seven tips for talking about your work with others
TRANSCRIPT
TALKING ABOUT YOUR WORK WITH OTHERS
WHY TALK ABOUT YOUR WORK WITH OTHERS?
★ to help others understand your work ★ to collaborate ★ to get a job ★ to get a raise ★ to get a contract ★ to build a relationship with a client ★ to build a community with others who have shared
interests ★ to promote your work ★ to demonstrate your value for employers (and others)
7 TIPS FOR TALKING ABOUT YOUR WORK WITH OTHERS
1 DEVELOP A FOCUSWhat role did you perform? • As lead designer, I… • As project co-coordinator, I worked with Janice to… !Synthesize your contributions. • Throughout the project, I helped the group slow down
and fact-checked information in A, B, and C situations. !Synthesize what you learned. • The idea that resonated most with me throughout this
project was X. I saw this idea come through in A, B, and C situations.
2This white paper will discuss an application called App Z,
which we developed this semester.
vs.
While some believe that gender equality has been realized, statistics about sexual violence against women tell a different
story. According to the Center for Disease Control and Prevention, nearly 1 in 5 women reported experiencing rape at
some time in their lives. What’s even more appalling is that 42.2% of female victims were first raped under the age of 18.
FOREGROUND INFORMATION THAT WILL HAVE THE MOST IMPACT
3Our group collaborated successfully.
vs.
Our group maintained a successful collaboration by checking in with one another often, providing numerous
moments for internal feedback, and by making sure to listen to one another.
“SHOW” RATHER THAN “TELL”
4DON’T DOWNPLAY YOUR CONTRIBUTIONS
Instead, focus on “added value”. Compare:
I simply/just did/merely/etc. wrote the conclusions.
vs.
I synthesized the content into 5 sentences, and ensured that it would be appealing to our target audience by
considering X, Y, and Z.
TURN “FAILURES” INTO LEARNING MOMENTS
Our initial prototype was not appealing to any of the potential users we spoke to, so we had to start over.
vs.
Using an early stage prototype, we tested the app with potential users, and used their feedback to develop a second version. Through this exercise, we learned the value of soliciting user feedback early and frequently.
5
6negotiated, interpreted, translated, advocated, publicized, improvised, applied, documented, facilitated, represented, supported, administered, implemented, recommended, coordinated, delegated, established, executed, incorporated, launched, organized, allocated, enhanced, maximized, systematized, analyzed, diagnosed, evaluated, investigated, reported, researched, reviewed, encouraged, informed, instructed, supervised, operated, conducted
For more, see: https://owl.english.purdue.edu/owl/resource/543/02/
USE ACTION VERBS
BE CONCISE
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7 TIPS FOR TALKING ABOUT YOUR WORK WITH OTHERS
1. Develop a focus.
2. Foreground information that will have the most impact.
3. “Show” rather than “tell”.
4. Don’t downplay your contributions—instead, focus on added value.
5. Turn “failures” into learning moments.
6. Use action verbs.
7. Be concise.