WHY USING CONTRACTIONS ISN'T A BAD THING

Business writing today is much less formal than it was twenty years ago, mainly due to the influence of email. Most people use email as an alternative to face-to-face conversation where informality is key.

Since we frequently use contractions when speaking, it's certainly acceptable to use contractions in most of our daily business writing. However, confusion over the correct form can complicate the issue.

When we contract words, we make one word out of two. To show that letters are missing, we use an apostrophe in place of the missing letters. The apostrophe must go where the letters are missing! Do not becomes don't; I am becomes I'm; cannot becomes can't. (Note that cannot is actually already one word--an exception to the two-word rule. It is incorrect to write "I can not attend the meeting." It should be written, "I cannot attend the meeting" or "I can't attend the meeting.")

Apostrophes can be confusing because they're also used to show possession: man's office; woman's briefcase; executive's decision. Don't be misled into thinking theirs or hers, which also show possession, should have apostrophes: They are personal possessive pronouns (like mine, his, its), which never have apostrophes. An easy way to remember is this rhyme: "Possessive its never splits."

When determining whether to use it's or its, ask yourself if you're contracting two words or if you want to show possession. In other words, "Do I mean it is (or it has--as in 'It's got the biggest window') or am I referring to ownership?" The following sentence shows examples of contractions (missing letters) and a personal possessive pronoun: "It's too bad the dog doesn't have its own house."

Remember that although it's okay to use contractions in business writing, it's not always preferable. When you want to emphasize a point, using two words might be a better choice: "Despite the economic downturn, we are not planning to downsize our work force in the near future."