The heartbreak of PRSes

You've seen it. You've probably even been guilty of it. I know I sure have.

You have to say something on a topic, but you don't have too much to say about it, or you want to appear more sophisticated than is necessary, and it's time to check off a box:

Pretty Report Syndrome.

So you get all the words you need to add, then throw in three times again more text seasoned with some industry buzzwords, then stock photos, a couple of pull quotes (in a bold font) and you put the whole thing into an 11x17 PDF document that will never be seen outside of a mobile phone screen.

PRS!

It's not meant to engage or invite discussion - it's meant to show you Did Something.

What are you trying to say? What's your argument? What do you hope to accomplish? What is your evidence? How do you acknowledge the criticisms to your argument? How will you explain this to an outsider?

PRS is what happens when we try to be less clear because we don't have much to say or aren't willing to engage in a good, candid conversation.

Can you distill your thoughts into five simple sentences? Can you fit everything on one page, and then expand on it as needed?

What are you trying to say?

(And if you've been guilty of PRS, it's okay. Acknowledging we have a problem is our first step to clarity...)