Professional Communication: Proofreading

Proofreading is an essential part of professional communications. Recently, I discussed this issue with a group of my colleagues. Here are some of the key points:

1. Take a break from the content (return with a fresh perspective)
2. Read your work aloud (this helps you find errors)
3. Look for patterns in your mistakes (you may have repeated the error)
4. Do not rely on your computer’s spell check
5. Slow down (if you read the text quickly, you're likely to miss some things)
6. Don’t let your sentences get too long (run-on sentences lack clarity)
7. Do not be afraid to use a dictionary
8. Double check your grammar (your/you’re, there/their/they’re and to/too/two)
9. Take notice of your use of apostrophes (its vs. it's)