What is "Good" and "Bad" Writing? - Make A Difference!

I know that the concept of good and bad is a technical term, but one that is progressively becoming lost in today’s society. Th dividing line is slowly becoming blurred, and has been for hundreds of years, but we do have an innate sense of what right and wrong is. How do you feel when someone hurts your feelings, when they mistreat you or talk bad about you, when they beat on you? We innately know that is wrong because we don’t want to be treated like that. Today, many people think they are an exception to the rules; however, standing firm on the rule, “do unto others as you would have them do unto you,” seems to be the safest rule to follow, and the one that will set you out from the crowd. It doesn’t take courage to be a “bad” writer, but it takes great courage to be a “good” writer.

Just for fun, let’s see what a “wrong” review looks like. We've been to a restaurant that didn't do a very good job servicing us:

“This restaurant is not even worth a grain of salt. The waiters are ugly and have horrible personalities. The food isn’t even good. I asked for the manager and he didn’t even say sorry or offer me anything for the food that was crap. People in this place don’t listen to you when you have something to say and it's obvious they hate their jobs. You can tell by how poorly they treat customers. Never waste your time, your money or your effort on this place! I will boycott all these restaurants for the rest of my life and you would do right to do the same! It's safe to put them out of business for the sake of our children!”

Now, anyone who has any compassion or understanding of the fallibility of human kind would know this review isn’t quite fair. What’s one main thing you notice that makes it “morally bad?” Perhaps because there is no factual information, just someone’s huff-and-puff. Or maybe them pressuring others to not even try it to see if they may like it themselves. The main thing about these angry words that makes it “wrong” is the lack of trying to reason or understand from the restaurant's point of view. Nowhere in there does it try to help the restaurant with a valid, factual and honest review. It’s not bad to tell a business its faults or when they do make mistakes, as long as it’s done in a kind, fair way.

Here’s the same review done in a more tactful and understanding way:

"I have eaten at this restaurant once. It was a bit dirty, but they seemed to be packed when I was there. My waiter came to my table twice during my visit to come check on me, so I was left without service for longer than I cared to be. One of the times she approached to see if I needed something, her demeanor was not pleasant, as if she was trying to get me to leave. She may have just been having a bad day, but she didn’t seem happy to be there and have people eating there. Perhaps hiring more employees or allowing more to work on the night shift will help employee morale in the future."

In this review, the person states facts, gives their opinion but makes it known it’s their opinion instead of stating opinion as fact with words like "perhaps" and "may have," etc. They tried to look through the waiter’s eyes and gave a suggestion, not a demand, to help better the experience next time. 

Bad writing doesn’t allow you or other people around you to grow or learn. They will shut you out and you will have no impact, except for them to learn you are a rude person. It opens the door to someone’s bad day and they remember you in a bad way for the rest of their lives. Bad writing sets people up for failure. They can always look back over the negative words and feed their insecurities they’ve had like when their father abandoned them or their uncle beat them until they blacked out. These are all extremes, of course, but even the extremes could be possible cases with the least likely people. Be careful what negative or positive words you feed people. 

Good writing keeps people intrigued and wanting more. You look up positive things, you’ll soon discover a positive atmosphere is addicting. You will want more and find yourself feeling better about yourself and others. Do you feel like you are making an impact? Start on the path of being an encourager and see the changes in the people around you, and in yourself. Share the love, even if it’s starting with just a smile to strangers who pass you by while you’re writing at Starbucks or reading a book in Barnes and Noble. Give it a try!

To Our Readers:
Now, I want to see your encouragement to others! Share with us in the comments about an impact someone's kind words left on you or kind words you shared with others!