I highly recommend “The Pyramid Principle: Logic in Writing and Thinking” by Barbara Minto.
It will change the way you think about communication, especially in a business context.
It will change the way you think about communication, especially in a business context.
Through his communication, he had an uncanny ability to persuade. I mean, he laid everything out in an easy to understand way, and you either agreed or disagreed. It’s easy to agree when a person has seemingly answered all your questions and concerns without you even asking.
One day in his office, I asked him, how did you become so good at communicating really complex topics? He sat back, thought for a beat, and then jumped up towards his book case. “This!” He handed me his copy of the Minto Pyramid Principle scribbled with notes in the margin and all.
Needless to say, after reading that book, I was able to see immediately how those principles applied to him.
Of course it takes lots and lots of practice even after you understand the concepts. But the Minto Pyramid Principle comes highly recommended!
2. There's a diagram
3. It has three levels
The most important thing goes first. If your reader doesn't care about it, they will move on anyways.
It is also a pyramid because the editor is likely going to have to cut it to fit in an allocated space, and as the writer you didn't know where that was going to happen.
Now that I think about, without the physical space restrictions 'modern' internet journalism doesn't have the same concision and I wish it did.