Blog

PBW: An Instructional Design Story

On January 5, 2018 / Wavelength Updates, Writing Skills

by Jody Bruner

Wavelength is the result of merging two communication skills training companies, IWCC and BrunerBiz. In 2017, we blended our two flagship business writing courses (IWCC’s High Impact Business Writing and Bruner’s Effective Business Writing) to deliver a course that combines the best of each: Professional Business Writing. Creating this new workshop was a great learning experience, and everyone—our team and clients who have piloted the course—is happy with the results.

This is an instructional design story, in which we share how this redesign revealed what each workshop assumed about the learner, and about reconciling two different approaches to writing.

Different assumptions about our learners Read more →

Myself: Use With Caution

On December 4, 2017 / Email Writing, Personal Brand, Presentation Skills, Writing Skills

by Rachel Eidan

Do you overuse the pronoun myself? If so, you’re not alone. People often use it when a simple I or me would work.

The problem is that myself tends to complicate sentences, which may be why some people are attracted to it—it sounds sophisticated and fancy. Resist the urge! Incorrectly using fancy words can make you appear snobby and ignorant, and may have a negative impact on your image and career.

Let’s make sure you never confuse me, myself and I. Here’s the lowdown on how each pronoun is used: Read more →

How to Create Your Own Email Protocol

On November 22, 2017 / Career Coaching, Email Writing

by Rachel Eidan

Are your team’s email practices inconsistent, causing confusion and miscommunication? This is an issue we hear about often from our clients. Although we teach teams to write effective emails, improve etiquette, and communicate strategically, some groups still need help with fundamental conventions. If this sounds like your team, try creating your own company email protocol. Here’s a quick how-to: Read more →

Listening Skills for Effective Communication

On November 7, 2017 / Career Coaching, Meeting Skills, Presentation Skills

by Rachel Eidan

We can all be more effective communicators by using our ears more than our mouths. Be honest, how much have you ever learned listening to yourself talk?

We often think that good communicators are good speakers; however, the most powerful communicators have excellent listening skills. Of course, there are some tips of effective communication that extend beyond simply listening, although this element is absolutely crucial. Many people take the skill of listening for granted. You have ears, so you listen all the time, right? But you need to ask yourself how well you listen. Read more →

Communicating Out: Technical to Non-Technical

On October 17, 2017 / Presentation Skills, Technical Communication Skills, Writing Skills

Jody Bruner from Wavelength and David Donaldson from TidalShift, experts in project management, team up to discuss one of our most asked about topics: communicating to non-technical people.

Transcription: Read more →

5 Tips for Giving Bad News Well

On October 4, 2017 / Email Writing, Meeting Skills, Presentation Skills, Writing Skills

by Leigh Geraghty

Whether you need to refuse a customer’s insurance claim or decline an employee’s request for vacation, delivering bad news is one of our toughest writing challenges. How do you deliver a clear message, without damaging your business relationship?

If you’re faced with delivering a bad news message, an indirect approach can help to ease your reader into the bad news.

Follow these 5 simple steps to write a difficult message using the indirect approach: Read more →

3 Tips for Writing an Effective Performance Review

On September 19, 2017 / Career Coaching, Wavelength Updates

by Alan De Back

The end of the calendar year is when many organizations start their performance review process. Both employees and managers often find the process confusing, frustrating, and demotivating. Whether employees are writing their self-review or managers are writing their supervisory reviews, many people struggle with what to write and how to write it. If they’re not careful, managers can lose the opportunity to not only improve their team members’ performance but also improve their relationships and communication channels.

Here are three tips to help you in the performance review process:

5 Quick Ways to Influence Others

On September 7, 2017 / Career Coaching, Email Writing, Meeting Skills, Presentation Skills, Writing Skills

influence by Lesley Nevills

Do you struggle to find the right words when you need to communicate persuasively or influence others within or outside your organization? If so, join the club. Lots of people find persuading others challenging, especially when the conversation is strategic and you anticipate pushback. Having the skills to gain buy-in for your ideas or approval for a solution you are recommending is critical to your success in business. These skills will also build your confidence and can help raise your profile in the workplace.

Here are some tips to help you win people over and get them to support your ideas. Read more →

How to Use Geometric Psychology to Influence People

On August 14, 2017 / Career Coaching, Wavelength Updates

by Lucille Lo Sapio

How often has your boss, colleague or client reacted poorly to your work output or ideas because you just didn’t understand their perspective? Imagine how much better communication would be if you could know their personality type and how to best influence them. You might just get a better understanding of how they see the world, and from that, how you can work better together.

You’ve probably taken a psychological test or two to determine your own personality type. We’ve been doing that since Hippocrates’ time. One of my favorites is Psychogeometrics, developed in 1978 by Dr. Susan Dellinger. It’s based on the notion that we are attracted to certain shapes and forms based on our personalities, attitudes, education and experience. And once you determine which of those personality types you’re dealing with, the better equipped you are to communicate effectively. Read more →

Managers: How to Help Make the Learning Stick

On August 10, 2017 / Career Coaching, Learning Retention, Wavelength Updates, Writing Skills

by Rachel Eidan

Acquiring new skills, tools and processes happens in the classroom, but making sure that learning is retained depends on changing habits back on the job. And it’s tough to change. Learners are more likely to successfully improve their skills long term when they have a manager who provides the right kind of support. Here are some ways managers can help:

Ask for a one-minute essay describing the main points learned in the course as soon as possible following its completion. Learning retention is time-sensitive, so be sure you ask for this promptly. Writing helps consolidate key points and clarify the learning. Learners should post a printout of this somewhere for a few days and give it a quick re-read whenever they have a moment. Read more →

Contact