Writing for Your Readers' Brains

Have you been toying with the idea of writing a blog or articles and experiencing some trepidation? Or, perhaps you are already an author and want to elevate your performance levels. Constructing your articles and blogs to appeal to the diverse ways your readers' brains are wired will give you the "razor's edge." The following practical neuroscience principles and methods help you get started on your authorship pathway, improve your communication skills, and attract more followers. This applies regardless of whether you are a beginner or a seasoned professional.

1. Be passionate about your subject matter

Passion about your subject matter keeps you motivated, focused and engaged. Your brain likes to receive rewards and benefits from what it engages in. Establish the benefits from authorship for you and your audience. The desire to share and expand your knowledge, coupled with helping others improve their quality of life, is the best scenario for all parties. Commitment to quality authorship is a two-sided coin; as you learn and grow, your readers benefit as well.

2. Focus on the readers' interests, not yours

Your readers are drawn to subjects that interest them and authors who have their best interests in mind. Sticking with your expertise and core competencies will build trust and confidence. They, like you, want to receive value from the time they spend learning and educating themselves. The following questions will help you stay on track:

• Am I focusing on the reader's needs or mine?
• Would I want to read this article?
• Are there helpful application ideas and actions steps for my reader?

3. Construct your article to reach all sensory and cognitive processing styles

Approximately 57% of your audience has Kinesthetic as their primary sensory preference; they are into "doing" and typically have short attention spans for sitting and reading long articles. Visual learners constitute 34% of people; they pay attention to graphics, layout, and how things look. The remaining 9% are Auditory learners; they process the meaning of words and play them back internally to make sense of them.

The other half of the learning equation is how people prefer to process and think about sensory input. Approximately 60% of the population leans towards Sequential thinking; they are attracted to logic, order, organization, realism, practicality and content. Global thinkers make up the remaining 40% of your audience; they are imaginative and like to jump around looking for patterns, ideas and possibilities.

Given your audience's diverse preferences for receiving and processing information, the following practical neuroscience techniques will help you write more appealing and effective articles.

• Use graphic images: The images should pertain to the subject matter and be colorful and interesting. This will appeal to nearly everyone, particularly Visual learners.
• Keep your article in the 400 - 800 word range: Short articles help you focus on key points; they are quicker to read, especially for Kinesthetic learners.
• Have someone edit your articles: Editing acts as a quality control check on readability, layout and grammar. This improves your credibility with Auditory/Visual learners and Sequential thinkers.
• Use Key Points with minimal text: Bold key points will appeal to nearly everyone, providing context, order and content. This approach appeals to Kinesthetic learners interested in spending a minimum of time reading; Visual learners scan for what appeals to them; Auditory learners glean meaning from the key words and related text; Global thinkers get the "big picture;" and the Sequential thinkers will look for the facts and logic behind the key words.

In conclusion, anyone passionate about a subject can successfully communicate their wisdom and experience to the general public, particularly with use of these practical neuroscience techniques. Constructing your articles and blogs to appeal to the diverse ways your audience's brains are wired to receive information gives you the "razor's edge."

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