From the course: Technical Writing: Quick Start Guides

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Begin each step with a verb

Begin each step with a verb

From the course: Technical Writing: Quick Start Guides

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Begin each step with a verb

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- When you were in sixth grade and suffering through a boring grammar lesson, you might have wanted to ask the teacher, "Why does any of this matter? "Why do I even need to know "the difference between a noun and a verb? "When will I ever use this stuff you're teaching me?" But, now that you're a technical writer working on a quick-start guide, you know you need to understand the parts of speech, especially when you're writing instructions. It's a well known best practice to begin each step in a set of instructions with a verb. After all, verbs are the part of speech we use to show action. It just makes sense because it supports users' efforts to get something done. Here's an example of how confusing it can be when technical writers fail to begin each step with a verb. These are the how to set up direct deposit instructions from the quick-start guide for new Kinetico Incorporated employees. Scan through them for a moment. You can also find a copy of this guide in the exercise files…

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