Formal Memo
For the ”Formal Memo“ assignment the goal was to “Practice writing relatively long, complex memos that are clear, efficient, well organized and grammatically correct”. In order to write an effective formal memo, the specific audience must be identified so that the tone and format of the document is appropriate.
For this assignment we had to write a 2-3 page memo to a specific audience of our choice. We were to chose one of the three memo types: informational, analytical or recommendation. We also had to design the memo format and tone to match our audience.
Before I began writing the memo, I used the “memo worksheet” that was handed out during class. This worksheet helped define the topic, audience and goal of the memo.
I chose to write a memo to my father. I have resorted to e-mails/ memos in the past when persuading him to do or let me do something. Therefore, I thought this would be an easy assignment. I chose to write an informative memo because they are the easiest to write.
I did not particularly enjoy this assignment. I did not enjoy having to make up something to write about. Because English is not my strong suit, it is easier for me to be assigned something specific to write about. Personally, I would have enjoyed and had an easier time with this assignment if the topic was given to me. I feel the assignment would still be effective because the audience would still have to be defined and the format designed.
I also found it hard to meet the minimum word requirement. Because in technical writing you use short, to the point sentences, I felt I had said everything I needed to say within the first page.
