Exercise #1: The Reverse Clarity Test
Write Like You’re Explaining to a 10-Year-Old
VijayWrites #144
Welcome to VijayWrites—where you’ll find inspiration, tips, and ideas to help you write better, master the art of copywriting, and make a career out of your words.
Write Better, Think Better – A 5-Part Series for Writers.
Great writing isn’t just about knowing grammar or having a good vocabulary.
It’s about how you think.
How you see your writing. How you challenge your assumptions. How you refine your ideas.
This week, I’m sharing 5 simple but powerful exercises to help you write and think better. No fluff—just real exercises that will improve your clarity, persuasion, and depth as a writer.
Let’s start with Exercise #1: The Reverse Clarity Test.
Exercise #1: Write Like You’re Explaining to a 10-Year-Old
Most writers assume they’re clear.
But clarity isn’t what you think is clear. It’s what your reader understands instantly.
If you had to explain your idea to a 10-year-old, would they get it?
Here’s your challenge:
Take a paragraph from something you wrote recently.
Rewrite it so a child can grasp it.
Keep the meaning intact, but make it simpler, sharper, and more direct.
Example:
Before: Our proprietary marketing methodology synergizes data-driven insights with consumer psychology to maximize conversions.
After: We use data and psychology to help businesses sell more.
Why this works:
It forces you to remove fluff and jargon.
It exposes weak ideas—if you struggle to simplify, your thinking isn’t clear enough.
It makes your writing more accessible, even to experts.
Einstein said, “If you can’t explain it simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”
So, test yourself.
Rewrite one paragraph today. See if a 10-year-old (or a busy reader) would actually get it.
Let me know how it goes.