Check your grammar –No writer escapes their writing career without a few patterns they lean on.
And that doesn’t just apply to novelists and journalists. Even if your writing career mostly takes the form of emails, slide decks, and direct messages, you probably have some persistent writing quirks that find their way into everything.
While it’s normal to have words or phrases you repeat, it’s beneficial to catch and subvert overused words and weak word choices, especially if most of your writing goes to the same audience. Without keeping your writing fresh, your readers will come to anticipate your repetitive style and may not read your missives as closely.
Most people aren’t lucky enough to have an editor on call to review every email. So how do you catch your most commonly overused words and phrases?
Words that often seem like the most obvious choice are also frequently overused.
Take “important,” for instance: If you’re writing an email with a few key action items and each task is described as important, it’s unclear how your recipient should distinguish tasks from one another in terms of urgency, difficulty, or priority. If there’s a high-priority task that all the others depend on, it helps to pick a more precise word.
Grammarly’s engagement suggestions will help find commonly overused words like these in your writing and suggest that you replace them with more specific words.
This report is an important essential step on the way to success.
Replace weak phrases with strong word choices
Replace weak phrases with strong word choices
If you’re writing a lot, or you’re writing in a rush, it’s easy to fall back on go-to intensifiers like “really” or “very.” But similar to imprecise words like “important,” vague phrases like “very good” or “really helpful” end up losing their intensity.
By Economist Lassi Pensikkala | International Business Developer | Multilingual communicator | Connecting ideas, people & opportunities across borders | Founder of AmerExperience & SegurosAmer |
Lassi Pensikkala is the creator of AmerExperience.com, founder of SegurosAmer.com, and an international business developer with over four decades of global experience. Hailing from Finland, Lassi has lived and worked across Europe and Latin America, driven by a deep curiosity for cultures, languages, and meaningful human connection.
He writes regularly, offering thought leadership on topics such as travel, golf, and international cross-cultural business. You can follow his work on Telegram, connect with him on LinkedIn, or read his articles and updates via Google News, Flipboard, and other social media platforms.
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Expertise
• International Business Development
• Creator of AmerExperience.com and SegurosAmer.com
• Strategic consulting for cross-border ventures
• Avid golfer and advocate for golf psychology
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Education
Lassi studied Foreign Trade at the Business College of Turku, Finland, and later graduated as economist MSc (Econ) from the University of Hamburg, Germany, where he also pursued studies in Psychology and Sociology.
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Language skills
Multilingual in English, German, Spanish, Swedish, and Finnish
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Life philosophy
“Live freely, seek knowledge, and be open to the richness of life’s experiences.”
Lassi’s passion for exploration started early. Growing up during the golden era of Rock’n Roll, student movements, and the first moon landing, he experienced the unique Nordic freedom of crossing borders without passports — a freedom that still inspires his global lifestyle today.
For him, true freedom means exploring new lands, embracing diverse cultures, and forming real connections with people around the world.
