Ask Efri

How do I write professionally without sounding corporate?

Efri · 1 min read

Professional writing does not require corporate language. It requires clarity, judgment and respect for the reader.

Key points
4 key points
  1. 01
    Write the way a competent person would explain the idea in a serious conversation
  2. 02
    You can be direct, funny, opinionated or personal and still be professional if the substance is sound and the tone…
  3. 03
    One useful editing test is to read the sentence aloud
  4. 04
    Corporate writing often sounds inhuman because it removes the person making the judgment

Write the way a competent person would explain the idea in a serious conversation. Use normal verbs. Replace “leverage synergies” with what people are actually doing. Cut phrases that exist only to sound polished.

You can be direct, funny, opinionated or personal and still be professional if the substance is sound and the tone fits the context.

One useful editing test is to read the sentence aloud. If you would never say it to a smart colleague, ask why it is on the page.

Corporate writing often sounds inhuman because it removes the person making the judgment. Professional writing can keep the person while improving the precision.