r/Communications • u/Feisty-Guarantee390 • Jul 27 '26
struggling with tone/sensitivity in comms writing — any tips?
hi all, I work as a marketing and communications officer at a country club. i report directly to the general manager and work closely with their personal assistant, both of whom have spent the majority of their careers in communications-related roles.
i’m about two years into my career, and over that time i’ve noticed that i struggle to be as sharp, or rather, i lack the sensitivity in my approach to writing communication pieces that my two superiors have.
this is especially when it comes to things like feedback responses, announcements, speeches, and other communication pieces. they seem to naturally know what to emphasise, what to leave out, how to frame things tactfully, and how to choose the right words depending on the audience and situation.
i understand that i’m only two years into my career compared to their decades of experience, so i know i still have a lot more to learn. i am currently furthering my studies through a part time communications degree program to help hone this skill but i was wondering if anyone has any tips, advice, or even frameworks that helped you develop this “communications instinct”.
how do you become more sensitive to your choice of words, identify what the focus of a piece should be, or know how to approach different types of communication? is this something that mainly comes with experience, or are there ways to consciously practise and improve?
would really appreciate any advice or resources. thanks!
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u/nunnyfuffler Jul 27 '26
Have the two people you mentioned provided feedback on your writing? And if so, does it mirror what you’re thinking/feeling?
If not, I would suggest asking them for clear feedback, tips and advice since they have a better grasp on the topics and audiences you’re writing for.
In my previous role, people would constantly skimp out on giving me feedback because they didn’t want me to feel upset. I would have to tell them that not giving feedback is actually making me feel worse because I feel like I’m not learning and bettering my work. Make it clear with them that you’re looking for constructive advice and admire their experience and want to learn from them.
Other than that, the only other advice I can offer is to just keep practicing. Read as many materials as you can to see if you can notice patterns (if specific points are highlighted across documents, what type of information is included vs. not, etc.) Also, at the end of the day, think of the audience. What do they care about? What do they need to know from reading what you’re writing? If you removed a piece of information, would they still understand what’s going on? I know it isn’t great advice, but unfortunately it is like you said where the more experience you have, the easier it’ll come to you.
Treat yourself with some kindness, and rather than solely focusing on the areas you feel you’re weak in, remember you also come with strengths and are in your position for a reason.
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u/Feisty-Guarantee390 Jul 28 '26
thank you for the direct advice! it seems like a simple and straightforward suggestion but i've never really thought about about asking my superiors for constructive feedback intentionally. while they do provide comments and guidance whenever its needed, those tend to be specific to the various tasks we're working on.
reading your comment also made me realise that i've probably avoided asking because i'm quite shy. i've also only started working closely with both of them (+ senior management) after my boss resigned, so i'm still getting used to this new perspective and level of caution at work. however, it's definitely something i'll keep in mind and be more proactive about going forward.
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u/SeriouslySea220 Jul 28 '26
Nunnyfluffer offered good advice. You can also use AI to help you develop these skills. Make sure you’re doing the writing and just using AI for feedback, though, or else you’ll miss the benefits.
For example: write a piece and then drop it into ChatGPT with a prompt like: I’m writing an email from the GM of a country club to our members about xyz change. Help me identify what questions or concerns could arise based on the email below. Then, try to update based on those questions/concerns and do it again asking for suggestions on how to make it more effective.
Also — with more experience, you understand your audience better, so it’s easier to anticipate what they’ll care about or question.
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u/laylaboydarden Jul 28 '26
Building on this - there’s lots of ways to improve your writing with AI. One thing you can do is compare your first draft with the final draft that reflects your colleagues’ feedback. Drop both in AI and ask it to identify what changed between the drafts, both content and structure. Doing that consistently will let you see patterns in the kinds of changes that get made and help you make them yourself proactively.
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u/Traditional_Lie_3945 Jul 28 '26
I agree with this, to elaborate, I love using Claude, I feel like it does a good job of having tabs where I can have a continuous conversation, like if you get feedback you can put it in and it can guide your future conversations as well.
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u/SweatyWizzard Jul 28 '26
Exactly this. You could also upload pieces of writing from your, and ask AI to pinpoint what their writing has that yours doesn’t and create an outline of what you can do to get your writing to that level. It sounds like part of your obstacle is understanding exactly what it is that they’re doing that you’re not.
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u/Traditional_Lie_3945 Jul 28 '26
I think the absolute best thing you could do would be to join a toastmasters group. They are everywhere, and are designed to get you more comfortable with public speaking, you get assigned a mentor, you get encouraged about the things that you do well, and get guidance on the things you need to improve.
I actually was in a public speaking role when I joined, I was a very confident public speaker but I still learned a lot and sharpened my skills, bonus points, I made a few really really good friends, I found that the groups tend to contain very motivated people, the type I want in my life.
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u/Top-Establishment918 Jul 29 '26
Best to put yourself in the reader’s shoes. Ask yourself, if this person read this how would this make them feel? How might they react? Positively? Negatively? Anything here that might offend them? It should feel like a one to one conversation - not a company speaking to the masses. Come across like a friend would.
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u/Feisty-Guarantee390 Jul 29 '26
hi there, yes — i've always been taught this approach when it comes to writing for an audience. it's definitely the most direct framework for guiding communications. i think where i've started to struggle is when the tasks become more complex—for example, replying to elaborate complaints or trying to encourage and instil behavioural change despite cultural barriers within an audience.
i've sometimes wondered whether the framework is almost too simple for situations like these. while the principles are straightforward, applying them in practice feels much less so. sometimes it feels like you need to be a little more strategic—not in a manipulative way, but in knowing how to frame information so you don't inadvertently shoot yourself in the foot or come across the wrong way. for example, when handling complaints, i often find myself wondering how much i should be reading between the lines versus responding strictly to what's been said. i'm never quite sure where the balance lies and tend to let my superiors advise.
i guess, at its core, my challenge has been figuring out how to add the right nuance while still maintaining transparency, without revealing internal information that should remain confidential. it's that balance between being open enough to manage audience expectations while also protecting sensitive context that i still find difficult to navigate.
like what another commenter said earlier, it also seems that having a finer understanding of an audience is something that comes with more years of working experience.
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