Preparing for your workshop
Before the workshop, prepare by gathering
- a writing sample of five pages total (bring two copies)
- an idea for a job-related, one- to two-page document that you will write during the workshop.
Assess your skills
Our facilitators provide you with the tools to assess your writing samples during the workshop-tools that may be applied to future documents as well. Bring your samples to the workshop and you will receive
- a personal assessment of strengths and weaknesses
- a constructive critique of your writing samples
- recommended exercises-always job-related-based on individually diagnosed needs.
Learn by doing
You will practice applying The Six Steps to Reader-Centered Writing® to your own job-related project. The workshop is a lively combination of short lectures, group exercises, discussions, and individual activities.
Private coaching session gives you personal feedback and support
After the workshop, you receive a private session with one of our coaches, a consulting editor who critiques hundreds of documents annually. Our customers find this individual follow-up vital to improving writing performance. If you are attending our in-person Open Seminar, and you are unable to attend the private conference, we can arrange a remote coaching session. This must take place on the scheduled coaching day after the workshop.
What books and materials do you receive?
If you attend an in-person Open Seminar, you will receive your materials when you arrive the morning of the workshop. Online learners will receive their materials in the mail one week before the workshop.
- Write to the Top®: Writing for Corporate Success (Random House) by Deborah Dumaine, founder of Better Communications®
- Instant-Answer Guide to Business Writing, also by Deborah Dumaine
- Better Communications' workbook, with additional exercises tailored to your needs
- Laminated job aid: The Six Steps to Reader-Centered Writing and the Focus SheetTM