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Rate Your Team's Proofreading Fitness on a Scale from 1–10

What makes proofreading inherently challenging? Can you read the following paragraph? Most people correct mistakes as they read. Here's the good news: Readers can miss our errors; now here's the bad news &@8212; the don't!

Aoccdrnig to rscheearch at Cmabrigde Uinervtisy, it deosn't mttaer in what oredr the ltteers in a wrod are, the olny iprmoatnt tihng is taht the frist and lsatltteer be at the rghit pclae. The rset can be a total mses and you can sitll raed it wouthit porblem. Tihs is bcuseae the huamn mnid deos not raed ervey lteter by istlef, but the wrod as a wlohe.

To safeguard your credibility as a good business communicator, follow these five proofreading tips:

1. Use spell and grammar checkers
2. Print out a copy of your documents or hide the paragraph markers on the screen (show/hide feature) for reading ease
3. Read every word — don't skim
4. Read your document aloud
5. Ask a co-worker to help proofread