My wife and I experienced a sad moment earlier this month when Tomoko, who had rented a room from us for the last two years, returned to Japan.

Let me explain. For the last five years, we have hosted foreign students attending local colleges as part of a home-stay program to help them learn American culture. We've had students from Japan, Korea, Taiwan, Russia, France and Venezuela although most have been from Japan.

No matter how short their stay, our students become part of the family, sharing meals, parties, graduations, and milestones. Tomoko went to college here, graduated and stayed as long as her student visa allowed.

What an opportunity to practice communication skills! Many students arrive with very little English and are eager to learn. Some come here to specifically learn English. Others have different educational objectives.

We've enjoyed hosting our students. We've learned from them and we like to think that they have learned from us.

Best wishes,
Lee Pound

Watch out for hidden traps
By Lee Pound

I recently visited a number of sites that feature professional writers and was appalled at the poor quality of some of the writing they used as examples. I found typos, passives, poor sentence structure, sentences that said nothing, clichés, and choppiness, all errors that  weaken writing.

Many of these professionals boasted of a long resume and years of writing. They evidently made money writing and editing yet had only a rudimentary knowledge of the principles of great writing.

Many writers out there will do an adequate but not outstanding job for you. However it is difficult for non-professionals to judge the true quality of the writing or editing in the marketplace. Writing that seems fine may be filled with hidden traps that will turn your reader off.

These traps can include passive constructions, words such as almost, might, etc. which weaken your message, use of clichés, and use of words or phrases that create default messages you do not want to convey.

Your readers will never tell you why they do not respond to your writing. They will simply toss it and move on.

Make certain that you release well-crafted  writing to the public, not just adequate writing. You will notice the difference it makes.

Write for the reader, not yourself

Whatever the reason you write, whether to sell a product, to present information, or to introduce yourself, you must write with the reader in mind.

Remember, the reader starts to read your item because he or she believes you will provide valuable information. Not valuable to you, valuable to the reader. He or she continues reading only when you deliver on that promise.

When you start by telling the reader about yourself, you create boredom. When you answer a problem the reader faces, you suddenly create great interest.

Fill your writing with benefits for the reader and you will never be called boring again.

Motivational Story of the Month
(Yes, it's on my web site. Go there and have fun browsing.)

Where Is Lee Speaking?

July 6, 2005:
"To Accredited and Beyond: Creating Your Speaking Life,"  Quest Communicators Toastmasters Club, Los Angeles County Sheriff Substation, 15 Lakewood Center Mall, Lakewood, CA 7 p.m.

July 16, 2005:
"The Myths of Goal Setting," Toastmasters Division B Training, Lake Ave. Church, 393 N Lake Ave., Pasadena.

New Books

Fifty-Seven Steps to Better Writing is my personal look at the writing and publishing business. You will learn how to choose a genre, how to select a publishing method and how to use the craft of writing to make your work sparkle.

Order this book now

Do you need help with your writing?

Lee Pound  helps writers and speakers strengthen their communication skills by teaching them to write clear, concise prose that all readers can understand.

Learn more about coaching here

Do you need a speaker?

Lee is an inspirational and motivational speaker who presents to organizations, conferences, businesses and clubs interested in learning more about skills used to communicate in writing and speaking and how to apply those skills in our daily lives.

Learn more about my presentations

Toastmasters

Learning to speak well requires practice. The best forum to practice is at a local Toastmasters Club. You can go to www.toastmasters.org for more information. You are invited to visit my clubs at any time. Call or e-mail for further information.

Possibilities Unlimited
Carrows Restaurant on Marguerite Parkway north of Avery Parkway in Mission Viejo, CA, Monday evening 7:15 p.m.

Performance Unlimited
IHOP Restaurant on MacArthur Blvd south of the 405 Freeway, Irvine, CA, Thursday evening, 7:00 p.m.