LEADERSHIP LAB: The Craft of Writing Effectively
2024 ж. 1 Мам.
8 245 887 Рет қаралды
Do you worry about the effectiveness of your writing style? As emerging scholars, perfecting the craft of writing is an essential component of developing as graduate students, and yet resources for honing these skills are largely under utilized. Larry McEnerney, Director of the University of Chicago's Writing Program, led this session in an effort to communicate helpful rules, skills, and resources that are available to graduate students interested in further developing their writing style.
“You’re not here to do original work, you’re here to do valuable work.” mic drop
Time stamp 25:00 to 26;00
“I am an ARTIST. I care about my VISION.”😬 Well Starving Artist have a hard time carrying on their “VISION” when they are blinded by Poverty.🙃🙃
@Victor Lopez No, value is determined by which "community of readers" the writing is intended for, the probably small group whose livelihoods and careers depend on its contents.
he is not telling anything new, but he is teaching people wich think they know alot that they dont.. and he is not bad in that. good lecture anyway starts the brain cells to think
@@jshroud I want to kill myself.
Amazing how I went from listening to the Pirates of the Caribbean theme song to watching a one hour lecture about effective writing
TA, TA, TA TA TA TA TA, TA TA, TA TA TA TA
Sometimes KZhead can enrich our spare time spending...
Did you learn anything?
@@johnhutchinson9509 yyttrrrr
Haha I like to play the game of “where will the rabbit hole lead tonight?” You start on something fall asleep, wake up and see where it is. I fell asleep watching how to replace a part on a car, woke up to a documentary of d-day and WWII videos.... auto play is a hell of a thing
As a PhD student I have never watched a video more valuable than this one. God Bless Larry Mcernerney. This man is saving careers and lives.
you need to watch more videos then... this one was drab.
@@jackofalltrades3378Recommend me sum.....
I'm a new English teacher in high school. I teach reading, writing, and speaking. I appreciate this lecture. I feel like I owe you money for enjoying this lecture for free.
This is not very applicable to high school essays though, isn't it?
As a paid freelance writer if you want to be read, every word is valuable. I'll pass it to everyone i coach.
*My takeaways:* 1. This course is not about writing rules 3:04 2. Stop thinking about rules and start thinking about readers 3:55 3. The problems that domain experts have in their writing 4:00 4. Domain experts use writing to help themselves with thinking 4:51, if they don't do it this way, they can't think to the level they need 5. The challenge: the way that experts do their writing (to help with their thinking) is different to the way that readers can understand 6:53 6. The consequences 8:10 - 1. readers need to slow down and re-read many times 2. readers can't understand or misunderstand 3. readers give up 7. Readers read things that are valuable to them 11:52 8. Writings need to be clear, organized, persuasive and VALUABLE 13:45 9. Valuable to the readers of a research area (not everybody in the world) 15:20 10. An example of comparing two writings 17:16 11. Writing is not about communicating your ideas, it is about changing readers' ideas 21:24 12. Nothing will be accepted as knowledge or understanding until it has been challenged by people who have the competence to challenge 23:24, this determines the readers of our writing 13. A piece of writing is important, not because it is new and original; It is because it has value to some readers 25:16 14. What does the world of knowledge look like 28:00 15. Every research communities have their own code to communicate VALUE 31:30 16. Why does it take 5-6 years to get a PhD? 34:30 50% of the time is used to know the readers in the field 17. Using these words to show that you are aware of the research communities: widely, accepted, and reported 35:24 18. Flow/transition words can help to make writing preservative and organized: and, but, because, unless, nonetheless, however, although, etc. 36:00 19. Do things under the code of the communities 42:00 20. Another example 44:25 21. The function of a piece of writing is to move a research area forward, not to be preserved for 500 years 46:54 22. Writing is not about to express what is in our head, it is about changing other people's thoughts 48:50 23. The instability words that create tension/challenge: anomaly, inconsistent, but, however, although 54:00 24. Bad writing style: backgroud+thesis 55:07 and a better style: problem+solution 56:18 25. Learn the language code from the target publications 1:01:30 26. Literature review is used to enrich the problem 1:02:50 27. Problem vs background 1:06:47 28. Gap in the knowledge is dangerous 1:08:45 29. Identify the right readers (research communities) is important, but it could be difficult for interdisciplinary research 1:11:57
Thank you!
Thank you so much. Reading your comments first guides my watching
I watched till 50 mins, then just lost the flow because seemed too repititive. Thanks for the timestamps. It helped.
Thanks that was very helpful 🤗👍
You are legend 🙏 thanks for your time and effort
"You think writing is conveying your ideas to your readers, it's not..... It's changing their ideas." This is brilliant! Thanks so much! This should be required viewing for PhD Students!
This should be required for highschool students
This should be required for EVERYONE.
Beyond the schools, there is no other one who was paid to care about you and your writing. They don't "have to" read. They just read because it's valuable for them. What a precious statement for us to think, before any time we write.
You could start by putting quotes around the entire quote and not where he provided emphasis lol
“The only reason my stuff was ever read is because someone had to because they were getting paid to.” That is quite an eye-opening statement.
The truth though!
Especially with that comma splice you dropped
?
Yes it is! I struggle with writing bcs my mind is about the reader rather than the professor who is always then history/background and Thesis. Not many faculty may like this approach and seem to grade grade on the clear, organize and persuade model. Maybe they need to watch this wonderful video.
I just read it for free.
This guy needs a Patreon account. I feel like I owe him money. There's a shocking amount of useful information in this lecture.
His name is Larry McEnerny, he teaches at the University of Chicago. I took a class from him. There are a lot more of his lectures you can find
@@stephenfraser9036 Thank you! I'll will look for more from him. Watching it again a year later, it's every bit as valuable now as the first time I watched it.
I feel you because I want to support him after listening to his introduction.
where what when? show me
This guy needs to teach public speaking.
I took some notes * **Step 1:** use your writing to help you think. * **Step 2:** * you think writing is communicating your ideas to your readers. It is **not**! Nobody cares what ideas you have. * use your writing to **change** your readers ideas. Change the way they see the **world**. * This goes for your expert readers too. They don’t care too. * If it doesn’t **change** their world view, it’s not valuable. * If it’s not valuable, the rest is **useless** * Order of importance 1. Valuable 2. Persuasive 3. Organized 4. Clear * Value lies **only** in the readers, not in the thing. * The patterns you use for step 1 and 2 are different. * Try this: * **circle** every word in your writing that is creating value to the readers. * guess what? soon you will have your own list of **invaluable words** to check your own writing against. * The horrible **irony**: the language we use is of stability and consistency. But your readers are searching for language of instability, inconsistency, and tension. * Use language to show your readers there’s a cost on them or if the instability is solved, there’s a benefit to them. * Use transition word to create **tension, instability** to challenge their ideas i.e. bad: hey readers, I’ve read your stuff and wow..., i know what you think **and here’s** what i think... i.e. good: hey readers, I’ve read your stuff and wow, i know what you think **but there’s** little thing you’ve got here, it’s wrong... good tension words: inconsistent, but, however, although * You can’t be persuasive if you don’t understand your readers **doubt**. If you don’t know what they doubt, how are you going to change their world view? You must know **them** to predicate what they might say. * Every community has it’s own code. You must know what each one values. * Identify the people with power in your community. Give them what they want (i.e. build them up) **but** challenge them inside the terms of their code. It’s **not** about your individual voice, it’s about what’s valuable to your readers. * Structure * Layout in your first paragraph * **who** your writing too, * what you’re going to **argue** * what **question** you have you will answer * what’s **urgent** (i.e. people value reading about tension, trouble, bad stuff - instability) * Problem: what’s a **problem** your readers care about and they want to fix (not your problem). * Solution: * **Never** explain stuff. Don’t demonstrate to someone you understand it. Don’t reveal the inside of your head. No one cares! * Your goal is to move the conversation **forward**. Not to preserve your ideas indefinitely. Nobody will ready your work in a year. It’s **not** about you, it’s about them.
Thanks a TON, Tom!
Awesome 😊👍 thank you!!!
Next step is to look for learning systems. Some steps are reducing the words we're using when reviewing notes, linking the notes to a "big picture" to know how to use the information, visualizing thoughts through diagrams and maps and connecting ideas through maps like multi-flow maps, so we can better visualize the cause-effect relationships.
Thanks
Most helpful comment I have read. Thank you.
"Writing is not about communicating your ideas, it is about changing readers' ideas", you can also do this by entering their dreams at a deep level, i saw it in a movie!
If it's challenging you might change the reader's idea's
What movie please
@@Profitableabbie Inception I believe
@@anusrujanvangala2358 thank you
Which movie
23:51 This hit hard. I now understand to some extent why academic writing is so terse. The goal of academic writing isn't to make the world understand your work, rather the goal is to contribute your findings to the body of accepted knowledge in your field. For your work to be accepted as a worthwhile contribution, it has to be challenged, tested, and trusted by the academic community. And the academic community consists of experts who read and think in terms of expert vocabulary and niche registers. If your writing does not contain the right terms, they might not even believe you have the level of knowledge required to write a paper on that topic. This might lead to a lack of recognition or outright rejection.
It got to be similiar level of receivers otherwise never be agreeable with
And the center is the reader. You write in terms of the reader and adapt your style to that end.
No flashy slides, no modern day tools just a man with a chalk and an understanding of his subject. Man these teachers and their lectures makes you think that studying a class on the most boring topic can be really wholesome and interesting. What the hell were my teachers doing in college. Teachers make you like or dislike a subject Period.
I suspect what your teachers were doing in college (per this lecture), was getting paid. It’s a rare lecturer that cares about their students as deeply as their salary, tenure, stipend, research grant, etc.
Teachers have a big influence on weather children like school or not, not just a subject. 😢
Notice how the lecture is constructed like how he believes writing should be: Tells us immediately there's something wrong with how we've been taught, identifies the problem, know the reader (academics) and the problem they face in their field; why they should care. Great stuff.
It is!
cela exige plein de compétences que je n'ai pas
His whole career follows this pattern. Guaranteed
OMG, I found this video browsing, and this professor hooked me with his class. He made me want ot BE in his class. I am an IT teacher, and I am absolutely amazed by Mr Larry. The world needs more teachers and professors like you, who show your passion for teaching others with the knowledge that you have. Have a good and blessed day.
Bruh i dont even that good at english and he hooked me on topic with his speech.
The main drift: 42:20: Identify people with power in your community and give them what they want. 47:40: The function of your writing is to move the conversation of that community forward. 53:30: Introduce instability into the conversation by using words like anomaly, inconsistent, but, however' in your writing 56:20: Identify a problem of your community (a specific set of readers) and move to a solution. 1:01: Show that the instability imposes a cost on them or conversely, if the instability is solved, offers a benefit to them. Identify any coded language of benefit and cost in your community and use it. 1:06: Think about the world in your process of writing, but you then need to alter the process and rewrite for your reader. 1:06: The more you can alter the process for your reader, the less painful the writing process will be and the more successful you will be. 28:53: The bottom line (in my words) is that your contribution to an ever growing body of knowledge (diagonal graph) will only dissipate in time, but being part of the osmosis of the mainly pale, male, stale community might lead to personal success: stability vs instability model.
Thanks for putting this together!
Thank you for this 🤗
That sounds good to me. Thanks.
Effective writing is an art. Good academic writing has the ability to change the world. It is the moral of this brainstorming session
I get that. Creeped me out a bit but isn’t that all writing whether a scientific paper or legal concept?
The cameraman is the real hero of this lecture
bob polo So true.
Where's he at at 1:01:40 though? Napping.
Indeed. LOL.
Ok
I read this comment before watching the lecture and found myself laughing throughout the whole video. I kept thinking this is what nature photography must be like - trying to keep a humming bird in focus.
"You must know the codes of the communities that you are working in." Powerful.
And "the code" for all communities is apparently universal: "Flattery." True?
This reminds me of Wittgenstein's language games
I am an Advocate (barrister, lawyer) and I am deeply grateful for this valuable on-line class. I have never come across anything like this class, and I shall be applying it from this day forward. Even court papers can surely be more interesting lol.
Best of luck
Right, I’m a trainee solicitor and found this so amazing , even ended up taking notes.
Updates could you show us a before and after of your work
I am 23 minutes in and this is quite likely the best thing I've seen since joining YT so many years ago. I am watching it in little spurts because, unfortunately, my brain stops absorbing information after a few minutes. I don't want to miss a single word or let even the most minor concept go passed my brain without understanding.
Key ideas: 1. This video is about academic writing. 2. It's not about the content, it's all about the readers. Always think about your readers while writing. 3. See two models for knowledge at 28:00 4. The value of information lies in the value of the decisions they inform. Not all knowledge is valuable, in fact, most is useless. 5. Students grow up in a system that pays people to read their work, teachers don't care about you influencing their thoughts, they care about what's inside of your head so they can grade you. This sets students up for failure. In a professional environment, people don't care what's inside your head, they only care about how your thinking can influence theirs. People care about writing that challenges and changes their thinking. 6. Create tension while writing. Your goal is to challenge some idea the reader cares about. 7. Farmers have wheat, miners have coal, academics have their writing. Your writing is (likely) not something that will be read throughout future generations, just focus on impact in the here and now, focus on your readers and their thoughts.
Thanks for ur notes
Thank you so much
حكونا ماطاطة
Damn! Thans for the notes!
Tons of thanks!!
I LOVE THIS MESSAGE: You think writing is conveying your idea - NO - it's changing THEIR ideas.🙊
I read this comment a second right before he said it 😂
Me too. Super powerful. And it sticks.
powerful
He changed from “why do you think so?” to “why should I think so?” I like it that he practices what he preaches, and it is also good to see that even he is learning by doing. I feel encouraged.
speaker uses a few empowering quotes to bring valuable ideas to his listeners... 👍
If I were a teacher I feel like this would be a fantastic thing to encourage students to watch (and rewatch) before writing any paper, particularly before writing a paper on a topic they aren’t so jazzed about being tasked with covering. It’s cross-curricular gold.
This is the single most important lecture on writing I've ever seen. Not limited to academia, I find it extraordinarily helpful in corporate environment as well, where you always need to persuade people from different organizations to join you for a change or an improvement.
The way he slams the chalk down and walks away is the most badass academic equivalence to a mic drop
KZhead University all the way.
Lol
joel diaz true though lol
Tell em
sure you can learn things all the same, but not the rubber-stamp or make the connections, the value in universities is not primarily about acquiring knowledge, it's about networking with the right people and making relationships that can be useful 10,20,30 years down the road, in an elite university, your classmate might become a judge, professor or minister in government in the future, that might be useful to you in the future, your fellow KZhead classmate can't. Organisations need qualifications to look presentable to clients, you can be as knowledgable, but without the paper cert, they can't employ or promote you.
I've been enrolled since 2005.
I am crying, I have listened to it over 10 times over the past 3 years now, still find it so valuable. I seriously own this guy a lot... Such a great lecture. I recommend to every of my friends.
Jane you done anything with it
I’m a PhD student of neuroscience. It’s overwhelming how he clarifies the function and structure of writing, and even more, process of academic progress (and how we should contribute to it). His talking itself is as educational as the content as the way he gave “tension” and caught the audience was impressive. I believe this is applicable to any field of science. Such a valuable 1 hour watching.
word salad.
If I had this teacher in college, my life would be completely different.
The education system has a business model, most teachers/professors were in it for the money instead of inspiring youths to actually learn.
@@jeffersonsantiago5567 In my high school all those years ago (1960's/70's), the teachers were not qualified or knowledgeable (at least in my school) to teach the students how to construct and write an English essay. Sad. Instead, we spent our time learning about an early 20th century novel or play that no one reads anymore.
@@jamesanthony6099 HI Anthony! I was in high school in the same era and agree, yet I felt too classes were crowded with the baby boom, and the government spending most of the money on Vietnam etc. Now days Charter Schools and funding less for public schools is crowding children too, sad. Our school even hauled in old corrugated tin US Army barracks for classrooms! There was a row of them a city block long! One teacher would have us read, then duck into a back room that I think originally was like a small office space in the Army days. Another teacher from a next door barrack would saunter over and they'd drink coffee and gab. I also think about the negative reinforcement structure of public education too... but all another story. One teacher came somehow from California to our little rural town to teach, first time ever in our school, Anthropology. He was great! That was 48 yrs ago and I still remember his name! Sadly he didn't last very long and left. I don't know why, but I bet he left because he was unique, thought provoking, and at times encouraged students to join in conversation, made one feel they were valid. I remember a play we read "David and Lisa" but don't remember anything about it.
@@jeffersonsantiago5567 indeed
Absolutely
Four years of undergrad, two graduate degrees, and this is probably - definitely - one of the most useful and helpful lectures on academic writing I've ever listened to. I wish I had taken this lecture before I did my masters. It would have saved me a world of suffering.
What's some of the other great lectures on writing you've listened to?
I am not worthy to even lick your shoes, sir.
@@neiljohnson7914 lol, what?
@@stan3943 he's got two graduate degrees.
@@neiljohnson7914 I saw that, lol. I'm wondering why that leads to you proclaiming that you're not worthy to "lick his shoes?"
My most writings were used for expressing my thoughts and when I post them, they didn't get much response. Now I understand a piece of writing should serve to the audience and chanllenge their ideas. I'll work on that. Thanks for this class!
Not just write, this guy can speak!! Never been so invested in a 1 hour lecture.
I never thought I would find myself watching an entire 1 hour and 20 minute video on academic writing, but this was amazing. It will change the way I write my proposals and papers, and it will change the way I teach technical writing to my undergraduate students.
Ya. It reminds me I want to do a tedtalk
Sounds like he spoke valuably!
Then he was successful
Were you stoned lol Mushrooms Because you are tripping
What is your definition of technical writing? And how does the established dictionary define it?
This goes so far beyond writing... this is like a lesson on life
this goes foes a lesson to existence, baeb.
Right!!
Everything you learn, is a lesson for life. _non scolam, sed vitam discumus._
@@alberto2469 n MJJbyn Hbjmkjllllij M Ll2wlhjjjmnjj jjm L n Mm mj mj I'm nmI'm K Gio7pp9oo9999999o9999999999p999o0p Mk?kkkk L hnnjjm U uuuqver 7plp999007799999
disagree "no one cares whats in your head" me at work being pulled in a million directions due to people needing the info that is in my head.. Okay budd, what ever you say... People pay me for my good looks i guess... i must have gone wrong by never going to college and learning these profound life lessons
What an amazing piece of content this is. You talk about value and you provide it. I´m from Argentina, and now in my 40´s I realized I love writing, I have love for sharing what I consider valuable, what I do not have is an specific background in communication or writing besides dedication at reading, particularly about human decision processes and behavior. So I have read dozens of books, watched hours of talks, and I´d like to share this with other people, but then I discovered I do not know how to do it in the proper manner , or more relevant way. This is pure gold, because I realized some times I just try to convince people about myself, and how valuable is the information I have to share with them, instead of trying to solve a problem they have. Thanks again, and sorry for any mistake in writing.
@Hello there, how are you doing this blessed day?
I found this video entirely by accident. God damn! This guy is great public speaker.
I expected a boring lecture. This was actually intriguing and fun to watch
Daniel Ibarrondo nah it wuz boring
@@davidandrews2059 Wish he would point out fun parts! I agree it was boring.
I wonder if you had expected his lecture to be intriguing and fun, would you have concluded it was boring?
TI84SATACT Probably.
@@ti84satact12 Had no expectations. I watched 20 minutes of it. As it was all I could take. Then I had to read comments and see what others thoughts where. Did you really find this intriguing? Or you just pulling our legs?
20 pages into writing my first article but after watching this, I'm start from scratch with no regret. Thanks a lot professor Larry and UChicago. Looking forward to watching more of your lectures.
Wow, I am blown away. Dr. Larry McEnerney's video clearly showed what mistake I am making in my thinking and writing process. An exceptional contribution - "What value is there for the reader community? why should they care to read?" that's a life lesson applicable to any work. Thank you.
“The thinking that you’re doing is at such a level of complexity that you have to use writing to help yourself do your thinking”
As professor of of rhetoric Booth noted most memorably you have to be somebody to compliment somebody who is somebody so when man we just watched says your work is so complicated he is referring to an objective standard that doesn't require we respect him this early in his talk to feel good about what he has said and find what he is saying important. He apologizes later on in talk arguing necessity for this type of pa pandering essentially saying this is not the about the science of writing this is about changing the paradigms of others who are The architects of the present paradigm. He says we call two things writing but essentially defines them as two different things entirely. In order to avoid people not understanding what he is saying he creates the vertical in the horizontal a completely empty category that is later filled in concretely with examples. If you can imagine getting straight A's and being angry horrified shamefully getting it into the trash as quickly as possible without making a scene doing so you understand the difference between payi no,ng people to tell you that you are fine and paying peoplee to tell you what you need to hear. So he has this captive audience and he breaks the rules that he has created to deliver some body blows and poke some eyes out to save some lives while he has the chance.
Hi
True, so true. I am an avid thinker to the point that I think I will go crazy, if I don't get the thoughts out of my head and onto paper.
The most useful 80 min spent on youtube
I spent 65 min.
@@raymeester7883 1.25 speed?
yasar1 abdurrahman Completely agree.
I don't get why 171 dislikes, this is valuable
Honestly.
Moving into a PhD this video was randomly suggested at the perfect time. I'm actually amazed at how much of this I already include in my writing, particularly the community and value aspects. However, Larry explains things in ways I've never considered before, while adding so much more. His passion is something I hope we can all learn from. Go well with your writing folks. Kia kaha!
Fantastic! I wish I had Larry's course while I was in grad school. I'm at the end of my academic career and had fairly good publishing success, but I learned it by trial and too many errors. Pay heed if you are starting your journey.
This is high level education. Can't believe I ran into this.
I did not attend college for various reasons but I’m glad these classes are shown on KZhead, it’s essential in life to learn how to write properly.
wherever in the world you may be, whatever you want to learn is available online. Just know what you want to learn, decide and search it online.
I am also working as a freelance writer, couldn't attend college but thank God I am not deprived of learning about what I love due to all this amazing stuff available online. 💖
I am so grateful for all the classes and audible books that help me grow. What a marvelous treat to learn at any age.
Very nice speech
Same here. I am self-studying at home.
I forgot how amazing the LRS/ Chicago Writing team is. I took the class under Frank Kinahan and Joe Williams, and Larry. Still exciting. Still revelatory. Still so simple. Not simple - elegant.
"There's a rule of Western academia that says nothing will be accepted as knowledge or understanding until it has been challenged by someone competent to challenge it." Word!
As a PhD student struggling to write dissertation because so many mixed messages on the “how-to” UNTIL THIS LECTURE!! so many years in school, i have seen all he says here. Worthy Watching this video if only for this: “The function of your writing is to move your conversation forward.” At minute 47:00-48:00!!!
Did you finish your dissertation yet?
Yeah I think it really takes some of the pressure off right. You don't have to be this genius mind, justice it forward.
This lecture has saved me from so much future heartbreak and misunderstanding. We always think it is about pursuing the "big idea," but it is really about the process and the process of discovery. I am truly thankful. Thank you.
It's been literally nine years and I am thrilled to listen this lecture. It is incredible, thank you.
Also, take a journalism/newswriting course. You'll learn the virtues of: Writing with brevity. How to convey real-life and current affairs in an informative-narrative structure. How to fact-check. How to self-edit. How to investigate beyond just the use of the internet. Having your writing formally edited with the idea being to prove your news article is fit to print and worthy of mass consumption ;) It's good stuff.
he delivered this lecture in a way that was valuable to the audience
It was valuable to yo mama!
well they're paying for the class they want the A
@@TeamPill over a million people watched this, the majority probably not even from Chicago. they're the audience too
This man is iconic. Is there ANY online material that goes beyond these KZhead lectures? I’m officially addicted to Larry.
The great thing is this lesson helps with presentations as well. The professor has a great sense of humor as well which is always nice.
I rarely see a video here, at youtube, that, after it is finished, I say "that was not a waste of time". Watching this video was time well spent.
I cried when I was watching this video. Don't know why. Maybe it's because after so long of searching how to write good scientific papers, this one finally opened my eyes. It doesn't mean the time spent on the other teachings are wasted, only this "clicked" ;) Thanks a lot!
aahmazzing !!Im excited now...
hannah zhan: Your comment is why I decided to pause and watch this video rather than moving on. I'll let you know how it was ;)
Right at the beginning for me - you are using your writing to help yourself think. I do that every day, and I learned exactly the way he described (think then write.)
hannah zhan So hope to read of your success.
I agree...it does clicked
"Identify the people with power in your community, and give them what they want." I'm getting a lightbulb moment now, about how to approach my church leaders about a new program I want to start. I have to link my new ideas not to the activities involved, but to the image and core values that the leaders have of themselves, their roles, and the organization as a whole, and how much it will help them fulfill those positives.
I am in the middle of my thesis writing & so grateful to have watched this video, now I am 100% clear about what my next moves are. Thank you so much!
I was beginning to have serious doubts about my blog writing, why it wasn’t hitting the right cord with the reader, and then I accidentally stumbled on this video from a KZhead recommendation list. Reminds me of the saying, “when the student is ready, the teacher appears” These days, the technology is working its magic, the teacher came to life when I exactly needed it even though this is a video published four years ago. It’s surreal!
lol, algorithms got you pat
I think the second part of that saying is, "when the student is really ready, the teacher disappears"
Nick MaGrick so be it, man!
d b 😆 that’s really pessimistic
@@MrAmitArun really man?? I think that's the exact opposite of what it means..
Imagine how much further along we'd all be had we been taught how to write correctly.
Yeah, if in your formative, primary schooling you weren't taught the core writing styles that are expository and persuasive, it's a MAJOR setback moving forward.
The trouble is, it's fairly easy to make a very poor writer (in grade school) write papers that are _acceptible_ enough to not get failing grades. You do that by giving them all those "rules" we were taught. Do that, and the minimum grades in your classes don't dip too low. Making people _good_ writers, on the other hand, is difficult and assumes that they're actually putting the effort in. If you try it with primary school kids you'll likely leave a lot of them behind and get everyone questioning why your minimum grades are so low. It's a symptom of turning education into an industry. Not enough teachers, too many students, too many formalized ideas about where someone should be at when they're X years old. Teachers are _stuck_ teaching this way unless something changes.
I don't know why this was suggested on my home page but This changed my view on writing completely! what a great lesson, an hour and a half well spent.
Came here for writing advice and left with more than that. Thank you so much for sharing this video. I had no idea how complex and interesting writing could be!
I never comment on videos but I have to say that you are an incredibly compelling speaker.
Yes he is i really enjoyed this lesson. I learned that when i write that i should write with my audience in mind
Larry McEnerney: Please give us more! I cannot explain the value I received from watching this.
20 pages into writing my first article but after watching this,I am start from scratch with no regret. Thanks a lot professor Larry and uchicago. looking forward to watching more of your lectures. worlds can't describe how incredble of a professor this man is and his and bestowes teaching unto us. i hope many more people, particularly students,will find this gem. my sincerest gratitude to all authorities who deci
How’d it go
Writers everywhere need more work like Larry's to be recorded and shared; there are too few accessible, comprehensible resources teaching these principles, and that's to the detriment of all disciplines.
This single lecture contains more insight and wisdom than all those I attended during 5 years of graduate school combined.
This video is about so much more than only effective writing. It is about making information valuable to society.
Remember, some people are extremely elitist about writing. I had a boss who always grilled my writing. I had a huge report that was a make or break deal. I hired a professional, a very well known one around the industry I was working in whom my boss adored and claimed was the best in the business. Handed the report in, my wallet lighter but safe in the knowledge the job was done by someone reputed to be the best in their field. Boss hated it, said it was shit and that their five year old could do a better job. I handed him the receipt/invoice of who I hired to write it and told him to piss off. I walked out and never came back. Oh the phone calls suddenly needing me and my expertise were music to my ears. I've met a lot more like that boss over my 17 years in industry. My writing isn't great, but compared to most of my colleagues it is serviceable. Some people as readers will always claim they could write it better.
hehe good move, was your boss who called? They offered more money?
My boss criticizes how others write constantly, but her writing is truly horrible. I read a proposal she wrote and it was incredibly unstructured and almost nonsense. But she's the first to criticize when someone uses the wrong word or mispronounces something. Maybe because she's so self centered too.
“Identify the people with power in your community and give what they want" This is the purpose of this writing lesson.
He called it fascism. Look at today's news and political leaders lol.
Holy hell, I just realized why I suddenly started getting good at writing freshman year of undergrad. This guy's advice is exactly what my parents said to me: "find out what they want, and give it to them"
Yeah, my dad said the same thing. It's amazing how it makes more sense in hindsight isn't it?
I took it as being lazy in my writing.
I wanna be in his class every day, I learned a lot.
this video focused on writing in a clear, organized, and valuable manner for readers. McEnerney's insights into words that create tension, such as "anomaly," "inconsistent," and "however," were indeed interesting. Thanks a lot.
Wow, I really impressed by this lecture! This session is not about rules, it's pretty cool. It's about how to write clear, organized and valuable for readers. Also it was interesting that McEnerney presented some words that influence on people: for example, words, thar create tension: anomaly, inconsistent, however, etc. Thanks for sharing your knowledge!
This lecture changed my perspective on everything I had ever written. This is gold. Should be compulsory in engineering and technology.
After the expert Circus the medics made of COVID 19. It would be a waste to mandate this for medics.
yeah because you were indoctrinated until now
This is EXACTLY what is taught in copywriting and sales. Amazing how closely related or even DIRECTLY RELATED these concepts are and how the seem to Rule the Game REGARDLESS where they are used.
Can you explain? Also, can you suggest some readings?
“Sell me this pen” (From the movie : wolf of wall st)? I think that such an interpretation gets into the moral issues.. lol
kzhead.info/sun/arp8nK6rnoOmlas/bejne.html DGERGER
So many take aways from this wonderful lecture. Everything about this session was an enlightment and added to a newer perspective. Thank you.
Words can't describe how incredible of a professor this man is and his bestowed teaching unto us. I hope many more people, particularly students, will find this gem. My sincerest gratitude to all authorities who decided to post this lecture on public media. 🙏💗
All Colleges: We want you to be a great writer U of Chicago: We want you to be a writer who produces valuable work.
We want you to be a good socialist or communist writer.
@@bigbearn1383 **Soviet National Anthem Intensifies**
Yo mama wants you to be a writer who produces valuable work!
@@bigbearn1383 everything I don't understand is COMMUNIST!
@@cionm7077 If that were true of anyone, it would be you. It's obvious you don't understand anything. Let me guess, average IQ and a public school education, right?
"New and important isnt the goal - the writing has to be valuable" - one of the best lectures seen ever
Oh I just love this lecturer and the way he teaches! I derived tons of benefit from this! Many thanks all the way from Brazil!
I’ve learned so much in this one hour! This was amazing. I wonder if he’s still teaching. I would pay to be in one of his classes
Key concepts (that I've also found in other fields like marketing or entrepreneurship): Understand your audience Speak their language Find their problem Give them a solution Keep them engaged
No wonder. In our time knowledge is for sale
The thing I like about Prof. McLenerney is that he points to real facts rather than ideal ones which are mostly seen in the books, or usual writing courses.
Oh my God, I want to keep you in my Conner, I cannot stop listening to you, it's so refreshing to listen to you, I've been skipping writing course video, till I run to yours. You making a lot of sense. Lord I'm grateful I found this. Ah! For a first time I have to listen to the entire video with out headache
I enjoyed this lecture a lot, partly because I learned stuff, partly because it confirmed some things I already knew, but mostly because it provides a wider contexts as to why we do what we do, the drivers behind and the impacts. Of course it helps that he has a very engaging teching style and seem to give you the honest thruth about how things are rather than simply following a scripted curriculum.
Valuable lesson to respect your target audience, describe a problem that your audience is interested in, and convey the value of your solution to the problem and how it advances the audience's world view in a useful way.
Yes. Tact goes a long way.
@Hello The Generalist, How are you doing?
@@lydiaanderson2870 Great, thanks. How are you?
This lecture spontaneously popped up in my queue literally as I’m 34k words deep in writing my first book. I have always been very conscious of the fact that I use my writing to help me think and I have ALWAYS believed that this was incorrect. I was taught to use outlining as a framework and to think first write later. This lecture was extremely validating for me. Wow I really appreciate this.
Me too,I did always consider such sort of thinking before watching this lecture .
Comes with the principal quantity brings quality. Only by writing down one idea can you begin working on the next, stimulates your creativity very well.
Me too! I've always inhaled information and then written it out first before going back to edit and I also thought it was wrong.
I kind of disagree with his view on the outline. You should know on which aspects you should focus before writing a thesis, otherwise you have to delete entire writing segments because it actually doesn‘t fit into your thesis. As in, you have to know beforehand if you start with Adam and Eve or the 1950s.
kzhead.info/sun/arp8nK6rnoOmlas/bejne.html ETG
My notes on this: What happens when your writing does not match with the audience's rules of reading? 1- Slow down 2- Misunderstand 3- Aggravated 4- Stop reading In order of importance: 1- Valuable 2- Persuasive 3- Organized 4- Clear Value is to the readers in a specific audience, not the objective value but the subjective value. There are differences between readers. And those differences are valuable. Explaining is not revealing the inside of your head, which is to demonstrate to the reader you understand the ideas you are discussing. You think writing is conveying your ideas. It is not. It is changing their ideas. Replace "Why do you think that?" with "Why should I think that?" Important/valuable and new/original are not the same. We are not hear to write new/original. Knowledge is the current conversation over time among the faculties in universities, etc. Identify words in articles that add value to the reader. Half of the time is spent learning in the field and the other half is learning the community in the field. How else will you overcome the community's doubts? Transition words are crucial. Think of using 'and' instead of 'but' due to persuasive value. The key is to advance the community by saying 'I read everything in the field AND I have something to say...' Identify people with power and give them what they want. The function of your writing is to move the conversation forward. It will not be used in 500yrs. You are not Aristotle. You participate by changing the feelings of others. Use transitions to demonstrate instability and inconsistency and tension. Show the instability imposes cost on the reader or the solution of the instability brings a benefit to the reader. There are many opportunities to change your thinking process when writing to benefit your readers.
I never attended University and didn't complete my college education. I'm turning 50 this year. This lecture teaches lessons not just in Academic Writing but also areas such as Sales & Marketing and Communication in general. My grateful thanks and appreciation to the University and Professor for delivering and publishing this lecture on KZhead.
Exactly that's why am watching it
I am impressed by the energy of this professor... That makes me want to watch the entire series.
Lies again? LA Liga
He's so enthusiastic he breaks the chalk!
I woke up from a really long sleep and this had played just about all the way through, good to know my subconscious knows how to write effectively now.
bruh haha
*how to write valuably
I paused this video at the end so I could clap and then hit Play and the rest of the class started applauding Professor McEnerney! 👏Thank you for posting this lecture, it's very helpful. Larry McEnerney reminds me of one of those professors they make movies about because he changes the lives of his students for the better. I know he just changed mine. 🙂 My conclusion after listening to this lecture: It behooves writers to look for and find problems for their readers in their given field and then write about that in the way that Professor McEnerney explains because that's what has VALUE for their readers. ETA: One thing to consider is that this lecture is from 2014, before the Plandemic was rolled out and about to roll over us, but now it's 2022 and I just learned elsewhere that the type of journalism that was getting published back in 2014, and probably before, is called Solution Oriented Journalism or Propaganda Journalism and it's funded by Bill Gates.
I can feel the paradigm problems this course is causing to the people in the room. It has been reassuring to my own understanding of the writing process. IMO, Readers should rule in ALMOST every form of writing!!
I'm an artist trying to make it into the art market and my algorithm brought me this video. Kind of scary how useful it was. Now i know how to write e-mails for galleries, my artist CV and even a movie script I've been working on for a grant. Thank you for this video!
Wow what type of art do you make?
Did he say anything NEW or ORIGINAL ? No he didn't Does his lecture here have any value to me ? You god damn right it has
The Essays of Montaigne does not contain a single original idea...but I consider it the greatest book ever written.
@@charliechaplin7959 Hi! Is there a good translation of, The Essays of Montaigne", that is maybe for a lay reader like myself? Maybe there's a good companion book to it for lay people you might know of.
I see what you did there. 👊🏼
You lack crtitical thinking skills. Otherwise you would have had insite into genious of this guy. Dammit I didn't read your whole comment you did get it. SORRY
@@dannewth225 dont worry :) we are all in a hurry
A lot of math and history books in school were energy depriving, I always felt there was a better way for me to learn and for them to put their point across
Well in this lecture we can see how he adds value to us by saying we are doing something wrong that is writting, so he is applying what he teaches us in real time
This talk is mindblowing. Before it gives you the reason why you're not effective at writing, then it gets into the methods to make it so. You need to know when to break the rules.
I took the Little Red Schoolhouse course with Larry when I was at UChicago. That course was the most transformative, useful class I ever took. I copied all of my class notes and keep them at my work desk in case I need to reference them, and I use the writing principles I learned from the course daily. Thank you for this wonderful class!
Erin Fuller do you think you can share your notes with us? Please ? ☺️
@@neao7707 I don't think that would be a great idea without Larry's permission, BUT Steven Pinker's "A Sense of Style" has much of what this class taught.
Yes. I was listening to this and immediately reflected on my time in the Little Red Schoolhouse course. In my years at Chicago I instinctively absorbed this way of thinking about writing that was taught to me in the summer before I started there as a graduate student.
Will you share them please?- kevinratty@gmail.com thanks