Why Should We Learn To Write Better
The pen is mightier than the sword as it represents the power of the thought, the basis of all revolutions that dethrone mighty rulers. A pen’s real power is that it shapes ideas that unleash progress and forces the mind to think in different ways.
Despite the importance of effective writing (a subset of effective communication skills) and despite the fact that nearly every recruitment ad stresses on it; we, software professionals, tend to either ridicule the importance of writing or ignore it all-together. Without being prophetic, I can bet that we are ignoring effective writing only to compromise on our career growth.
Let’s begin by understanding the complaint that most of us have against investment to improve writing skills. The biggest remark that we hear against writing is the following line:
But my job is to write/ test the code…
Most technical people often like to defend their cryptic, half-understood, grammatically incorrect way of writing under the powerful assumption that their main role is to write the code or to test the code. They provide the following reasons to support their argument:
To write or test the code, you need conceptual and logical skills and perhaps a background in mathematics (engineering). The only remnants of writing that a code contains are the Remarks statement. These statements are not meant for the user and, therefore, need not be perfect English.
To convey an idea on e-mail, you need not be an expert writer. Even if the e-mail is not organized properly, it can describe the technical problem in discussion. The important thing to cover in an e-mail is the content, and not the spellings, or articles, or organization.
Do not tell me what to do when things are already working fine for me. I have been sufficiently successful and am growing at a great pace despite the way I write. Why should I change now?
Oomph! Do not mention about one more task to perform! I am already dying under pressure.
We have well-trained and well-paid technical writers/ communicators. Why should we invest on writing and infringe on their territory? If we do get the time to learn any new thing, then it should be spent on learning a new technology or software package, and definitely NOT on learning the ‘principles of writing’.
Most of the above remarks or explanations are made because of the inability to correlate how ineffective writing can derail the growth of one’s career. We need to understand why we need to write better and how our organizations shall gain when we all start writing better.
The generic need for writing
The need for writing arises because of the human need to reach people whom we cannot directly talk. Given the fact that in the software industry, the clients and customers often are working over 10,000 miles away, writing becomes even more important. Another generic need for writing is its ability to add clarity to thoughts. Effective writing serves as the vehicle for communication and sharing of ideas. In professional organizations, especially software organizations, where products are built by a team of human beings separated by cultures, national boundaries and timelines, writing assumes even greater importance. Clear and concise writing helps in making better decisions and serves to provide the required punch when convincing or influencing other people.
