In today’s world where spell check and grammar check are readily available in word processing software, I can’t seem to forgive incorrectly spelled words. Yes, I do realize if you are creating something in Publisher, Indesign or a similar program, checking your spelling might not be as easy as one or two clicks of a mouse. But come on people!

Read what you are writing and creating.

As a broad sweeping statement, we all have a high school degree. And a pretty high percentage of us have college degrees or at least some college courses under our belts. We should know how to spell. The advent of the computer has just made it easier for us to check our spelling.

It has made us lazy.

One of the problems with spell check is it normally won’t catch a correctly spelled word (think your instead of you’re) until you run a grammar check.  And even then, it might not catch it.

So you have to kick it old school.

Read what you write and create with a critical eye. As I was ranting about this yesterday, someone near me advised reading documents backwards so errors can be caught. Harder to do, yes. But it will help to see what is actually on the page rather than see what you want to see or expect to see.

Have you received the email that has most of the text in incorrectly spelled words?  Quite a few words have vowels left out or have letters transposed. Our mind still reads it correctly because it sees what it expects to see. Sort of a controlled reader effect.  (Remember controlled reader from elementary school?)

If you aren’t great at proofing your own work, email it to two or three friends and have them look at it. You’ll be amazed at what they will catch.

But for goodness sakes, check your spelling as well as your grammar.

Nothing brings out my inner school marm editor than receiving correspondence from a business that is chocked-full of errors. Makes me bring out the red pen and start marking away……

Today, I just have to put this out there. I think there are many people who will benefit from my post today.

I have been trying to do business with a local company so I made the initial contact. I waited a couple of days for the return phone call and didn’t receive one, so I called back. Once again I waited for a couple of days for the company representative to contact me. No call. No email. So I called again. I made three calls letting the company know I wanted to engage their services.

And three times, they did not respond.

I am going to take off my paranoia hat and know that it just isn’t me. This company doesn’t know me or my company. For all they know, I could spend a $100 or $10,000. They just don’t know. And they won’t now.

I won’t call back again. Three times is my limit.

I just can’t beg someone to let me pay them for my business. No company or person is that good at anything. There is something in my DNA that won’t allow me to do it. Just goes against my grain.

Perhaps the company is too busy to take new clients. That is a good thing for the company. The down side of that is I will contact their competitor.

So the positive take away here is when someone calls or contacts you, RETURN THEIR PHONE CALL OR EMAIL. Until you return the call, you don’t know the scope of the opportunity that awaits you. Could be nothing or it could be enormous. You will never know until you pick up the phone and talk.

Opportunity knocks at our doors daily. Don’t look through the peep hole to see who is there, open the door wide to embrace the challenge. Take the time to see who or what awaits your reply.