Writing Without Slop
I’m launching a new joint venture today. It’s called Writing Without Slop. My partner is the renowned writing center expert Jessica Weber Metzenroth, Ph.D.
Together, we will build tools and content to help organizations and their workers to write more effectively in the age of AI.
This is our manifesto. If you support us, add a comment. And if you’ve encountered workplace slop, send it to us.
Writing is the lifeblood of every workplace.
Quality business writing builds culture and elevates bold ideas. It makes the difference between organizations that shamble slowly forward from those that embrace and inspire greatness. Writing connects people, changes minds, sheds light, and builds trust.
None of this can be outsourced to AI.
AI is a prolific text-generator and a poor writer. It may allow a worker to quickly check a box: I wrote the email, I summarized the business case, I completed the report. But AI-generated text destroys the human connection. It clogs the channel and fogs the brain.
When we rely entirely on AI, our judgment atrophies. We leave readers attempting to parse meaning from a slurry of undifferentiated babble, which is a profound act of disrespect for their time.
Thoughtless engagement with AI is a recipe for disaster: We cease to write, we cease to think, we become unable to make smart decisions, and we sink ever deeper into inboxes stuffed with meaningless drivel.
We must treat AI for what it is: a useful tool, not a substitute for thinking or writing. This is both a statement of policy for every leader and a personal rallying cry for every worker.
We call on organizations to engage with AI thoughtfully and strategically, focusing on how these tools can amplify rather than obscure purpose.
Innovation is more than embracing new tools; it’s strengthening the hands that hold them. Workplaces must invest in their writers, teaching them to craft communications with brevity, power, logic, and care.
Leaders must invite voices from every level to share or determine practical ways that new technology can enable, not muddle, their work.
Writing is the lifeblood of every workplace. Keep it human.
Love it!
I am grieving that we have to relinquish so much control to AI. I wrote my first book at age 7: The World According to Me. I still have it. Rusty staples and all. I am very interested in knowing more about this course.
I completely agree. Clear and concise communication impacts every aspect of our lives, and writing authentically is one of the ways clear and concise communication is achieved!
This is an important initiative – thank you!
I agree 100%!
You asked for any examples of workplace slop. With apologies to the old hymn writer, these days, workplace slop is “greater far than tongue or pen could ever tell.”