No matter what career you pursue - whether you want to be a doctor, an electrician, or a business owner - you will need to have strong writing skills and good reading comprehension. Here are a few situations where strong writing and reading skills come in handy in the workplace:

On your resume

Having a clearly written, concise, and professional resume and cover letter is key for any job you apply to. You’ll stand out to employers because you put thought and care into your application, especially if you take the time to make sure it’s grammatically correct and has language tailored to the specific job you’re applying for (check out our list of keywords and how they help you get a job). If you need help creating a resume, check out our easy to use resume template!

Communicating with customers, patients, or outside partners

You may need to be in regular contact with people outside of your company, so good reading and writing skills are crucial! Sending emails with typos or poor grammar isn’t the best look, and can poorly affect any first impressions with customers, patients, or partners. You are representing your company here, so the ability to clearly read questions, concerns, or requests and answer them in a professional and understandable manner is key. 

Communicating with managers and coworkers

While sending poorly written emails to outside partners or customers is a bad look, the same applies to people within your company, too. Reading and writing skills are crucial when sending emails, writing reports, and giving presentations. Showing management that you have the tools necessary to excel in the company can go a long way, and maybe even lead to a promotion down the road!

How can I improve my reading and writing skills?

It can take some time and practice to sharpen these skills. The sooner you start, the more prepared you’ll be to enter the workforce with your best foot forward! Here are some of our recommendations for getting started on improving your reading and writing skills:

Writing:

• Freerice.com by the United Nations World Food Program quizzes you on your vocabulary- for every question you answer correctly, you donate 10 grains of rice to people in need. The more you play (and practice your vocabulary), the more you donate!

• Download Grammarly for free onto your computer- it’ll catch your typos or awkward sentences and recommend changes to make to them. You’ll begin to correct yourself before making mistakes in the future!
• Eliminate distractions. Having the TV on or listening to music while trying to write can throw you off and make it difficult to concentrate.
• Read more! The more you read, the more you expand your vocabulary and learn different styles of writing. We recommend starting with whatever subject interests you the most (in fiction or nonfiction).

Reading:

• Read books below your reading level. Start by reading books written for younger audiences, like any of the ones in the Harry Potter series. This will give you the confidence and momentum to work your way up to reading more challenging books over time.
• Read in small chunks. Forcing yourself to read will likely result in you skimming the pages rather than actually focusing on what you’re reading. You’re more likely to remember what you read when you read as much as your patience or attention span allows, then take a quick break.
• Repeat what you read out loud. This is a great way to make sure you’re understanding what you’re reading. Take a moment to repeat or summarize what you just read out loud. If something seems off, you can always go back and re-read!
• Eliminate distractions. Having the TV on or listening to music while trying to read can throw you off and make it difficult to concentrate.
• Write more! It’s a cycle: the more you read, the better you can write. The more you write, the easier it is to read.

Any other ideas to add to this list? Leave us a comment on Instagram @getschooled or text #Hello to 33-55-77!