I was very interested to read Lee Kwan Yew’s eulogy to his late wife Madam Kwa Geok Choo.

In it, he said, “Over the years, she influenced my writing style. Now, I write in short sentences, in the active voice.” Many people could take the lead from Mr Lee here – they would find that their writing – and their relationships – will improve big time if they do.

I’ve noticed more and more in my writing workshops that many people are having trouble writing in active voice. The bottom line is that passive voice puts a distance between you and your reader; it’s a ‘nothing-to-do-with-me’ approach, and one that won’t help to build relationships.

‘Voice’ is a grammatical term that refers to whether the subject of the sentence is acting or receiving the action. Using active voice can considerably improve your writing style: Active voice makes your writing more interesting, more lively, and more… well, active!

Check Out These Two Examples Of A Similar Message:

Active voice: Tim played the violin.

Here, the subject is the actor, Tim. You can almost see Tim playing the violin, totally absorbed in his music. The sentence is alive and interesting.

Passive voice: The violin was played by Tim.

Here, the subject is the violin. The action is gone. The emphasis has been moved from the subject performing the action to the subject receiving the action. It is not so easy to visualise what is happening. The sentence is dull and boring.

Here Are Some Tips That May Help You To Tell When A Sentence Is Passive:

• Watch for sentences that start with the action, rather than the actor; sentences that start with the action are often passive

• Watch for various forms of the verb ‘to be’, such as is, are, was, were, will be, have been, should be, etc; these verbs may not always indicate that the sentence is passive, but they often give you a clue

One thing I always consider in my writing is that active voice ‘puts the person first’. Say, “The plumber fixed the leak.” instead of, “The leak was fixed by the plumber.” Say, “Our Managing Director presented this month’s award to John Tan.” rather than, “This month’s award was …”.

Is Passive Voice Ever Appropriate?

Yes, there are some occasions when passive voice would be more appropriate:

• It may be better to make a particularly important noun the subject of the sentence, thus giving it extra emphasis
  Example: It would be better to say: Our restaurant has been recommended by all the leading hotels in Singapore.
  This emphasises ‘our restaurant’, rather than: All the leading hotels in Singapore recommend our service.

• When you want to place the focus on the action, not the actor
  Example: The noise was heard all over the island.
  Here, the emphasis is on the noise, not the people who made the noise.

• When you want to hide something or when tact is important
  Example: An unfortunate mistake was made.

Active voice will update and improve your writing significantly, and will make it so much more personal and focused. Take the lead from our Minister Mentor, and start using short sentences and active voice! You’ll see the improvement in your writing – and in your relationships!

Visit the STTS Training page to find out more about Shirley Taylor’s work.

^{© 2016 Shirley Taylor. Shirley Taylor of STTS Training is a recognised leading authority on business writing and communication skills. For almost 30 years she has presented keynotes and training programmes that help people and organisations boost communication skills and develop great relationships both orally and in writing. Shirley is bestselling author of 12 books, including Model Business Letters, Emails and Other Business Documents, which has sold half a million copies worldwide and has been translated into many languages. If you would like Shirley to speak at your next event, visit www.shirleytaylor.com.
Edited by Michelle Sarthou
Image credit: Shutterstock
Reference: www.ShirleyTaylorVT.com}

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