The Main Idea:
Following the advice in Smart Brevity improves communication.
Why This Matters:
- Being an excellent technician is no longer enough.
- We want people to read or hear what we have to say.
- We want people to understand (take away) our main point or idea.
Going Deeper:
The authors distilled the lessons they learned at Politico and Axios about readers and what gets read into a book. These lessons were based on statistics collected; some of the data reject accepted practices within journalism and communications. There are examples illustrating those lessons. There are also anecdotes that demonstrate the usefulness of said lessons.
While the focus of Smart Brevity is on improving our writing to be read and understood, there are also sections on presenting, speaking, and handling social media. As with writing, the authors included facts and data for their recommendations.
One thing I did not like was that the authors referenced Axios HQ and their Smart Brevity product. It’s a tool designed for organizations of 50+ employees primarily to improve internal communications. Despite this drawback, Smart Brevity has actionable advice that make it well worth both the monetary cost (if you can’t find it at your library) and the time to read.
Reference:
Title: Smart Brevity
Authors: Jim VandeHei, Mike Allen, Roy Schwartz
Publication Date: 2022 [Note: There is an updated 2025 edition. My review is of the 2022 edition.]
Publisher: Workman Publishing of Hachette Book Group, Inc.