Welcome to Write to the Point

Why this newsletter exists

Greetings, everyone!

I'm glad you're here. I may not know your name at the moment, but I hope to at some point. First, I'd like to share why this newsletter exists; to help people who live in poverty. Let me explain.

When I was in elementary school, around the time dinosaurs went extinct, I received a letter from my school district. It began:

Clinton De Young,

Because you are a gifted student, you are invited to participate in a SUMMER SEMINAR FOR GIFTED WRITERS...

(I'll leave out the details on mountain-top getaways, writing drafts, and polishing stories with published authors for brevity's sake.)

...The price, including meals and transportation from your school, will be $45.00 for the week.

Ignoring the district's passive sentence structures and that I trended towards straight Ds throughout my K-12 experience, I was thrilled to receive the invitation. But, unfortunately, I couldn't go. My family ate hoecakes for breakfast and spaghetti for dinner, and I wore clothes two sizes too big so I wouldn't grow out of them. We lived in poverty, and my parents couldn't afford five dollars, let alone forty-five. I was devastated.

While my financial situation blocked my writing opportunities and crushed my childhood dreams, in this instance, I reversed those positions after high school. Instead of my financial situation dictating my options, I used my writing skills to dictate my financial situation.

Using my writing skills, I wrote effective résumés that helped me beat out other job candidates. Then, once in those jobs, I wrote presentations and compelling proposals that impressed my employers.

I only graduated from college in my late 40s. In my teens, twenties, and thirties, I educated myself by reading library books on career topics that piqued my interest. Then, I used my writing skills to convince hiring managers I was the right person for the jobs they needed to fill. It worked!

To be transparent, I was only qualified for a few of the jobs I got early on, but my writing suggested otherwise. So, to overcome my ignorance, I studied a lot and grew to meet the requirements of each job before anyone realized I had come into the position unprepared. Sure, I got fired a couple of times in my youth, but most of the time, I didn't.

As I worked to expand my career, I started working for companies like Intel, Microsoft, Sun Microsystems, Amazon, and Meta (formerly Facebook) and producing documentation that helped people make the most out of the software and services provided by these companies.

When I finally did go to college, I graduated summa cum laude with a perfect 4.0 GPA, with a degree in English and Creative Writing. However, I didn't need this degree. I only got it for personal reasons. I already had an outstanding career that allowed me to buy my children the right-sized clothing when needed and give them every opportunity I missed as a child.

The great thing about my situation is that anyone can do it. Yes, it takes some faith and hard work, but the path is there, and it is possible to improve your financial situation without any degrees or formal training. If you have access to a public library, you have all you need to improve your life's circumstances today.

There is too much poverty in the world, and too many people miss out on life-altering adventures because they believe they don't have the means to experience them. So I aim to help you improve your written communication to help you to be the best choice in your job interviews. Or, if you're already in a company you like, I want to help you get promoted through the excellent writing skills we will work on together.

I hope you stick around. I want to learn with you and help you share your new knowledge with others through your insightful comments. So let's write our way to better life outcomes and bring as many as possible along for the ride.

Clinton