Uses of Verbs–Grammar

Verbs tell you what the subject of a sentence or clause is doing (or being). Verbs are conjugated according to person, number, gender, tense, aspect, mood, or voice.

Verbs are at the heart of sentences and clauses; they are indispensable to the formation of a complete thought. A verb can express a thought by itself (with the subject implied) and be understood.

Run!

Believe!

Action vs. Nonaction Verbs

Action verbs simply indicate an action or occurrence.

Gloria walked across the room.

The shark swam menacingly close to the shore.

Even when used figuratively rather than literally, some verbs can still be considered action verbs.

The singer broke with tradition by shaking hands with his fans.

In this example, the singer didn’t really break anything, but the verb is still an action verb.

Conversely, nonaction verbs can indicate a state of being, sense, emotion, desire, possession, or opinion. The most common nonaction verb is to be.

I am a good person.

The baby felt cold without her blanket.

My mother loves me.

I have four tickets to the show.

Verb Tenses

Verbs change in form, or tense, to indicate whether the actions or states are occurring in the present (or are happening continuously), occurred in the past, or will occur in the future.

I take the bus.

I am taking the bus.

I took the bus.

I will take the bus.

These examples indicate the simple present, present continuous, simple past, and simple future tenses respectively. Further possible tenses include present perfect (I have taken the bus), present perfect continuous (I have been taking the bus), past continuous (I was taking the bus), past perfect (I had taken the bus), past perfect continuous (I had been taking the bus), future continuous (I will be taking the bus), future perfect (I will have taken the bus), and future perfect continuous (I will have been taking the bus). All the latter uses would require additional grammatical elements to form complete thoughts. To ensure good writing, it is important for verbs to be used consistently and in a logical sequence so that the time period being written about is properly understood. Verbs can also have up to five different forms: root, third-person singular, present participle, past, and past participle.

Verb Moods

Among a verb’s many properties is mood. A verb’s mood, sometimes referred to as a mode, can be either indicative, imperative, or subjunctive. The most common of these is the indicative mood. Indicative mood is used for statements of fact or opinion and to pose questions.

Every rose has its thorn.

A cat has nine lives.

Is the moon made of cheese?

The imperative mood is used to express commands. Subjects are often implied rather than expressed in sentences with imperative verbs. In the following examples, the subject you is implied:

Put that down!

Please exit the building in single file.

The subjunctive mood is used to express a verb with an action or state that is doubtful, imagined, conditional, desired, or hypothetical.

I wish you were here.

It is implied by this sentence that you are not actually here, but I wish that were not so. Were is in the subjunctive mood. Conditional verbs (which often appear with if/when statements) also receive a subjunctive treatment.

If I were a younger man, I would run three miles a day.

Were and would run indicate the subjunctive mood.

Of course, it is also important to follow the grammatical rules for conjugating verbs, including all those pesky English irregular verbs.

Pronouns

What Is a Pronoun?

Pronouns make up a small subcategory of nouns. The distinguishing characteristic of pronouns is that they can be substituted for other nouns. For instance, if you’re telling a story about your sister Sarah, the story will begin to sound repetitive if you keep repeating “Sarah” over and over again.

Sarah has always loved fashion. Sarah announced that Sarah wants to go to fashion school.

You could try to mix it up by sometimes referring to Sarah as “my sister,” but then it sounds like you’re referring to two different people.

Sarah has always loved fashion. My sister announced that Sarah wants to go to fashion school.

Instead, you can use the pronouns she and her to refer to Sarah.

Sarah has always loved fashion. She announced that she wants to go to fashion school.

Personal Pronouns

There are a few different types of pronouns, and some pronouns belong to more than one category. She and her are known as personal pronouns. The other personal pronouns are I and me, you, he and him, it, we and us, and they and them. If you learned about pronouns in school, these are probably the words your teacher focused on. We’ll get to the other types of pronouns in a moment.

Antecedents

Pronouns are versatile. The pronoun it can refer to just about anything: a bike, a tree, a movie, a feeling. That’s why you need an antecedent. An antecedent is a noun or noun phrase that you mention at the beginning of a sentence or story and later replace with a pronoun. In the examples below, the antecedent is highlighted and the pronoun that replaces it is bolded.

My family drives me nuts, but I love them. The sign was too far away for Henry to read it. Sarah said she is almost finished with the application.

In some cases, the antecedent doesn’t need to be mentioned explicitly, as long as the context is totally clear. It’s usually clear who the pronouns I, me, and you refer to based on who is speaking.

It’s also possible to use a pronoun before you mention the antecedent, but try to avoid doing it in long or complex sentences because it can make the sentence hard to follow.

I love them, but my family drives me nuts.

Relative Pronouns

Relative pronouns make up another class of pronouns. They are used to connect relative clauses to independent clauses. Often, they introduce additional information about something mentioned in the sentence. Relative pronouns include that, what, which, who, and whom. Traditionally, who refers to people, and which and that refer to animals or things.

The woman who called earlier didn’t leave a message. All the dogs that got adopted today will be loved. My car, which is nearly twenty years old, still runs well.

Whether you need commas with who, which, and that depends on whether the clause is restrictive or nonrestrictive.

Who vs. Whom—Subject and Object Pronouns

Now that we’ve talked about relative pronouns, let’s tackle the one that causes the most confusion: who vs. whom. Who is a subject pronoun, like I, he, she, we, and they. Whom is an object pronoun, like me, him, her, us and them. When the pronoun is the object of a verb or preposition, the object form is the one you want. Most people don’t have much trouble with the objective case of personal pronouns because they usually come immediately after the verb or preposition that modifies it.

Please mail it to I.

Please mail it to me.

Ms. Higgins caught they passing notes.

Ms. Higgins caught them passing notes.

Is this cake for we?

Is this cake for us?

Whom is trickier, though, because it usually comes before the verb or preposition that modifies it.

Whom did you speak to earlier?

A man, whom I have never seen before, was asking about you.

Whom should I say is calling?

One way to test whether you need who or whom is to try substituting a personal pronoun. Find the place where the personal pronoun would normally go and see whether the subject or object form makes more sense.

Who/whom did you speak to earlier? Did you speak to he/him earlier?

A man, whom I have never seen before, was asking about you. Have I seen he/him before?

Whom should I say is calling? Should I say she/her is calling?

If the object pronoun (him or her) sounds right, use whom. If the subject pronoun (he or she) sounds right, use who.

Before we move on, there’s one more case where the choice between subject and object pronouns can be confusing. Can you spot the problem in the sentences below?

Henry is meeting Sarah and I this afternoon. There are no secrets between you and I. It doesn’t matter to him or I.

In each of the sentences above, the pronoun I should be me. If you remove the other name or pronoun from the sentence, it becomes obvious.

Henry is meeting I this afternoon. No one keeps secrets from I. It doesn’t matter to I.

Demonstrative Pronouns

That, this, these and those are demonstrative pronouns. They take the place of a noun or noun phrase that has already been mentioned.

This is used for singular items that are nearby. These is used for multiple items that are nearby. The distance can be physical or metaphorical.

Here is a letter with no return address. Who could have sent this? What a fantastic idea! This is the best thing I’ve heard all day. If you think gardenias smell nice, try smelling these.

That is used for singular items that are far away. Those is used for multiple items that are far away. Again, the distance can be physical or metaphorical.

A house like that would be a nice place to live. Some new flavors of soda came in last week. Why don’t you try some of those? Those aren’t swans, they’re geese.

Indefinite Pronouns

Indefinite pronouns are used when you need to refer to a person or thing that doesn’t need to be specifically identified. Some common indefinite pronouns are one, other, none, some, anybody, everybody, and no one.

Everybody was late to work because of the traffic jam. It matters more to some than others. Nobody knows the trouble I’ve seen.

When indefinite pronouns function as subjects of a sentence or clause, they usually take singular verbs.

Reflexive and Intensive Pronouns

Reflexive pronouns end in -self or -selves: myself, yourself, himself, herself, itself, ourselves, yourselves, themselves.

Use a reflexive pronoun when both the subject and object of a verb refer to the same person or thing.

Henry cursed himself for his poor eyesight. They booked themselves a room at the resort. I told myself it was nothing.

Intensive pronouns look the same as reflexive pronouns, but their purpose is different. Intensive pronouns add emphasis.

I built this house myself. Did you yourself see Loretta spill the coffee?

“I built this house” and “I built this house myself” mean almost the same thing. But “myself” emphasizes that I personally built the house—I didn’t hire someone else to do it for me. Likewise, “Did you see Loretta spill the coffee?” and “Did you yourself see Loretta spill the coffee?” have similar meanings. But “yourself” makes it clear that the person asking wants to know whether you actually witnessed the incident or whether you only heard it described by someone else.

Occasionally, people are tempted to use myself where they should use me because it sounds a little fancier. Don’t fall into that trap! If you use a -self form of a pronoun, make sure it matches one of the uses above.

Please call Sarah or myself if you are going to be late. Loretta, Henry, and myself are pleased to welcome you to the neighborhood.

Possessive Pronouns

Possessive pronouns come in two flavors: limiting and absolute. My, your, its, his, her, our, their and whose are used to show that something belongs to an antecedent.

Sarah is working on her application. Just put me back on my bike. The students practiced their presentation after school.

The absolute possessive pronouns are mine, yours, his, hers, ours, and theirs. The absolute forms can be substituted for the thing that belongs to the antecedent.

Are you finished with your application? Sarah already finished hers. The blue bike is mine. I practiced my speech and the students practiced theirs.

Some possessive pronouns are easy to mix up with similar-looking contractions. Remember, possessive personal pronouns don’t include apostrophes.

Interrogative Pronouns

Interrogative pronouns are used in questions. The interrogative pronouns are who, what, which, and whose.

Who wants a bag of jelly beans? What is your name? Which movie do you want to watch? Whose jacket is this?

How to Network: 5 Simple Ways to Stand Out

Want to advance your career? Expanding your network can play a huge role in your success, but for many of us networking events can feel intimidating, panic-inducing, or just plain awkward.

So how do you set yourself apart from the job-seeking hordes, and still retain your dignity?

Whether you have no idea how to network or just want some pointers for upping your game, here are five simple ways you can stand out from the competition.

1Create a Personal Connection

When you head into a networking situation, you may have some important career-goals you want to accomplish, like landing a new job, finding a mentor, or raising funds for your current venture. If you’re feeling tempted (or pressured) to go into full-on sales mode with everyone in your path, it’s time to slow your roll.

Effective networking is all about kindling new relationships—not frantically exchanging business cards with twenty people who won’t remember you.

If you want to stand out from the crowd, take the time to connect with two or three key people on a personal level. Head in with the mindset that you’re there to make friends—not to get a job interview or hawk your wares. If you treat other human beings like stepping stones or cash dispensers, they’re going to pick up on that vibe.

So instead of droning on with a laundry list of why you’re awesome, try having a genuine conversation. Keep the elevator pitch of what you do to about thirty seconds, and make sure you’re asking questions and listening to the other person.

Connect with them on any interests and experiences you have in common. Maybe you both love to travel, grew up in the same area, or have kids. If you know you’ll be meeting specific people, do some homework ahead of time so you’ll have an idea of the key topics that interest them.

2Invest in the Relationship

Once you’ve established a personal connection with someone, it’s important to continue fostering the relationship. Follow up with them by email within twenty-four hours.

Show them you’re a valuable contact with a lot to offer. This can be as simple as:

• Sharing a helpful article that’s relevant to your conversation.
• Giving a referral for a service they need (like a great graphic designer or financial planner).
• Offering to help out with their passion project.

Be a generous giver and don’t expect or imply that you want anything in return. Positioning yourself as an asset will set you apart from the chorus of voices constantly asking them for things.

Make a point of keeping in touch and suggest meeting up for coffee or lunch if it feels appropriate.

When the time comes that you do have an ask, they’ll be happy to help you out since they know you personally and appreciate the ways you’ve helped them.

When that coveted job opening comes up, you’ll be the first person they think of.

3Promote Their Work

What if your networking prospects are mainly online instead of in-person? Reaching out to create a personal connection “virtually” can feel overwhelming. Sure, you could take your chances with cold-emailing, but it’s always smart to start establishing a relationship before putting an ask out there.

A great way to build connections with people is to engage with the work they’re doing.

Have a favorite thought leader you’d love to interview for your podcast? Read their blog posts, leave intelligent comments, share your favorite posts, and remember to tag them.

Want to get published on a particular site? Start following the journalist writing about your niche topic. Engage with and share their work. Tweet a quote from their latest article and mention the author—they’ll likely retweet it.

People are much happier to engage with you when they see that you’re genuinely interested and you care about the work they’re doing.

4Connect Through Body Language

If you do get to meet folks in person at a networking event, be sure you’re building connection and trust through your body language.

Put away your phone and quit skulking in that dark corner. Be friendly and smile (this increases your perceived trustworthiness). Make great eye contact, show them they’re the center of your attention and you’re not just looking around for someone better to talk to.

Stand confidently with your feet pointing toward the person you’re conversing with. Keep your arms open (crossed arms communicate that you’re blocking people out).

If food and drinks are served, get them one at a time so you’ll always have a free hand to give a firm handshake. A handshake is a great way to both start and end a conversation.

5Play to Your Strengths

Not all networking situations will be a great fit for you. You’ll get the most out of your networking efforts by attending events where you know you’ll be able to shine.

Feel sharpest in the mornings? Sign up for the 7:00 a.m. breakfast. Confirmed night owl? Hit up the after-hours soiree. Love to mingle with the crowd? Head on over to that 500-person dinner.

Practice your conversation skills and body language in situations where you feel comfortable so you’ll have greater confidence when you attend events that push your boundaries.

And when you follow up with your new contacts, you can suggest activities that play to your strengths— whether that’s a one-on-one coffee date or drinks with a group of friends in your industry.

50 Awesome Holiday Words to Know This December

The holidays are upon us, and these winter celebrations with their many traditions each have a rich and varied vocabulary.

From Krampus to kinara, latke to plum pudding, frankincense to yule—there’s a whole host of fantastic holiday words to explore.

So broaden your lexicon and enter the holiday spirit with these fifty awesome holiday words!

1. Advent:

A Latin word meaning “coming;” the Christian season of expectant waiting and preparation beginning four Sundays before Christmas.

2. Bauble:

A small, decorative sphere hung from a Christmas tree.

3. Boxing Day:

A British holiday celebrated the day after Christmas; traditionally when servants and tradespeople were given a “Christmas Box” by employers.

4. Carol:

A festive song or hymn sung at Christmas.

5. Christmas:

A religious and cultural festival celebrating Jesus Christ’s birth that is typically observed on December 25th.

6. Chimney:

A hollow structure allowing smoke from an indoor fireplace to vent outside; also Santa Claus’s magical entryway into homes.

7. Dreidel:

A four-sided top used by children to play a gambling game during Hanukkah.

8. Druid:

A highly-educated priest or professional in the ancient Celtic cultures of Britain and Gaul.

9. Eggnog:

An alcoholic drink made with cream, sugar, eggs, and distilled spirits.

10. Elves:

Magical, pointy-eared creatures who build toys for well-behaved children.

11. Epiphany:

A Christian feast day celebrated on January 6th, commemorating the Magi’s visit to the baby Jesus.

12. Father Christmas:

The English personification of Christmas, now synonymous with Santa Claus.

13. Feliz Navidad:

A Spanish phrase meaning “Happy Christmas.”

14. Frankincense:

An incense symbolizing holiness.

15. Gingerbread:

A cookie made with molasses and ginger.

16. Grinch:

A grouchy spoilsport who doesn’t enjoy Christmas.

17. Hanukkah:

The eight-day “festival of lights” commemorating the rededication of the Jewish temple around 200 B.C. The holiday is celebrated by lighting candles, eating fried foods, playing games, and giving gifts.

18. Holly:

An evergreen bush with red berries and prickly leaves used as winter holiday decoration in pagan and Christian traditions.

19. Immanuel:

A Hebrew name meaning “God with us.”

20. Jolly:

Cheerful and good-humored.

21. Kinara:

A candle holder for the seven candles lit during Kwanzaa.

22. Krampus:

A half-goat half-demon character of European folklore who punishes misbehaving children during Christmas.

23. Kwanzaa:

A seven-day festival celebrating African American cultural heritage, created by Dr. Maulana Karenga in 1966. Festivities include candle lighting, singing, storytelling, poetry reading, and feasting.

24. Lapland:

A region in Finland rumored to be where Santa Claus lives.

25. Latkes:

Pancakes made of grated potato, fried in oil, and served during Hanukkah.

26. Magi:

The Zoroastrian priests of ancient Persia. According to tradition, three of these “wise men” visited the infant Jesus.

27. Manger:

An open box or trough holding food for livestock.

28. Mele Kalikimaka:

A phonetic translation of “Merry Christmas” into the Hawaiian language.

29. Menorah:

A nine-branched candelabrum used during Hanukkah.

30. Miracle:

An extraordinary and welcome event, unexplainable by scientific laws.

31. Mistletoe:

A parasitic plant with white berries, hung from doorways as a Christmas decoration. People are expected to kiss when standing beneath it.

32. Mittens:

Gloves with one opening for the thumb and another for the four fingers.

33. Myrrh:

A fragrant oil symbolizing suffering and mortality.

34. Nativity:

The place and conditions of a birth; commonly used to refer to the birth of Jesus.

35. Naughty:

Badly-behaved. “Naughty” children traditionally received coal from Santa Claus instead of presents.

36. Noel:

“The Christmas season”; derived from Old French.

37. North Pole:

Believed by many Westerners to be Santa Claus’s home.

38. Nutcracker:

A device used to crack open the shells of nuts.

39. Plum Pudding:

A steamed Christmas cake resembling a cannonball, filled with dried fruit.

40. Poinsettia:

A Mexican shrub first used as a Christmas decoration by Franciscan friars in the 17th century.

41. Santa Claus:

A mythical, white-bearded man clad in red who delivers presents to well-behaved children on Christmas Eve; based on legends of the historic Saint Nicholas’s generosity.

42. Sleigh:

A sled typically pulled by horses or reindeer.

43. Stocking:

A long sock, traditionally filled with small Christmas gifts.

44. Tidings:

Breaking news.

45. Tinsel:

Slender strips of shiny metallic foil used as Christmas decorations.

46. Toboggan:

A long, wooden sled used to coast down snow-covered hills.

47. Wassail:

A hot, spiced cider drink, traditionally served to poor carolers by their wealthy neighbors.

48. Winter Solstice:

The first day of winter and shortest day of the year (in the Northern Hemisphere).

49. Wreath:

A circular arrangement of greenery or flowers.

50. Yule:

A pagan festival celebrating rebirth and renewal, held on the winter solstice.

Are Emojis Language?

Whether you love them or hate them, you have to admit, emojis have taken over. Following the latest update by the Unicode Consortium, the body that dictates language on digital devices, there are now 1,085 officially-recognized emojis in circulation. Five years after their introduction in the United States, emojis have started to dominate messaging and social media apps. Swyft estimates that 6 billion of the emotion pictures are sent in messaging apps every day, and Instagram reports that over half of all Instagram posts include at least one emoji.

We can all agree they’re popular, but here’s a different question: do emojis count as language, modern hieroglyphics, or some other form of pictorial communication?

What Makes a Language?

It can be difficult to decide when a new mode of communication is a “language” rather than a dialect within a larger linguistic landscape. Often, things considered by some as discreet languages are in fact creoles or dialects that do not differ enough to branch completely from parent languages. However, as with many aspects of culture, new innovations emerge, and occasionally these are distinguished as entirely new languages.

According to Johanna Nichols, former professor of linguistics at UC Berkeley, the gold standard for distinguishing languages is “mutual intelligibility.” In other words, if a speaker of one language and a speaker of another try to converse, will they understand one another? If the answer is “yes,” the second speaker is using some sort of dialect. If the answer is “no”, that person has created or adopted a new language.

However, the mutual intelligibility concept doesn’t always provide a clear picture of how languages relate to each other, since some dialects seem more different from each other than certain groups of languages do. For example, Americans might have trouble understanding Southeast Asian pidgin English speakers, but Spanish speakers might catch the gist of something said in Portuguese. Also, this does not help us to determine whether an entirely new communicative system is, in fact a language. Are emojis merely images that might be interpreted differently by different groups of people? Or are they universal?

If you’re interested in learning more about how languages become officially recognized, check out this list of books on the evolution of English.

Communicative System vs. Hieroglyphics vs. Language

Before we get to emojis as language proper, let’s debunk one misconception—emojis are not hieroglyphics. Although they may represent a shift back toward more representative characters, they function very differently from hieroglyphics. As prominent Internet linguist Gretchen McCulloch pointed out in a recent SXSW presentation on the subject, language has moved from more concrete characters to less concrete versions, allowing humans to communicate abstract concepts.

Unfortunately, most signs point to emojis lacking the characteristics of a true language. For example, when given a string of emojis, two people will not always interpret them the same way. Additionally, emojis cannot be conjugated or combined in ways that function like a true linguistic system, meaning that, although they are a helpful bunch of symbols, they aren’t “a particular, conventionalized system for representing abstract meaning, like English or Japanese or ASL.”

One thing is for certain: emojis are a communicative system. They allow people to communicate emotions, actions, or impressions that they don’t feel they can express in text. The Oxford English Dictionary supports this analysis of emojis, and cites it as the reason they made the “tears of joy” emoji their Word of the Year in 2015.

The Verdict? It’s Complicated

If you adhere to the strictest definition of language, emojis definitely do not make the cut. However, if you define a language as “a system of words or signs that people use to express thoughts and feelings to each other,” emojis have a chance. Whether or not they can replace English or any other formal language, emojis have evolved into a meaningful communicative system, allowing users worldwide to express feelings, thoughts, and ideas in new visual ways.

It may be some time before a major linguistic authority like Merriam-Webster or the OED comes to a definitive verdict about emojis as a distinct language. In the meantime, it’s interesting to track patterns in our usage of emojis. Are we using them instead of words? To replace phrases? As simple visual aids to our written texts?

Whether or not emojis are a language in their own right, they represent an interesting and deeply entertaining evolution of language worldwide. And that’s not a bad thing. ?

How to Write an Outline: 4 Ways to Organize Your Thoughts

When I was a novice writer, I chafed at the idea of using an outline. I was certain organizing my thoughts in advance would stifle my creativity and make my writing stiff and uninspired. After all, how can serendipity happen if you’ve got everything planned?

But then I started creating content for a living, and I needed to turn out several polished articles every week. I write at least 240,000 words per year to earn my keep. That’s only about half of War and Peace, but it still feels like a lot. I try to write quickly so I’m not still awake toiling away at the keyboard at 1 a.m. with a cup of tea and a couple of graham crackers. (1 a.m. graham cracker calories do seem to count, by the way.)

I discovered that it was taking me a long time to finish my articles because, when my creative mind was unfettered, I had a tendency to ramble in a chaotic stream of consciousness that I would then have to go back and structure in order for it to make sense. Not only that, but I would over-research. I’d wind up with a thousand words before I realized I was only one third of the way through my article. I’d have to go back, refocus, trim down, and sometimes even start over.

And so, I started outlining. And it saved me. Not only from sleep deprivation, but from graham-cracker weight gain. Here’s my step-by-step process. And it works!

1 Do some reconnaissance reading.

Unless I know my topic inside and out, I start with a little reconnaissance reading. I head to Google and look at what others have written on my topic. I try to think of new and interesting ways to address it. I look for an angle.

The easiest way to find an angle is to look for knowledge gaps in the articles you scan. Let’s use this article as an example. I searched to see what others had written on the topic of how to write an outline. I found a lot on the basics of structure, but not much about how to actually use outlines to improve the organization of your writing. Voila! An angle!

As you’re reading, take notes when you see interesting research or quotes you might want to share. Note the URLs, too, so you can reference them with links in your article. I keep my notes in a Google Doc on the same page where I’m eventually going to create my outline and write my article. Having all the information in one place will allow you to write faster when the time comes.

Here’s a tip: Don’t go too far down the research rabbit hole! Remember, you’re just doing a little reconnaissance reading. It’s easy to over-research, which wastes valuable writing time. Plan to write first, and then add research later.

2 Write down your objective.

Now that you’ve figured out an angle, it’s helpful to write down an objective. What do you want the reader to understand by the end of this article? Put some thought into your objective and see if you can write it in one sentence. My objective for this article was:

At the end of this article, readers will understand why outlines are useful and how to use them to organize their writing.

Everything you write should support your objective. An objective will help you stay focused and prevent you from drifting off on tangents.

Here’s a tip: Academic papers often include a thesis statement. A thesis states a premise or theory that your paper will go on to prove. It’s different from an objective. If you need more specific help with writing a thesis statement, try checking with any university writing center.

3 Create a list of all the main points you want to make.

I often begin this step while I’m doing my recon reading and ideas are popping into my head. This can be a quick brainstorming process. Don’t invest a lot of energy in organizing just yet. You’ll get to that in the next step.

4 Organize, revise, and eliminate.

Now it’s time to organize the list of points. Figure out the structure of your article. Will it work well as numbered how-to steps? A listicle? In standard essay format?

Take a look at the points you’ve jotted down and begin putting them into a logical order. Cross-check each point to make certain that it’s relevant to your objective. If you’ve strayed off the path and included extra information that doesn’t really fit the scope of your article, eliminate it.

Here’s a tip: Save things that don’t make it into your article—information that was extraneous to the article you’re working on now but may be interesting enough to pursue in a separate article some other time. I keep an idea file that I store as a Google Doc. Reference your file when you need a little article inspiration.

You may come across a few things that don’t quite fit into your article as their own sections, but seem important to mention nonetheless. Those elements make great sidebars. In this article, you’ll see them used as tips. Pretty nifty, huh?

As you revise, start putting your outline into a standard format. You don’t have to be too formal about this process, just organize everything into a bulleted or numbered list. (If you want to be traditional, use Roman numerals. I think they make my outlines look fancy.) Include topic segments. Under each topic segment, indent and include the points you’ll discuss in each paragraph. You don’t have to get too granular here—all you’re looking for is enough information to help you remember where you’re going and keep you organized and on track. My outline for this article looked like this:

I. Intro

A. I didn’t used to outline

B. Becoming a professional writer made me change my tune

C. Outlining brings structure to chaos

II. Do some recon reading

A. Look for angle, ways the topic has not been covered

1. Look for knowledge gaps

B. Take notes while you’re reading/record URLs

C. Don’t go too far down the research rabbit hole

III. Make a quick list of the points you want to make

IV. Organize the list into a formal outline

A. Get rid of anything that doesn’t support objective

1. Save extra stuff in a clip file for future use

B. Some extra stuff is worth keeping as tips/sidebars

C. Demonstrate standard outline format

An outline isn’t a prison—it’s there to guide you, not control you. You can take conscious detours, or change things around as you write. Outlines are just guidelines, so they shouldn’t feel restrictive. And yet, you’ll be surprised how the simple act of creating one will give your articles more structure and keep them focused and on-point. You’ll write with more clarity, and you’ll do it all faster and more efficiently. Outlines for the win!

These Simple Tips Will Improve Productivity at All Levels of Your Business

A number of poor practices might be nipping away at your business’s productivity—without you even realizing it.

In a recent Harvard Business Review article, poor writing was cited as a major productivity killer. But bad writing isn’t the only thing that can sink your employees’ productivity. Among a bevy of other potential reasons, experts have cited inflexible workplace practices, long hours, sterile office environments, and even emails.

But don’t worry—all these issues can be mitigated with a little knowledge and effort. In this article, I’ll show you how you can boost productivity at all levels of your business by

• Communicating more clearly
• Implementing more productive communication channels
• Allowing for more flexible working times
• Designing a better workspace
• Focusing on productive working hours, not overtime hours

These might sound like abstract, pie-in-the-sky concepts. But you can turn them into concrete realities (and improve your company’s productivity in the process) by adopting the following strategies.

Encourage Clear, Concise Writing

Sometimes it seems like your colleagues are having one big competition to see who can write the most tortuous email possible, right?

If you’ve ever felt that way, you’re definitely not alone. According to a survey of 547 business people, 81 percent of respondents agreed that poorly written material wastes time, with a majority calling much of what they read “too long, poorly organized, unclear, filled with jargon, and imprecise.”

To remedy labyrinthine writing, you should train employees at all levels to write clearly and get straight to the point. Lengthy introductions may work well in college, but in the workplace, brief trumps flowery. Emphasize the importance of short sentences and strong, active-voice language.

Embrace New Communication Technologies

There’s another simple way to minimize the number of convoluted emails passing through your organization:

Eliminate the entire idea of using emails for intra-office communication.

Yes, this might sound crazy. But new communication technologies have introduced more productive venues for communication.

For example, businesses report an average productivity increase of 32 percent after switching to the real-time messaging app Slack. And it’s not just startups and small teams who use Slack. Major organizations like Harvard University, eBay, and Ticketmaster have all adopted the tool. Used judiciously, the platform can boost your productivity with shorter, more immediate communication between team members.

Just be prepared for some growing pains as staffers adjust to these new methods.

Implement Flexible Working Conditions

Nine-to-five: It’s ingrained in our collective consciousness. We arrive at the office at 9 a.m., we leave at 5 p.m., and that’s that.

Or maybe not. An increasing body of research suggests that the tried-and-true nine-to-five might not be the most effective schedule when it comes to productivity. Instead, flextime, where workers are free to telecommute and choose from a range of working hours, is growing in popularity.

There’s evidence to support the benefits of switching to flexible hours. Researchers have found that flexible schedules accounted for up to 10 percent more productivity in the pharmaceutical industry, and similar productivity boosts have also been noticed with computer programmers. And with 77 percent of millennials believing that flextime makes them more productive, flextime is likely the way of the future as workplace demographics shift.

So, if you want to boost your business’s productivity, consider implementing flexible work schedules. As an added bonus, employees are likely to be happier and less stressed, too.

Design a Comfortable and Relaxing Office Space

Have you ever been to a spa that blasted heavy metal music? I’m guessing the answer is no. In fact, that image seems ridiculous because most of us naturally recognize the powerful connection between environment and mood.

It’s no different in the workplace. Bland, minimalist offices can drag down morale and productivity. In the words of some of the psychologists who studied this phenomenon, this type of office is “the most toxic space” for humans to work in.

In a three-country study, those psychologists found that simply adding plants to an office increased employee productivity by up to 15 percent. Other studies suggest that showcasing art or adding more natural light can achieve similar productivity boosts.

Not every office can boast Google’s futuristic egg chairs and room-sized hammocks, but putting effort into improving your office environment (even with something as simple as buying a few plants) will bring real returns for productivity and morale.

Eliminate Overtime Whenever Possible

If people work longer hours, they should get more done, right?

This way of thinking seems logical, but it’s actually not that simple. Despite the fact that four in ten Americans work over fifty hours per week, longer hours don’t always lead to more productivity.

In fact, research suggests that productivity sharply decreases as overtime hours increase. Because of this phenomenon, there’s actually very little difference in productivity between, say, working fifty-five hours per week and working seventy hours per week.

So, if you want more productive, well-rested employees, try to stick to a forty-hour work week whenever possible. The best way to get employees to maintain these hours is for upper management to model them.

As a general rule, happy, valued employees are more productive than employees who feel stressed, exhausted, and unappreciated. That’s why implementing a comfortable, flexible office environment, combined with clear and efficient communication, will allow most businesses to reap real productivity rewards.

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Colin Newcomer is a freelance writer with a background in SEO and affiliate marketing. He helps clients grow their web visibility by writing primarily about digital marketing, WordPress, and B2B topics.