“To be persuasive, you have to get the facts right — a no-brainer for you. Details and integrity are the spokes in your wheel. Now you just need to give those facts an emotionally compelling context and you’ll be set. — Horoscope, Aug. 25, 2016

Reading my daily horoscope is a guilty pleasure. A couple of times a year it’s exactly right. Like today.

“To be persuasive, you have to get the facts right — a no-brainer for you. Details and integrity are the spokes in your wheel. Now you just need to give those facts an emotionally compelling context and you’ll be set.”

This is what I do for a living. It’s also what allows me to sleep well at night.

Choosing the proper words to set tone and present context is an art form. As with all art, when done well it leaves a lasting impression. When done fairly and honestly, it clears the conscience. Who thrives emotionally, mentally and physically without one?

The best persuasive writing is based in facts. There must be a “there” there to tell a compelling story or to make an argument. Presenting details in proper context, with clarity and integrity, has the power to move people to think with deeper insight and act with greater purpose. It’s an awesome power.

It’s been my privilege to use words as a tool of a trade, first as a journalist and now as a consultant and a freelance writer and editor. I craft the fact-based stories of people who have wonderful stories and ideas to tell.

In the 20 months, since I left one of the best journalism jobs in Arizona, I have helped clients present the “emotionally compelling context” of issues such as transit-oriented development, creative aging, community integrated paramedicine, encore careers, wildlife conservation, peer-supported mental health recovery, healthy community design and creative placemaking.

Wheels are in motion to tell more compelling stories. Just as my horoscope says, I’m gathering details, and as soon as I find the right words, I’ll be set. So will my clients.

(Image courtesy of Pixabay.)