Many people are under the assumption that proofreading is an "innate" ability. The reality is that it is actually an acquired skill. By following these tips, you can transform yourself into the expert proofreader you've always dreamed of becoming!
You are the best judge of yourself. That you can determine exactly what your most common mistakes are. Whether it's placing the "e" before the "I," or simply forgetting the semi-colon; once you familiarize yourself with your most common mistakes, proofreading will become much easier.
Proofreading is not about misspelled words only and it's possible that those are just caught by the application you are using like MS Word spell checker. What you need to look for are incorrect sentence structure, repetition, and text which does not flow well together.
For a while, leave the document and return with new eyes. You will find that your outlook has completely changed if you walk away from your work and take a quick break, then return.
Slow down and read out loud! So many errors are caught when you read the text slow and out loud to yourself. Things like this sentence sounding so strange or repeating this word 5 times in the same paragraph are what you will realize.
Your subconscious plays tricks on you. Sometimes you read what you think SHOULD be there, not what is ACTUALLY there. So you must acquire the skill that overcomes the power of the subconscious. Any idea what that skill is? Simply reading what is actually on the page!!
Never settle for one quick glance over your paper. Read it several times to be sure that you have not missed any possible error.
Try to work with a friend or hire professional help. There is nothing like another set of eyes to look over your work for you. After working on a document for so long, it becomes too familiar. Having an unbiased party view your paper is never a bad idea.
Once a word is misspelled, then it will always be a misspelled word. Faulty information embedded in your mind is what this has become. When the word is misspelled in a way that MS Word will catch it, then it's no problem but when the misspelled version happens to be a word too, then that's the absolute worse thing. In that case, the application absolutely will not catch that error! Examples would include your and you're or sea and see.
During the time that you are not paying attention or are on your guard, then you may end up incorrectly structuring a sentence or misspelling. Keep in mind that your mind works faster than your fingers. You also need to remember that you are more likely to detect errors than proofreading your own work when you proofread somebody else's work.
Professionals proofread their work over 10 times. Now that you have these guidelines, you can as well!
You are the best judge of yourself. That you can determine exactly what your most common mistakes are. Whether it's placing the "e" before the "I," or simply forgetting the semi-colon; once you familiarize yourself with your most common mistakes, proofreading will become much easier.
Proofreading is not about misspelled words only and it's possible that those are just caught by the application you are using like MS Word spell checker. What you need to look for are incorrect sentence structure, repetition, and text which does not flow well together.
For a while, leave the document and return with new eyes. You will find that your outlook has completely changed if you walk away from your work and take a quick break, then return.
Slow down and read out loud! So many errors are caught when you read the text slow and out loud to yourself. Things like this sentence sounding so strange or repeating this word 5 times in the same paragraph are what you will realize.
Your subconscious plays tricks on you. Sometimes you read what you think SHOULD be there, not what is ACTUALLY there. So you must acquire the skill that overcomes the power of the subconscious. Any idea what that skill is? Simply reading what is actually on the page!!
Never settle for one quick glance over your paper. Read it several times to be sure that you have not missed any possible error.
Try to work with a friend or hire professional help. There is nothing like another set of eyes to look over your work for you. After working on a document for so long, it becomes too familiar. Having an unbiased party view your paper is never a bad idea.
Once a word is misspelled, then it will always be a misspelled word. Faulty information embedded in your mind is what this has become. When the word is misspelled in a way that MS Word will catch it, then it's no problem but when the misspelled version happens to be a word too, then that's the absolute worse thing. In that case, the application absolutely will not catch that error! Examples would include your and you're or sea and see.
During the time that you are not paying attention or are on your guard, then you may end up incorrectly structuring a sentence or misspelling. Keep in mind that your mind works faster than your fingers. You also need to remember that you are more likely to detect errors than proofreading your own work when you proofread somebody else's work.
Professionals proofread their work over 10 times. Now that you have these guidelines, you can as well!
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