{"id":5205,"date":"2025-02-24T18:38:18","date_gmt":"2025-02-24T17:38:18","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lucilleossai.com\/blog\/?p=5205"},"modified":"2025-07-08T13:21:10","modified_gmt":"2025-07-08T12:21:10","slug":"two-potent-ways-specificity-transforms-your-communication-and-drives-results","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lucilleossai.com\/blog\/2025\/02\/24\/two-potent-ways-specificity-transforms-your-communication-and-drives-results\/","title":{"rendered":"Two Potent Ways Specificity Transforms Your Communication And Drives Results"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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Some weeks ago, I settled down to begin the online grading of 40+ scripts from executive MBAs at an FT-ranked business school in Africa.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Every year, for almost a decade, I’ve facilitated communication sessions, workshops, and seminars for executives, professionals, entrepreneurs, and leaders at that business school. And I know from experience that specificity is a conduit for influence in business writing.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

So, after consoling myself that I was fortunate to grade only 44 scripts at that time  (some executive cohorts have 70+ participants), I tackled the task before me.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The writing assignment I’d set in class appeared deceptively simple. But it was a test of critical reasoning and persuasion. The participants were told to write a cold pitch of 100 words to make a request from a globally recognised business leader.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

I graded the scripts, provided corrections, and explained each score. Afterwards, I had a debrief in class, which led to robust discussions. The participants, being executives, challenged opinions and brought their experiences to the classroom. And each time, I challenged them to be more specific by asking about the ‘what’ and the ‘why’ of their perspectives. At the end of the double session, they understood the importance of specificity in writing persuasively.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

After reflecting on class discussions, I realised that specificity is helpful in business writing and makes you a powerful speaker.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Therefore, I’m sharing two potent reasons you should become more specific in your communication.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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1) Specificity amplifies your writing and boosts your credibility<\/strong><\/h1>\n\n\n\n
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You already know you must consider the three ‘beacons’ of effective communication to get favourable outcomes. So keeping your writing simple<\/a>, brief<\/a>, and clear<\/a> is non-negotiable.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, specificity further amplifies your writing. By being specific, you signal to the audience that you understand the subject matter but can still differentiate between similar options to arrive at what is exigent.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Let’s say you’re writing a report and need to coax swift action. Below are three options with varying degrees of persuasion. Note specificity in action with the words in italics.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Recommendation A: <\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Approve this budget to upgrade our IT system and cut the operating cost by 23 per cent<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This option is ‘safe’ with minimal stakes. No information is given on whether the request is for a new budget or a previous one that wasn’t approved. While this call to action is clear and may eventually be considered, there’s no impetus for urgent action.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Recommendation B:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Approve this emergency<\/em> budget<\/em> to upgrade our IT system and cut the operating cost by 23 per cent in Location X<\/em>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The words ’emergency budget’ and ‘Location X’ raise the stakes and point to a problem that new funds will solve. This option will pique the interest of the decision-makers. However, it still lacks depth.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Recommendation C:<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

Approve this emergency budget by 2 p.m. today <\/em>to upgrade our IT system before the temporary backup expires<\/em>. The upgrade will also cut the operating cost by 23 per cent in Location X, our top-volume site<\/em>. Without this supplementary budget, we will not achieve our sales target for the year.<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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This option heightens the stakes and communicates three crucial points:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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