Communication Management: Writing — A Dying Skill?

I grew up in an English-medium school, scored well in grammar, and thought professional writing would be easy. If I could write essays in school, surely I could write an email… right?

Wrong.

My first corporate email took me 30 minutes and still read like a confused combination of textbook English and panic. I hit send anyway — and immediately refreshed Outlook 17 times to see if someone replied. Nobody did. But my manager did call me. You can imagine what would have been the conversation..Let me leave it to your imagination.

The Art We Thought Was Simple

It took me years to understand that writing is not just about English. It’s about judgement.
Who should be addressed? Who should only be silently copied? Who should never ever be put in CC unless you want fireworks?

To, CC, BCC — corporate world’s version of chess pieces. Move them wrong and you can lose the game before you even begin. Trust me a very sensitive

Tone, context and emotional balance — that’s where most people struggle, including me. I still remember drafting a mail after a particularly frustrating meeting. It was flawless — grammatically. Emotionally? It was a nuclear missile with a smiley at the end. Thankfully, I slept on it. Next morning, I rewrote it into something calmer. No casualties. Peace treaty signed.

Escalation Emails — Corporate Cricket Match

Let’s be honest — escalation mails have a fan following of their own.
In my early years, I treated them like T20 matches:

• Someone hits a bouncer, I must respond with a six.
• CC list becomes the roaring crowd.
• And eventually, a senior leader steps in as umpire: “Team, let’s take this offline.”

Back then, I loved the thrill — even if the issue was as tiny as who forgot to attach the PDF. Now, when I see one, I quietly sip coffee and observe. The young players are on the field. I’ve retired to commentary, once in a while I get tempted to respond with a six, but hold myself..

AI — The New Co-Writer We Didn’t Ask For, But Now Can’t Work Without

Today writing tools do more than autocorrect. They suggest tone, shorten sentences, soften anger and sometimes even ask:

“This sounds harsh. Still want to send?”

That one question has probably saved wars, I believe…I meant cold and ego wars..

But there’s a flipside — the more we rely on AI, the less we practice original writing. Why struggle for the perfect sentence when a tool will offer you five—complete with bullet points, transitions and inspirational closing line?

Convenient, yes. Efficient, definitely.
But we’re losing something in the process — effort. Voice. Authenticity.

I’m guilty of it too. I use AI to polish my writing, add flavour, tighten the narrative. But I try to ensure the emotion  is mine. The humour is mine. The story is mine. AI is my editor — not my replacement.

So Is Writing Really Dying?

Not yet.
But it’s evolving — quickly.

If you ask me what to do — read books, yes. Learn grammar, sure. But also, explore the newest tools. Not to replace your writing — but to enhance it. To see where you stand. To push your limits. Because AI can now sense what part of your writing is truly human — and if the machine can tell, your readers surely will.

Writing today is less about perfect English and more about thoughtfulness, tact, intention.
Anyone can draft an email. Few can make someone feel something through it.

And maybe that’s the real skill we should try to protect.

The pen may still be mightier than the sword —
but now it has competition. And it can autocomplete.