Respectful Writing

No Need to Word Your Corporate Policies More Harshly than the Penal Code

I often come across policies that read something like this: "Employees must answer every question before submitting request forms. Incomplete...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

Antiquated Policy Wording: The Problem with “Should”

This is the final article of a four-part series on drafting requirements in corporate policies, looking at the problems of...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

Antiquated Policy Wording: The Problem with “May”

This is the third article of a four-part series on drafting requirements in corporate policies, looking at the problems of...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

Antiquated Policy Wording: The Problem with “Must”

This is the second article of a four-part series on drafting requirements in corporate policies, looking at the problems of...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

Antiquated Policy Wording: “Must,” “May,” and “Should”

This is the first article of a four-part series on drafting requirements in corporate policies, looking at the problems of...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

How to Ask Your Customers to Wear a Mask

To stem the spread of the new coronavirus, Costco now requires all customers to wear a mask. No doubt many other...
Policy Enforcement / Respectful Writing

Good Policy Statements Don’t Micro-manage

Instructions in a policy statement that amount to micro-management confuse rather than clarify the requirements. I’m sure you’ve seen them...
Clear Writing / Respectful Writing

Have You Considered Tone of Voice?

When we review an administrative or operational policy to see if it needs updating, what do we look for? Too...
Respectful Writing

Transcript of Video Perfect Policies How to Write Rules

When I was a little boy we would sit around the dinner table and my parents had a rule: If you...
Respectful Writing

OMG! Fitbit, why are your terms so condescending?

With the imminent implementation of the European Union's General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), "data subjects" (= you and me) are being asked...
Respectful Writing

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