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writing skills Archives - Communication and Beyond

Communication and Beyond

writing skills

Archana Parmar

How to structure your business emails?

What are some ways that compelling emails can help you to be more productive?  Simple: choosing the correct words to communicate will persuade people to respond to your emails. You will obtain the result you’re looking for more accurately and faster, and you’ll save a great deal of time. If you want to improve your business emails and make your business writing more impactful, you’ve come to the right place.  What you write and how you write will have an impact on how people see you & your firm, whether you’re communicating with business clients or coworkers, managers or subordinates. Not only that, but your writing could mean the difference between a stalled project and a completed one. Always ensure that your email has a clear and logical structure, regardless of the topic, purpose, or receiver.  Include all of the following components in your business emails for optimum effectiveness:  introduction + details + action + closing. INTRODUCTION  Begin by addressing the receiver as “Dear Name.”  The most prevalent ones in today’s corporate sector, from more formal to less formal, are “Hello Name” or “Hi Name.” Introduce yourself by email. Begin with a cheerful and friendly tone, including some basic background information, the main reason for your letter (explain them what’s going on right away), and a brief summary of the following steps. Example: Hello Lata Michael has asked me to send you an email to confirm that I will be able to come to  New Delhi in September to conduct a product training course with your IT staff.  I’m available any time throughout the first two weeks of the month. DETAILS Do they require any other information or background? If that’s the case, you’ll want to mention it in this section. Short paragraphs should be used to break up your email (no longer than 4 or 5 lines each).  Bullet points assist in organising your thoughts, also the material will appear clearer to the reader, be more visually appealing, & be easier to scan. Here’s a rough estimate of the costs: • Fee for a trainer: INR 9000 per day (this will probably be a two-day course) • The cost of a flight is roughly INR 4000. • The cost of a night’s stay is approximately INR 3000. ACTION What’s the next logical step?  Tell them exactly what they need to accomplish (agree on meeting schedule, approve the budget, or proofread a document, for example).  Let them know if they don’t need to do anything after receiving your email. Kindly let us know whether you can manage these fees.  I’ll arrange flights and make hotel reservations once I receive your confirmation.  We can save costs if we book weeks in advance. CLOSING Always (always) say thank you if they have to do something.  Before signing, you can say “Have a wonderful day” or “All the best.” Thank you for your support, and please do not hesitate to contact me if you have any concerns concerning this training course. Have a wonderful day, Archana Note: You want people to read and act on your emails. Ready? Let’s get the ball rolling!

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Archana Parmar

How to close your emails like a pro

 Making an impact through your written communication can be a difficult task for non-native speakers; here I am sharing sample closing lines for your formal as well as informal emails. Closing lines for (big) requests Thank you (in advance). Any help you can offer me with this would be greatly appreciated. Any feedback you can give me on this would be gratefully accepted. Any assistance you could give me in this matter would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance for your assistance (in this matter). Closing lines when you need a reply I look forward to hearing from you (soon). Looking forward to hearing from you (soon). Please let me know if that’s okay/ if that is acceptable with you/ if that sounds okay/ if you can/ if you can help/ if you need an extension/ if you need to reschedule/ if… Look forward to hearing what you think/ getting your input/… We look forward to receiving your documents/ application/ permission/… Closing lines when you offer more communication/ more help (if needed) If you need any more information, please contact me. If you require any further information, please do not hesitate to contact me (at any time). If you have any questions, please let me know. (In the meantime) if you need any more information, please feel free to email me. Please let me know if there’s anything (else) that I can do to help. If anything about that isn’t clear, please drop me a line. Other closing lines to mention the next contact between you I’m looking forward to seeing you then. I look forward to meeting you then. See you on Monday/ next week/ on…/ next…/ then. Hope we have the chance to meet again soon. I look forward to doing business with you again soon. Can’t wait to see you again! Keep in touch! Write soon! Closing lines for instructions/ commands/ orders           Thank you for your cooperation. I appreciate your support/kind guidance. Thank you in advance for your cooperation. Closing lines with apologies/ Closing lines when responding to complaints Hope that is okay (with you). Once again, please accept our apologies for any inconvenience caused/ for the inconvenience caused/ for the delay/ for… Thanks for your patience./ Thank you for your patience. Thank you for your understanding. Sorry about the complications. Sorry this is taking so long to sort out.  Social closing lines/ Friendly closing lines Have a good evening/ day/ weekend/ break/… Hope you have a good vacation/ journey home/… Good luck with…. All the best with…  Useful closing greetings for emails Best regards Sincerely yours Sincerely Yours Best wishes Regards All the best Bye for now Take care Kind regards Join my 3 day email writing course for FREE here.

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Archana Parmar Leadership Communication

10 Websites to Practice English Grammar Online

Mastering grammar—irrespective of the language—is not in any way an easy task. It is a process worth investing your valuable time and consistent efforts, no, I don’t intend to scare you here, rather I am going to share some of my favourite websites that may help you with English grammar practice. You may be familiar with some of them or may be all of them, in that case, I would request you share the article with your friends, family, colleagues who you think will benefit from these grammar exercises. And yes, if you know about any other helpful addition to this list, feel free to share that with me in the comments section. 10 websites to Test and Practice your English Grammar Online 1. https://learnenglish.britishcouncil.org British Council is known for providing a wealth of resources online. 2. https://britishenglishpage.com This site hosts Free online English lessons & ESL / EFL resources 3. https://www.englishgrammar.org/ From beginners to advanced learners of English, this site caters to all. 4. https://www.englishclub.com/grammar/ This site houses resources for grammar, pronunciation, vocabulary, writing and many other topics. Bookmark this site for future references. 5. https://www.perfect-english-grammar.com/ The most interesting thing here is the English Grammar Level quiz, give it a try. 6. https://www.examenglish.com/grammar/ This website is for people studying for an English language exam. Here the pages contain free online practice tests for the most important international ESL exams. 7. https://www.grammarly.com/blog/category/handbook/ Find answers to all your writing conundrums with Grammarly’s simple guide to basic English grammar rules. 8. https://www.ef.com/wwen/english-resources/english-grammar/ These pages are a complete English grammar guide filled with the rules of English usage. Each grammatical rule is explained in plain English with several examples, and when needed, counter-examples. 9. https://www.usingenglish.com/ Tests, quizzes, reference guides, practice activities, phrasal verb dictionary and more! 10. https://englishgrammarsecrets.com/ Looking for a quick overview on English grammar with a lot of examples? This is your site! In addition to these, here a list of some interesting language apps, you might want to have a look at. I believe you will find these sites helpful as you practice English grammar! Thank you so much for your time. Note: grammar is just one part of the language. It is best to incorporate the grammar you are learning into all 4 language skills: reading, writing, listening and speaking! Want to learn how to do that? Drop me a line at archana@archanaparmar.com or schedule your free session now.

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Archana Parmar Leadership Communication

Grammar- to focus or not to focus

Whether we are talking about a ten year old who is about to sit for his English test paper or whether we are talking about a thirty year old who is attempting to write a thesis for master’s degree, we cannot turn down the fact that picking up proper English grammar is important. Whenever we discuss English grammar, the prompt reaction of many people I know is to cringe. They are reminded of junior high and high school English class and the way that their English teachers made them to English grammar exercise after exercise. Surprisingly, English grammar is usually seen in such a negative sense, it is all the more important that people replace those lies with the truth that learning English grammar really is important for anyone who wants to have a proper perspective of the English language. When we learn to communicate in English, not too many of us take the time to think about the fact that English grammar is the very thing that allows us to communicate with and understand one another. It is not so much because we use the same words of the English language, but it is because we all put our words together in certain ways to form thoughts and sentences that we can understand each other. This, in short, is the purpose of English grammar. English grammar is the mechanics of the English language that allows for two people who use the same vocabulary to be able to communicate without misunderstanding. Certainly there will always be some level of misunderstanding that happens when two people communicate, but so much of our problems will be lessened if we all take some time to learn English grammar. Many schools today are moving away from making English grammar a part of the regular curriculum. So while students may learn how to read and write successfully, they will likely never learn the English grammar or the reasons why they are speaking and writing as they are. So if you or someone you know is struggling with any element of the English language, or if you know a child or someone who is attempting to learn English for the first time, then make sure English grammar is included as an important PART of the learning process. Being able to speak, understand and write a language is an important part of being successful no matter what you do in life. And taking the time to learn even the basics of English grammar will go far in helping people communicate even better. Book your Free 30 mins call with me to know how my 3-step approach will help you in becoming an effective communicator of English Language.

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Archana Parmar

How to use dictionary and make friends with words

                                            Making friends with words! Since a language is made up of thousands of individual words, it must be important to know about those words, and know in detail. The moment we meet a new word (it’s meaning), we think of a dictionary. Dictionary is not just a guide full of words with their meanings. – A reference book on a particular subject, the items of which are typically arranged in alphabetical order.                            -a similar book giving equivalent words in two languages                  -a work of informative character arranged alphabetically That’s what we all believe it to be. Well it is more than that, much more than that. A dictionary is one of the most effective, easily available, and reliable teaching aid in a language classroom. It helps us to learn about words- In addition to these, dictionaries also provide the details about the origin or roots of words and examples of using the words. The guide words –  words given at the top of each page. The first guide word is the first word on a page and the guide word at the top of the page is the last word on the page. Using the guide words, you should find the word you are looking for easily. It will be between those words. To be a good dictionary user, however, it is not enough to know what to use the dictionary for. You must also decide which is the best dictionary for any of the purposes mentioned above. As well as, you need to be able to find what you are looking for quickly; you need to be sure that you have found what you were looking for; and, most importantly, you need to know when to use your dictionary. If you look up every new word you see or hear, you will spend your whole day with the dictionary in your hand.  You have to be clever and choose the right words to check and the right time to do it. The following advice can be followed to check when to use the dictionary. When you find a new word while reading, finish the sentence (better: the paragraph). If you haven’t guessed the meaning and it still seems important, then you can look it up. When you hear a new word, wait and continue listening. What the speaker says next may help you to understand the word. If you look in your dictionary at the very moment, you will not hear what comes next, and this will make understanding the context more and more difficult. If you think the word is very important, you could note it down or write how you think it is spelled. Then later you could ask the speaker or look up in the dictionary to see what it means. Meeting someone and knowing the words they spoke and their meanings are seldom enough, when communication skills are the most sought after skills in today’s world, depth and interaction are necessary if the meeting is to be meaningful. That’s where our word bank (vocabulary) comes into play. Use dictionary as a medium for knowing the words and remember that words are not learnt mechanically, but associatively. Dictionaries are readily available, flexible, and inexpensive, also UNDER-USED. We expand our understanding of the word meanings by interchanging and sharing them with others. Learning words is a relational process. Would you interested in learning more about vocabulary building? Drop me a line at archana@archanaparmar.com or leave a comment.

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