Nate’s Notes 90: Todd Rogers | Getting People to Respond to What We Write

What another great interview with Todd Rogers.

• First, less is more. Be brief if we want people to read what we write. People skim, and 99% of people are more likely to read short text compared to long text. Plus, brevity is kinder to the reader.
• Second, design for how people read. We read headers, we jump around, we go as fast as possible. So, use headers, bold words, and bullet points to make it easy for people to get main ideas quickly.
• Third, use the AI model which has been trained on Todd’s principles. Run your text through his model at www.writingforbusyreaders.com as I did with this summary.
• Finally, think addition by subtraction, improve by remove. We improve our writing by subtracting unnecessary words rather than adding more.

By following Todd’s tips people will more likely read and respond to what we write. It’s a simple idea. Please take it seriously.

Todd Rogers Bio:

Todd Rogers is a Professor of Public Policy at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government. His work: supports student success and attendance; strengthens democracy; and improves communication. Todd earned an undergraduate degree in religion and psychology from Williams College, a master’s degree in social psychology from Harvard, and a PhD in organizational behavior from Harvard.

I hope you enjoyed learning from Todd Rogers again because I certainly did.