Reasons To Have Your Work Edited
Not Having Work Checked Detrimental To Writer's Credentials.
Checking your work is vital as it will make or break your grade. Here are some reasons as to why you should take time to re-read and edit your work!
Whether you choose to appoint an editor to check your work or opt to do it yourself, it is imperative that you have your writing fine-tuned before presenting it to the final audience. Your spelling, punctuation and even grammar can make or break your business deal, grade or pay-cheque.
Weigh the following examples against not re-reading your work and you will always find time to ensure that you deliver a top-notch final product.
Perfect written English reflects credibility.
It goes without saying that a person who can spell and who can differentiate tenses reflects an educated person. In fact, a person reading your document or project paper is not reading it to look for grammatical errors. He or she is there to understand the message you are trying to convey. However, mistakes do stand out, especially when you reader is working hard to digest the information you have set forth.
Having mistakes sprinkled all over your latest idea will affect you negatively, no matter how unique or bizarre your idea was to begin with. An idea may remain brilliant in your mind, but if you are unable to communicate it in writing, there is no chance of having it endorsed and turned into the desired product or service. You need to have it in print.
Check your English, especially if you know there is room for improvement; it does reflect your credibility.
Nil errors conveys the message of seriousness.
Having a crisp-clean perfected document attracts and air of seriousness. If your work is laden with careless mistakes, your reader may be easily irritated that he or she is subjected to reading, re-reading and even proofing your document.
By not editing your writing, you are not only causing yourself the opportunity that you were looking forward to but you are communicating to your reader that his or her time taken to read your work is as valuable as the time you did not take to check your work.
If you are submitting a resume for a new job, for example, misspelling previous employer names will indicate that you do not take your career seriously. This first impression will cost you the job. You will not be called for the interview.
Mistakes can cause embarrassment.
You may encounter embarrassing moments if your reader questions your ability to spell. Even if you are not present and your mistakes become a cafeteria joke, it is highly likely that your name will be attached to your spelling skills.
Imagine you are in the middle of your dissertation defense presentation and have made jarring spelling errors on your presentation slides, it may be cruel - but possible - to be shot down in the middle of your presentation with questions about your slides just to prod on the misspelled terminology.
Eliminate embarrassing or condescending remarks about your language deficiencies by having your work checked. It will save you unwarranted comments.
Written delivery is permanent.
Written delivery is different as compared to oral delivery. During a presentation, the audience is usually more focused on your body language, confidence level, tone of voice, the way you dress and other factors as compared to your language competency.
Your ability to spell during an oral presentation will never arise, unless there are mistakes on your slides (as above). But as long as you remain confident during your presentation, you may not have to worry about the grammatical mistakes you may make while speaking.
Written delivery is different. Your writing remains permanent in print on paper, and will not change no matter how hard you wish. Your mistakes will remain there through the five different times your document is read by three different people and the more they dwell on the mistakes you have made, the more likely it would have caused you your grade or even your business plan.
Though checking your work takes time and a lot of diligent effort, there is no amount of time that can amount to permanence.
Perfectionist attitudes are a competitive advantage.
Tough competition in the corporate world, school, job market or even in the office can be intimidating. At times, it seems like everyone has a better idea; has done more extensive research; has produced a thicker thesis and wears more presentable clothes.
However, the perfectionist in you can buy you preference by just delivering a more concise, error-free final written project. A project paper with zero errors denotes competency and seriousness in producing the piece.
It also stands out from other similar projects that are sprinkled with frivolous grammatical mistakes. Your readers will find it a pleasure to read and appreciate the hard work you have pumped into it. Allowing your work to be checked and edited will help you build your own competitive advantage over your peers.
