“If you can’t explain something to a first-year student, then you haven’t really understood.”
This goes for accountants and auditors as much as it does for physics teachers.
If you’re speaking to folks who aren’t accountants, keep it simple. With non-financial managers, there’s no hiding behind terms. You need to speak in plain, everyday words.
Here are three tips to keep things clear:
- Assume your reader is new to the topic. Drop the accounting jargon. Don’t use the term and explain it in brackets—just write what you mean.
- Stick to words with three syllables or less (like in this post).
- Skip the adjectives and adverbs. Use strong nouns and verbs instead.
Clear writing helps both you and your reader. It makes you stand out.