The Art of Concision

The satirical 18th century poet Alexander Pope once said “Words are like leaves; and where they most abound, Much fruit of sense beneath is rarely found.” His words reflect a common issue I have faced in almost any mode writing, as the essence of my writing is often shrouded within in my intricate elucidations. I was never a fan of ambiguity, so concision has always been a major problem for me. I have written numerous English essays and short answer responses that well exceeded the word limit. Being naturally verbose and explanatory, I constantly feel the need to elaborate on anything I write so that reader is fully understanding of the situation. There is a constant inability to delete a single word due to the feeling that each is pivotal. This over-explanation has often resulted in a loss of points on tests and assignments, and until this week, I had solemnly been able to fix it.

As part of my ISM curriculum, I was instructed to build a one-page resume. I had already created one in the summer, making the seemingly easy task even easier. However, when I looked at the sample resumes of former ISM students, I was disgusted to look at my own. By no means did my resume have bad information or improper formatting, but it lacked the visual appeal that so many others had. The aesthetics that are valued so highly were lacking, and rather than a resume, it looked like another essay with words spewing out of every space. I could not bring myself to delete a single phrase, much less a whole sentence. I asked my peers for help, and out of no where, a hand swooped in and deleted a two lines from my research experience. As I read the revision, I realized that even without the previously deleted information, I had been able to get my point across. This epiphany enabled me to clean up so much "fluff" from my resume, and get it to the point it is now, where it conveys the ideas effectively and concisely while maintaining artistic appeal.

It has only been four weeks, and already I am beginning to notice the changes ISM is bringing to my life. Even in these small instances where I learned of the beauty of brevity, I feel as if I am growing, being able to understand my actions and the world around me on a larger scale than merely through my own eyes.