In the future, the lives of those who can express their thoughts in writing and those who cannot will be starkly different. If someone brings a report filled with dense text that is hard to understand, how many people would want to listen? Most people write only what they want to say from their own perspective. Truly, if one continues to write, they will practice expressing their thoughts in a refined single sentence, which will enable them to speak coherently in everyday conversations and during interviews or presentations. I should definitely see this person in an interview.

Hello, I am Kim Ho-jung, an engineer to the core, and I prefer letters over numbers. I am the author of the Absolute Principles of Writing for the Top 1%. It's a pleasure to meet you. We must write in order to live lives that are not dominated by AI. People often ask, Why should we learn to write when AI can write and translate everything for us?

However, in the future, the lives of those who can express their thoughts in writing and those who cannot will be starkly different. AI can quickly produce standardized writing, compiling and summarizing information. However, the unique stories in my mind can never be extracted. We must clearly recognize the difference between these two aspects. As humans already living alongside AI, we should leave what AI does well to AI and focus on what it cannot do. No matter how advanced AI becomes, it cannot extract the thoughts in our minds. If we possess the ability to express our unique creativity in writing, we will lead lives that are not dominated by AI but rather lives that dominate AI. The reports we write are not merely for scoring well on tests; they are written to persuade and help others understand. We must write in a way that is easy and concise for the other party to comprehend.

Most people write only what they want to say from their own perspective. Therefore, even if they read the report, they can't understand what it means, and their approval gets rejected. Anyone can explain difficult things in a complicated way. If you can explain something in a clear and concise manner, the rest of the content will also be clear. The key point is that reports should not be written based on my perspective, but rather with consideration of what the other person might be curious about. Writing is essential even for those who don't need to write. Speaking is about organizing the thoughts that are floating around in your head and expressing them verbally. If you can't organize your thoughts well, even when you speak, you'll end up rambling, and the conversation will become incomprehensible. When talking with college students or junior colleagues, I often notice friends who articulate their thoughts coherently and express their opinions clearly. These friends have a common trait.

The characteristic is that I have been keeping a diary for a long time. Writing requires that a sentence be complete, and the coherence within the sentence must be correct, among other things. It demands much more thought and consideration than expressing oneself verbally. If you continue to write consistently, you will practice expressing your thoughts in a refined single sentence, which will enable you to speak fluently in everyday conversations and during interviews or presentations. Even for those who believe they do not need writing, engaging in it will enhance their quality of life and provide experiences that can change their future. The most important thing is to think from the perspective of the audience when writing. I evaluate and review various reports and papers as a technical proposal writer, design consultant, advisory committee member, and academic paper reviewer. When I read a report that feels difficult, it is naturally because it was written in a complicated manner. In contrast, a well-written paper or report...

It is really easy to read because it is written from the perspective of the reader rather than the writer's own standards. When I teach major courses at the university, I assign fun tasks to students that other professors do not. One of the tasks is to summarize the content they have learned. I tell the students to think of it as if this one report will determine their employment. The interviewer will only spend five minutes reviewing this report, so they must be able to explain and convey the learned content easily within that time frame. When the students hear this, most of them look surprised. Why did I assign such a task? The intention is to have them practice the basics of document writing, which is to simply explain the key points clearly. There is always someone who will read the report. It is essential to consider the perspective of the reader and constantly ask what they might be curious about, providing answers to those questions.

You need to write it out. This applies not only to reports but also to self-introductions, theses, and proposals. When you have to write a report at a company, starting from a blank page can be difficult for anyone. However, if you refer to documents that have already been approved, it becomes much easier to approach the task. The fact that a document has been approved means that it has already undergone review by numerous people during the approval process, ensuring a certain level of quality. It is particularly helpful to refer to reports approved by the CEO or executives. Nowadays, most companies have all their documents digitized through groupware. Even if the topics or fields are different, having a variety of meaningful reports secured in advance can be extremely beneficial. If you look at reports from the perspective of your supervisor, you will see what message was intended to be conveyed and how it was delivered. Additionally, it is important to read the newspaper daily and review various policy reports or publications from private economic research institutes.

Seeing the report is really a great help. Since this isn't something that can be accomplished in just a day or two, if you accumulate knowledge gradually in your usual acorn mode, there will definitely come a time when it shines. A person who writes well can be said to convey the core points concisely and understandably. If we relate this to real life, when you receive a map, what does it contain? The names of the bride and groom, their parents' names, the date and time of the ceremony, the location, and how to get there—all of this is represented in the map. The reports we write are similar to creating a map. This is what we call practical writing. Unfortunately, the Korean language education we've received throughout elementary, middle, and high school has mostly focused on literature, so we haven't had the chance to learn practical writing properly. This issue is even more pronounced in public education. Writing literature is like drawing a satellite image, while practical writing is simply drawing a map. What a boss wants is...

There is a map to the wedding venue, but drawing it with clumsy skills is frustrating for both the person drawing it and the boss receiving it. In practical writing, like report writing, the content should be concise and focused on the main points. Another important aspect is to state the conclusion first. For example, if you go to see a thriller movie and someone reveals at the beginning, I'm the culprit, it would spoil the excitement. However, reports should be the opposite; you need to present the conclusion first, stating who the culprit is and then explaining why and how that person is the culprit. Most people tend to give the conclusion at the very end, which is understandably frustrating for the boss. A typical example is a report that lacks a core message. Every report must have a single clear message, whether it is to go left or right; it should be explicit. Without that clarity, the writing becomes repetitive and unclear, making it difficult to understand.

이것은 말인지 모르는 보고서가 되는 것입니다. 보고서는 있는 것이 아니고, 보는 것입니다. 사람은 시각으로 정보를 인지하기 때문에 수많은 문장과 수치보다 단 하나의 도표가 훨씬 더 효과적입니다. 특히 정보의 양이 많아질수록 직관적인 표현은 더욱 중요해집니다. 수치들이 가득할 때에는 도표를 이용해 수치가 의미하는 바를 잘 설명할 수 있어야 합니다. 이게 없으면 그저 의미 없는 숫자들의 나열에 불과합니다.

몇 가지 체크해야 할 사항이 있는데, 그 중에서도 이 세 가지를 점검해 보면 좋습니다. 첫 번째는 보고서에서 하려는 말을 한 문장으로 설명할 수 있는가? 두 번째는 문제에 대한 해결책이 있는가? 세 번째는 결론을 먼저 말할 수 있는가입니다. 이 세 가지만 체크해 봐도 좋은 보고서를 만드실 수 있을 겁니다.

첫째, 상사의 관심을 끌어야 합니다. 좋은 제목을 뽑을 때에는 역지사지, 즉 내가 상사라면 어떤 내용이 궁금해할까를 생각해 보면 답이 나옵니다. 두 번째는 보고서의 핵심입니다.

You need to include the content. You can think of this as being similar to reading internet news articles or YouTube titles. The third point is to narrow down the message you want to convey in terms of content and focus. If the title of the report contains too broad a scope, the core message can become blurred, making it difficult to convey the information effectively. When you open a report, it should be one that is easily grasped at a glance. Such reports effectively use overall layout, font size, and typeface. This is akin to saying that a beautiful face must have balanced features like eyes, nose, and mouth. For this, editing is crucial. Many people often regard editing as unnecessary additional work. However, editing is an essential task to ensure that the message of a well-written report is effectively communicated. Even if you have a great report, if you do not make your superior want to read it, nothing will come of it.

It's useless. The details of a report prepared by a skilled worker are exceptional. It's easy to understand if you think of luxury clothing. For example, when attaching pockets to a check-patterned fabric, simply adding pockets can be done with regular mass-produced clothing. However, what about luxury clothing? They attach the pockets with an accuracy of 1mm without any deviation from the check pattern. Similarly, a skilled worker's report pays attention to intricate details in every element. These details create reports that stand out from the rest. Most recipients of these reports are likely to be in their 40s or older. Generally, after reaching the age of 40, people experience presbyopia. So, when the text is densely packed with tiny letters, it becomes difficult to read. On top of that, they have to deal with countless other frustrating reports and make decisions. It’s already a headache, and the dense text makes it worse.

If you bring a report that no one understands, how many people would want to read it? The report should be written in a way that is easy to read, eliminating unnecessary information as much as possible, and presented in a clear and concise manner. The most important thing starts with understanding and empathizing with the other person. For example, when a doctor explains the treatment plan to a grandmother, they should use simple examples that she can understand. This is what storytelling is about. You should start with cases that the other person may have encountered, and approach the message you want to convey slowly, ensuring they can comprehend it. By considering what benefits the other person might gain and conveying that message, it will greatly help in persuading them. You can think of a self-introduction letter as selling yourself. Instead of providing a one-dimensional answer to the questions, you should consider why they are asking these questions.

You need to grasp the meaning between the lines. You must write your own story that cannot be seen by others. When the military officer reviews my application, I need to make them think that I should be interviewed because I am such an attractive candidate. The same goes for academic papers. If the content is something everyone can do or something that can be found anywhere, I will never be selected. From the evaluator's perspective, I must constantly ponder what they might be curious about, what they want to know. I need to ensure that the evaluator becomes engrossed in my application or paper. Just as you cannot pour water from an empty bottle, to produce written output, there must be input. That input is reading. However, simply having input does not make writing come naturally. Input and output must occur together; you read to write, and you write to read.

If you consistently engage in this process, you will eventually realize, perhaps without even noticing, that your capacity for thought has grown tremendously. I have grown through writing and reviewing various technical reports as an engineer to the core. During this process, I realized that many people find it really difficult to express their thoughts in writing. This realization led me to write the book The Absolute Principles of Writing for the Top 1%: One Dollar. The ability to express my thoughts in writing is an essential condition for survival in the era of AI. In my book, I have included the key secrets that will allow us to confidently thrive in the future AI era, so I hope for your great interest. Thank you.

"혼자만 알고 계세요." 회사에서 인재로 인정받는 보고서와 글 쓰는 방법 5가지 (김호중 작가)

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