The best accessibility tip I know 🧠
It helps everyone: tired, distracted, anxious, ADHD, uncomfortable folks (and more)
Say less.
That’s it.
That’s the tip.
Say less.
Want to connect deeply with people, no matter how overwhelmed or distracted they are?
Start by…
Saying less.
5 tips to help you say less
1. Pick a guiding principle
Something to focus on each time you write, or each time you present slides in a meeting.
I live by the mantra:
“If in doubt, cut it out.”
2. Write fast, edit slow
When I’m writing an email, creating a slide deck or crafting a strategy, I spend most of my time editing.
(And since Ernest Hemingway never said “write drunk, edit sober”, he won’t mind me updating the saying).
By “write fast, edit slow” I mean:
get your ideas out (voice dictate, type, talk to someone, whatever is accessible for you)
do not judge what comes out!
edit ruthlessly.
(You don’t literally need to edit slowly! My best editing is quite fast: I scribble out words with a marker pen).
3. Go analogue
Editing on paper is a game-changer.
It’s not always accessible or available, I know. But if you can, edit your writing by hand.
Sighted people tend to spot errors much more easily when we’re reading a hard copy, compared to skim reading on screen.
4. Read aloud
If you’re a hearing person, read your words aloud.
You’ll hear waffle, repetition and missed opportunities.
You can also use:
Inbuilt tools (Microsoft Edge, Google Chrome reading mode, Siri)
Free text to speech apps like Speechify, Audify and Natural Reader (Personally I would use in-built tools first. Avoid these AI tools if you can. The water usage!)
5. Work backwards
Read your writing (ideally a hard copy printout) backwards.
Go one word at a time.
It’s much harder to skim read backwards, so you’re more focused on the actual words on the page.
Saying less helps everyone
When you say less, everyone benefits.
Including:
Anyone who’s overwhelmed
(is that… everyone?) Information overload makes us much worse at filtering and processing information. Every time you say less, you’re helping
Neurodivergent folks
particularly ADHD and dyslexic folks, and some autistic people can experience a wall of text as a source of sensory over-stimulation. Side note: nobody wants a wall of text in their inbox!
People experiencing anxiety
…or countless other mental health challenges. Now, this also goes under the neurodivergent umbrella. But I’m mentioning it separately because a concise, thoughtfully-crafted message is the single best thing that helps me on a day when my brain feels like it’s full of bees.
Folks with limited memory
I was 35 when I got my ADHD diagnosis. Before that, I often googled “what’s wrong with my brain” and “why can I remember every detail of a TV show I watched as a kid, but my working memory resets every 3 seconds?” Many neurodivergent people (and loads of other people too!) struggle with working memory.
Non-native speakers
If you’re reading or listening in an additional language, you’re working hard.
When you say less, there’s less content to process. And you’re also throwing fewer idioms and unfamiliar constructions at people. That’s fewer layers of interpretation.
Anyone under stress
When we’re trying to solve a problem our focus narrows. Research finds that money stress reduces our cognitive capacity. If you’re even vaguely aware of the world right now, then you’re trying to process complex, distressing, constantly-changing information.
We are trying to understand horrors on a global scale (with brains that evolved to help us… forage for fruit, not atrocities).
Many of us are thrust from ‘discover’ mode and towards ‘defend’ mode, which makes us ruthlessly filter information. We miss things. So say less.
Screen reader users
Do you enjoy listening to a robotic voice drone through 80 words, that could have been 8? Maybe, if you’re trying to fall asleep.
For the rest of us, let’s keep it concise.
Want to work together?
Need support building inclusive and accessible communication skills in your workplace? Hi! Let’s chat!
Trying to cut through the overwhelm? I’ve got strategies tailored to your team’s needs. I am obsessed with learning about how overwhelm affects our brains (more on that coming soon) and how we can adapt our communication behaviours to reduce and even remove overwhelm. So basically… book me to speak to your team about how to cut through the overwhelm!
Looking for a speaker for International Women’s Day? Book me!
Of course, you don’t have to book me! But do check out my list of incredible speakers you should hire for International Women’s Day.
Want to work together? Fill out my work with me form, or drop me an email.
Yours concisely,
Ettie
Great reminders, thanks Ettie!
One question: when you say 'read your writing backwards,' my brain is thinking of this as an example...
'backwards writing your read'
I don't think this is what you mean. Please, can you clarify to a literal thinker, like me 🙈
Love this, Ettie! Another thing I do is change the font on documents when I edit. It makes the content feel more distant, and it’s much easier to be brutal with something written in a font that I don’t like.