by Sue Horner | Nov 23, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
In the old days, a handshake was your contract. Today, the hands involved belong to lawyers, and they are all over the simplest of contracts. Unfortunately, as Ohio Judge Mark P. Painter says, “Most legal writing is atrocious.” Forget short, crisp sentences. One...
by Sue Horner | Nov 15, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Hello friend, it’s time for another roundup of links you might have missed from posts I’ve shared on social media. This time, our focus is email and our sponsor is Elon Musk. Well, he doesn’t know it. But Twitter’s new overlord inspired me to share a collection...
by Sue Horner | Nov 9, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
All the Halloween decorations are stashed for the season. American Thanksgiving is on the doorstep. Warm weather on the weekend had neighbours putting up their Christmas lights. Someone I know (not naming names) had a Christmas tree up on November 3. So, it’s time for...
by Sue Horner | Nov 3, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
“Text studded with abbreviations is hard to read and unsightly,” says The Canadian Press Stylebook. “Avoid when an option exists.” It’s true you’re being kind to your reader when you explain abbreviations and acronyms.* But too many is, well, too much....
by Sue Horner | Oct 25, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Brown bears are big. I mean, BIG. You probably have to guess at the size, but would you guess “seven times the average American adult”? That’s Chunk, at 1,200 pounds the runner-up in the annual Fat Bear Week, October 5 to 11 this year. The winner, Bear 747 (shown...
by Sue Horner | Oct 17, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
The latest “Data Never Sleeps” shows the breathtaking amount of data created every minute on the internet: (See the full infographic here.) We’re asking Google questions (5.9 million every minute), uploading to YouTube (500 hours), sharing photos on Instagram...
by Sue Horner | Oct 12, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
The fall is as much a time of new beginnings as New Year’s. If you’re a PR or communication student, your new beginnings probably include building your network and launching your career. You can do both by making the most of your professional association while you’re...
by Sue Horner | Oct 3, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
IABC/Toronto members learned late yesterday that an “outstanding leader, mentor, #IABCTO volunteer, entrepreneur and educator” had died. Roberta (Bobbie) Resnick, ABC, APR, MC and IABC Fellow, was a long-time IABC volunteer; the chapter’s Student of the Year Award was...
by Sue Horner | Sep 27, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
Managers can be better writers, and some of my clients have asked for help to make that happen. The thing is, most companies judge their people by how well they handle their specific jobs. While clear writing would help managers communicate, writing doesn’t usually...
by Sue Horner | Sep 19, 2022 | The Red Jacket Diaries blog
You may or may not be on social media. Almost certainly, you aren’t seeing every interesting link that flashes past. So here are more links to helpful posts I’ve shared that you might have missed: Word choice “Don’t be mealy-mouthed about mortality,” says John...