak e.g clip • Medicine – speak e.g. pathognomonic

13. The Foundation of Journalism • Every word costs the publisher money • The reader is important

14. The Inverted Pyramid Readers • Headline read • Read first paragraph So • make sure that all important points are in the first section of item • don’t make reader search for them or have to read whole piece to get all the info!

15. Five W’s of Journalism • Who • What • Why • Where • When

16. If there is a simpler word, use it! • Every word must have a purpose • Re – use words • Write for your “lowest common denominator”

17. Acronym Angst • AVOID if possible • ALWAYS use the full word the first time, with acronym in brackets, no matter who the reader! • Use acronym that is easy to read e.g. The Leeds, Grenville & Lanark District Health Unit should be “the LGLD Health Unit”, not “the LGLDHU”

18. Getting the message across: • Inverted pyramid • Determine the Five W’s • Plain English • If there is a simpler word, use it • Acronym alert • No extra words • Re-use words

19. It’s not you, it’s the communication! • Plain English? • English essay? • Speakisms? • Acronym Angst?

20. Every extra word or “speakism” that comes to you costs you something far more valuable than money.... It costs you your time. You are the reader and you are important.

21. Handouts

22. The End