Why a Message Lands Differently Than You Meant
In person, people soften words with a smile, a tone of voice or a pause. In a message, all of that is gone. The reader fills the gap with their own style. A two-word reply that feels efficient to the person who sent it can feel cold to the person who reads it. A long, friendly message can feel like a waste of time to someone who wanted one line.
When much of your work happens in email, chat and video calls, these small misreadings add up. A person who leads with D reads a long message as a delay. A person who leads with I reads a short one as displeasure. A person who leads with S reads a sudden change in tone as a sign that something is wrong. A person who leads with C reads a vague message as careless.
This lesson shows how each style reads a message, the length and tone that work for each, how to handle chat and video calls, and how to rewrite a real message of yours for one colleague so it reads the way you mean it.
Each reader reads a message through their own style. When you write it in the length, order and tone that reader's style prefers, it is much more likely to be read the way you meant it.
Read the whole lesson
This lesson is one of the premium lessons included with WiredType Plus and Pro. The rest of it shows how each style reads a message, the length and tone that work for each, how to use chat and video calls with each style, one message rewritten four ways, and practice scenes with feedback on every choice.
See what Plus and Pro includeWhat the full lesson covers
- How each style reads a message
- Length, tone and order for each style
- One message, written four ways
- Chat and video calls, for each style
- Your own style as the writer
- Practice: four scenes with feedback