A comma could have cost a life when you say “Lets eat grandma” instead of “Let’s eat, grandma”. In the age of emojis, animojis and slangs, who has time for writing a formal, well punctuated email? If you are asking this question, do remember, wearing your favorite unicorn PJs is apt for bed, not to work. Better punctuations are to official communications as to wearing a jacket for a business meeting.
Has your email ever been misunderstood? While this may seem a small matter, and while you may ‘lol’ and ‘rofl’ your friend on WhatsApp, a comma can cost a fortune at workplace.
CEO’s and Entrepreneurs like Jeff Bezos of Amazon, Elon Musk of Tesla, and Warren Buffett of Berkshire Hathaway are all known for their letters to employees. They often go viral online, not just because of the message in it, but also because how beautifully it has been written.
Parenthesis (brackets) are the proper “Please excuse the diversion” markers. An exclamation “!”does not mean you are curious; use it when you are absolutely shocked or when seeking desperate Help! For other situations, you are likely to get an answer only when you end a sentence with “?”.
The apostrophes and ellipses (those 3 tiny dots…), are all the vogue now for grammar Nazis when they fight over your and you’re. But for most texters, they are medieval and redundant. Punctuation marks vindicate their ego with fortunes lost and made.
Another comma proved costly in a contract dispute between a cable TV provider and a phone company in Canada in 2006. The contract was 14 pages long, but the case came down to the use of a single comma.
The punctuation paradise is James Joyce’s Ulysses. The final 69 pages of this epic novel consist of only eight sentences, and they completely lack punctuation. One volunteer added many commas in the later additions, and it required a grant of $300,000 to restore it to its original version.
So, beware of the punctuation. These vengeful parts of speech could leave you speechless. But the saviour is that grammar in nothing but rules. And the exceptions are almost nil in punctuation.
So, you can write a good memo or office email in the Queen’s English. This shows you are serious about business and can get your work prioritised and give you an edge over others.
Someone once said, “If I had more time, I would write shorter letters.” Spending time on learning and practising grammar can win many situations for you. Sentences may follow the KISS test, that is keep it short and simple. Avoiding short forms on emails can save a lot of regret. For instance, replacing the ‘tnx’ with Thank You.
Editing before hitting the Send button is a good practise. After all, thee punctuations are there to help you express better. Use the comma right and you can win hearts.
