Writing Without Bullshit audiobook

I gotta tell you, I feel a little pressure reviewing and recommending a book about effective, clean writing. This is a really good book and if I don’t convey it well, it’s not the book’s fault. It’s challenging to constantly look at your words and ask, “is that what I meant and no more?” Cutting the crap from your writing forces you to be honest with yourself and your readers. Muddy, showy writing deceives by confusing and camouflaging.The Iron Imperative – Treat the reader’s time as more valuable than your own – summarizes Josh Bernoff’s objective and methods. He advises removing jargon, weasel words (vague words like “many” and “most”), and passive voice while being direct and honest. He also breaks down the clear writing process for emails, reports, and missives. No burying the lede. Get to it and get out. Frequently, I stopped reading in order to apply the techniques to my articles, blog, and book reviews. The ROAM technique is spot on: "After reading this piece, [Readers] will realize [Objective] so they will [desired Action] and think of me/us as [desired Impression]."This is exactly what I wished to learn about nonfiction writing and couldn’t find in college writing classes. ENG100 includes audience and context but does not respect the reader’s time or get to the purpose of writing – to communicate! Bernoff’s message is simple and brilliant. Every education, business, and news organization should adopt the Iron Imperative. Writing Without Bullshit is a keeper for regular reminding to stay on the path of clarity.

I read this book as professional development for work and was even able to lead a discussion group about it. It's a great resource with lots of handy, practical tips for writers in the business world!

A straightforward book on the dos and don't of business writing. Well written and informative, but it does not break any new ground. Rating: an overly generous 4 out of 5 Stars.

I highly recommend this book to someone looking to improve their writing efficiency in a business/professional environment. This book discusses techniques on how to follow the "Iron Imperative," in other words "Treating the reader's time as more valuable than your own."

This book is a gem for effective writing and to have an opinion on the articles and content we read. It just gives you an honest opinion on how should effective writing should be. I have learned the power and impact of the writing. 1. Iron Imperative: Treat the reader's time as more valuable than your own. 2. Learn to front load the subject and the content you would like to express in your writing. 3. Use as few words as possible without jargon and weasel words.4. Do not use passive voice try to be as specific as possible by being to the point. 5. Use ROAM principle in all your writings to concentrate on Readers, what is the Objective, what is Action post-reading, and the iMpression you want on you from the readers. In today's world writing has become very common and the internet is full of written content. As an author, you should express the content with minimal words without the fluff and save readers time.

I found this book to be extremely helpful. I'll return to it again and again. Note that its about writing for business situations which is different from academic or creative writing. I've found that a lot of writers at work adopt what they think is a "professional" writing tone. I've done it too. We read each others' (bad) writing and make ours sound similar. But after reading this book I've come to realize that my writing is full of fluff, meaningless adjectives, passive voice (because active voice sounds too bold), and lots of vague weasel words that sound impressive but don't really add anything. If you read this book and adopt its suggestions then your writing will stand out at work.

The beginning of this book as well as the chapters about emails and reports were great. The others were not as relevant to me. • Be direct - have the courage to say what you mean• Front loading - put the conclusion up front• Eliminate weasel words - e.g. don't tell us that many people do something, tell us which people do it• Reveal structure with the use of bullets, headings, and lists• Email thoughtfully - know the objective of the email and what you want the recipient to do about it• Craft actionable reports - Goal is to make readers understand what you've learned. Stories help.

Billed as a book to help you boost your career by saying or writing what you mean, this is capable of being much more besides! Whether beginner or more-experienced, there is a lot of potential waiting for you here.The author believes that workplaces are full of bullshit, when different types of communications are considered, and inefficiency and disorganisation is rife. By cutting out the crap, focussing on what you really need to communicate and streamlining your delivery you will stand-out from your colleagues. Yet you need to shape up and change your attitude and it is quite possible that we all could do with a little change and refocus, even if we are not specifically sinners. Within a couple of dozen short chapters, the author explains the so-called “Iron Imperative” principle, whereby you treat the time of everybody else as more valuable than your own, so you need to edit and focus your communications accordingly. Examples of problems and guidance about how to resolve matters are, of course, given. This is not like many other similar “self-help” books; it is positively different, it doesn’t patronise and neither does it resort to hyperbole or insincere energy to get its message across. Even as a fairly experienced writer, this book was interesting and capable of possibly teaching an old dog some slightly better, new tricks. Even the best machines can go rusty and run sub-optimally from time to time without a bit of ongoing maintenance. It is definitely worth a look. It will have you think about all your communications, whether writing reports, emails, website copy, brochures, speeches and maybe it can even impact on your personal life too. If anything, the book is hiding a lot of its potential so if you only glance at it you then you may miss out on rather a lot. Highly recommended!Autamme.com

This is an excellent book about how to write with absolute clarity in the business world. I highly recommend it.Some of the best writing tips in this book include:#1 Treat the readers' time as more valuable than your own. If you can share a message in 30 words, don't use 100 words#2 Business writing is to get things done, not to show off or entertain#3 Be direct in your writing#4 Replace jargon #5 Visualize your reader and write directly to them #6 Add creativity to your writing, such as use stories and pictures, etc. And many more essential and helpful tips are included in the book.

Straight to the PointsDrawn in by its title, I was excited but weary to read this book. The author covered many issues today about writing and why is it done so poorly, with an outstanding amount of suggestions, tips and recommendations. Overall, I enjoyed the book. I would add feedback related to the contradictory information on Search Engine Optimization (SEO). Early in the book, the author says forget it, then in the last chapter he says think about it when developing ideas.

Top tier material. Deserves to be read with a notebook and pencil in hand. Most of it is geared towards corporate and social media writing- reports and blog posts and the like- but the material applies either way. Reading this book was a pleasure. The author was efficient, didn't mince words, and argued his points well. I wish for a world with this level of awareness towards social media litter.Would recommend to everyone who writes. Will read again, will keep on the bookshelf to re-read and study.

Read this three times.I do a great deal of work for religious organizations, I don't use potty mouth in writing...(personally, in private that is different)...but I cannot help but highly recommend the book, "Writing without Bullshit". It is awesome and will help your business or religious organization.I want to meet clear direct thinkers like this in heaven. No shit...this is a great such a great book.

If You Are Paid to Write, Read This Now!The world is drowning in BS. Unfortunately, those of us who are paid to write are contributing to the problem. Probably unconsciously! Josh Bernoff's fine guidebook explains clearly why this is the case and better still, offers actionable insights to elevate your writing above the swamp of bland, corporate, nothing-speak. Even if writing is not your profession, your communication skills will improve markedly after following Josh’s advice.

Practices what it preachesBernoff focuses on teaching core tactics for simplifying language, aimed particularly for people in work environments. Similar to the tips he proposes, the book is relatively short and sweet. Well worth a read even if you don’t think you write that much.

Bom livro para os dias de hoje em que ainda temos de escrever e-mails para se comunicar no trabalho e escrever relatórios. A principal utilidade dele para mim foi causar reflexão se a gente escreve mais porque é util para quem vai ler ou se queremos exibir o que sabemos. Quase no final ele fica um pouco repetitivo e desnecessário e vai para um caminho de ensinar a como escrever um livro.