Core skills get you the job. Meta skills get you promoted.

My time at Amazon proved me that, out of all the meta skills, writing helps you bring clarity, precision and purpose to any discussion. The product maker in me got sculpted by Amazon way of writing.

Here are ten tips if you are trying to write narratives the Amazon way:

1. Brevity: Write short sentences. Short sentences are easy to read and understand compared to long complex sentences.

2. Clarity: Write with an eraser and remove all unnecessary words in the sentence. The clarity of the message improves, and your writing gets effective sentence by sentence.

3. Specificity: Write persuasively by replacing all adjectives, adverbs and vague words with data. Data provides evidence for all your assertions.

4. Purpose: Every piece of writing should have a clear purpose and a call to action. If your reader cannot answer the questions why you wrote and what action they should take, your writing failed.

5. Accessibility: Your writing should be accessible to all readers. Avoid using jargons, technical language and acronyms.

6. Know thy Audience: Write for your audience. Consider their relatability, knowledge, expertise and adjust your language accordingly.

7. Descriptive: Show and don't tell with your writing. Use descriptive language so that the users can imagine as they read.

8. Formats: Use appropriate formats to convey your ideas. It need not be a essay or a memo or a report always. You could use 1-pagers, 6-pagers, FAQs, your writing can be more engaging and effective.

9. Wholistic: Keep the main document focused and easy to read. All supporting facts to the appendix. It helps them fully understand your ideas.

10. Use Subject-Verb-Object way of writing. Whom - Why- Purpose behind the writing.

After you finish writing, do a so-what test. Your writing must convey a clear purpose or message.

Reimagine your narrative using the Amazon way of writing. It forces you to think clearly. Writing the Amazon way takes more intent and time to craft a message. It is hard but totally worth it.

After Amazon I am unable to think about something without writing a narrative. By writing my thinking got improved.

P.S: To write a one-pager, I write ten pages first and filter the clarity to save time for the reader.