Why Write?

Writing might not be as old as humanity, but it’s one of man’s oldest skills, indispensable one, off course. According to George Orwell, egoism—the desire to appear clever in the eyes of others—is what pushes people into writing. I agree with Orwell. But I also understand that the main reason students write is to get good grades. However, there are more benefits students can draw from the art of writing while in school and upon graduation.

In this fast-paced age, everyone is busy. Therefore, if your letter, story, or essay fails to hook your reader, it will be thrown somewhere. This means that we must learn to write in a particular way in order to get the attention of our readers. In his book Why Write and How to Write, Rahim Newton tells us how to hook a reader. Writing is a skill that everyone should possess, and luckily, it is learnable. Whether you want to write for fame or to write for living, you must learn to write well. Good writing skills can get you promotion at work. Social media has come to emphasize the importance of writing.

Social media, which is now the most powerful medium of communication, has made writing more necessary. Entrepreneurs advertise their businesses via social media, while celebrities reach out to their followers via social media through writing. Both noblemen and commoners all communicate via social media in the form of writing, making writing a must-have skill.

Why is Writing Skill so Important?

Writing is an Essential Job Requirement: The scourge of unemployment is felt across continents, today. However, some job seekers distinguish themselves with their writing skills, which is now a crucial job requirement. Instead of spending huge sums of money to give employees training in writing, employers prefer to hire people who already possess adequate writing skills. This way, employers can save money for other projects.

Good Writing Skills can get you Promotion at work: Worldwide, companies task their employees to write reports. Some employees fail this test due to their poor writing skills. Mastering the art of writing will, therefore, put you ahead of your colleagues, and can get you promotion.

Writing Is a Leadership Skill: That leaders are born, that is ok! I also believe that leadership skills can be learned. As well as creativity, the ability to teach and mentor, writing is a skill all political, corporate and school leaders must have. According to corporate leaders, when working on a project with a team, it is more convenient to compose a message once and transmit it to members of the team than to call for meetings repeatedly. They argue that it is a mark of poor leadership to call for meetings to say what you could share via e-mail or text. This emphasizes the importance of writing as a leadership skill. Out of the many rewards leaders get from their followers, trust is the single most important one. A leader’s ability to write persuasively wins him the trust and backing of his people. Writing allows leaders to communicate their ideas to far larger audiences than through cell phone or face-to-face conversations.

Effective Communication: With good writing skills, we express our ideas clearly. Now, to get a job, you must communicate your skills to the employer through your curriculum vitae and cover letter. To gain admission to read you a postgraduate program, you must submit a statement of purpose. Your inability to write properly can deny you a job. It can also deny your admission. Poor writing skills means poor communication. People who write poorly are marked as poor communicators while those with good writing skills are seen as professional communicators.

Professionalism: Careers such as journalism, marketing, etc., directly demand excellent writing skills. But whether your career directly requires writing or not, you cannot do away with sending emails, writing memos or reports in this digital age. Reading from someone for the first time, we quickly conclude on how professional, organized, creative or dull he/she is. Poor writing leaves a detrimental lasting impression. Thus, good writing skills reveal your level of professionalism.

The above illustration reveals the importance of writing; giving us reasons to sharpening our writing skills.

Rahim Newton

[email protected]