Truth 10. Knowing your inside story is the key
The brand new cub reporter came to work in the morning and the editor asked, “Where’s the story on the church performance last night?”
“Couldn’t do it,” replied the young reporter.
“Why not?” asked the editor.
“Didn’t see it.”
“Why? Didn’t you go?”
“Yes, but they didn’t give the performance,” said the reporter.
“Why in the world not?”
“The church burned down.”
The point of this old journalism anecdote, for our current purpose: Know what the story is and what matters. You can’t and shouldn’t write without substance. Writing is not “a way with words” or, ever, a sleight of hand to conceal lack of substance or thought. We’re not saying there isn’t a ton of writing like that in the corporate world—only ...
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