I want to drop a short chapter right here—like a palate cleanse in between longer chapters—to call out something important: Good writing is good teaching.

Pathologically empathic writing strives to explain. It tries to make things a little bit clearer. It wants to make sense of our world—even if its job is simply a straightforward product description.

“A writer always tries … to be part of the solution, to understand a little about life and to pass this on,” says the writer Anne Lamott.¹

It's easy to embrace the teaching mindset when you're writing a how-to. But it applies to everything we write: Slip on that teacher lanyard to not just explain but also to engage.

Think of your favorite teachers. You loved them in part because they loved the work. They wanted you to learn. They cared.

So yes: Show up with evidence, context, rigor.

But also! Bring your joy. Find the fun. Let your love for the job shine through.

Don't just tell your readers that you feel something; tell them why you feel it.

Don't just say what works; tell them why it works.

Share your thinking, your mindset, yourself.

Listen, I see you there, marketer for a business-to-business “solution” company or biomedical or engineering or what-have-you company.

Maybe you think you don't have the opportunity to infuse your writing with a little joy? Maybe you wonder if it really matters?

But I'm here to tell you that you do. It matters. You matter.

You are someone's favorite teacher.