There's so much misleading advice around it's time someone protested.

Let's take the aversion some people have to 'we' in their business writing. A participant in one of my recent workshops told us her manager objected to it on the grounds that readers would be confused. Really? If it's going out with our company's email address or letterhead, wouldn't an average person know who we might be?

There's something else...

We is a very useful word. It allows us to form active sentences. It's not the only way to do it, but we gives us a natural subject for our sentences. 'We have been making ice cream since 1910.' 'We have constructed 15 similar bridges around the world.' 'We will contact you next week. ' (Of course, if you really mean 'I will contact you', say that.) It's plain English.

Many people who don't like we, dislike using other pronouns too, so their writing is impersonal, dry and often clumsy and confusing. If that's the way you've always done it, keep an open mind and see how focusing on people and action can transform your writing.

 

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