12. A way to write well: objective vs subjective
One way to view good writing: objective vs subjective.
Usually when people write, they start off with an emotion or story they want to tell. They start writing, maybe edit a bit, then they finish and publish it.
One way to view their actions was “publish one blog post”. This is the objective way of viewing content. It abstracts the intention of the words and instead measures progress on the post level.
Another way to view their actions is to read the blog post, understand what they were saying, and judge the content and quality of their thoughts. They are sharing something that they wanted you to know. And if they shared it in a public place, they are open to feedback. This is the subjective way of viewing writing: you are taking the frame of reference they intended and are engaging with it.
Often when writing — especially business writing — doesn’t accomplish it’s goal (views, signups, etc.) it’s because the writer has forgotten about the subjective frame. The company the writer works for is measuring the number of posts written, while the writer has to actually write an article. The company focuses too much on the objective lens and the subjective quality suffers.
Now, there are good reasons to view writing through the objective lens. First, volume in and of itself most often is the best path to quality writing. Second, companies need something to measure in order to prioritize initiatives that eventually earn them a profit. They can’t be paying money for a writer that they can’t justify. This is all fine.
But if you’re struggling with results in business writing, the answer might be changing your frame of reference. Try taking a subjective lens towards the writing. Is the piece actually answering the reader’s question? Is it actually entertaining? Would you share this information with a friend of yours, or is it so bland that the writer is bored? The solution to bad writing might be to spend more effort inside the piece.