International Written Communication: Plain English

"All right, now let's talk about English. You might be corresponding with someone from a country where English is not the native language. And that's okay. You are still going to write in English, because if that particular in business or a personal connection, if they don't speak or read English, they will probably have someone translate the letter. I know that I personally have had to have that done for a lot of business transactions that I've done. But use plain English. And what I'm talking about is standard words. Don't start throwing in things like contractions--can't. Well, that could be very confusing. Go ahead and write it out--cannot. Choose simple words. Don't--this is not the time or place to exercise your fancy, elaborate vocabulary. Plain English. Simple words. That's the best way to communicate in your word choice across cultures."