ENC 3250, Professional Writing

Assignment 4 Productivity Tips

Week 11 • Fall 2015University of South Florida, Sarasota-Manatee

Length of this lecture audio (7 slides): 00:14:21Jot down the three audio codes -- you will be sending the

Week 11 and Week 12 codes with Assignment 4 by Nov. 30, 2015

© 2015, T. E. Roberts, Instructor

ENC 3250, Professional Writing - Fall 2015 - Week 11 - Slide 2 of 7

Week 11 Agenda

• Reminder: Your #4 outline is due by 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 2, 2015 (send by email to tr@sar.usf.edu and include the Week 9 and 10 audio codes)

• Pacing yourself

• Don’t think of the finished product (yet)

• Be creative

• This is not a chore but an opportunity

• You need a schedule

• Helpful resources

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Pacing Yourself

• Work in one- to two-hour sessions

• Keep your mind open to ideas as you are at your job, doing other schoolwork, talking to friends, relaxing at the beach or on the boat, Facebooking, reading, watching TV, surfing the net

• Carry a small notebook + pen or audio recorder with you at all times

• Look for unexpected links between your topic and your everyday observations -- curiosity is essential to learning!

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Don’t Worry Yet About Finished Product

• Approach your assignment the way a movie director films the scenes -- in the order that makes most sense financially and logistically

• As in a movie or stage production, it is the final assembly and editing that determine results

• “Logic” does not necessarily mean lockstep, one-two-three linear order

• Ideas are generated, captured, refined, edited, and articulated in mysterious ways

• Let your ideas grow organically rather than forcing them into a rigid pattern

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Business Documents (and Professionals)

Should Be Creative!

• Some students majoring in business feel vaguely ashamed about the dullness of their career choice

• Regardless of others’ negative opinion, there is no greater art or creativity in human life than to analyze, understand, and invent business ideas or solve business problems

• Business also produces (or can produce) results of great value to society in general

• There is a reason we call it “show business”!

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Assignment 4 Is an Opportunity

• Why do so many students dread an “English paper”?

• Because in most of their courses, they have been asked to write on topics that have no bearing on their lives or careers, using language that has little relevance to reality

• Assignment 4 calls for clear thinking, logical organization, and articulate writing about pragmatic ideas and results that matter in your career

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You Need A Schedule

• Try to complete at least one double-spaced page every day for the next two weeks.

• In two weeks, you will have 14 pages completed.

• Now you have something to EDIT, not just worry about!

• A writer’s most important job is editing and re-writing -- this process helps you clarify and support your ideas in concrete, concise words for your reader.

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Helpful Resources

• You are not alone in this task• Contact me via email for help at any time

• Talk to your peers, professors, librarians, co-workers, family ... even your boss!

• Keep your mind open to relevant information on TV, radio, internet, and in newspapers, magazines, and everyday conversation

• Write the draft quickly without censoring yourself

• “Once I got into the research, I was amazed at how quickly I was able to prepare my first draft. The paper just seemed to write itself after I cleared away the clutter and focused on the main idea.” -- an ENC 3250 student (this is a real quote, not one your instructor invented!)