Style Guide Practice Report - 1
Olivia Burd
Style and Rhetoric
Professor Sanchez
March 2, 2025
Style Guide Practice Report: Scenario One
40 and Never Been Married? That’s Okay, 25% of People are in the Same Boat.
If you're 40 and still feel like you have no desire to get married, you aren’t alone. In recent years, the idea of marriage and how individuals view marriage has shifted. The 00’s have had quite a large impact on what we consider to be a fulfilling life. Between 1980 and 2021, there has been a 6% increase in the number of 40-year-olds that have never been married. And, we know, you may think that the 2000’s babies are making your life harder, but they’ve helped make it more acceptable to be 40 and unmarried. In fact, “85% [of people] do not think marriage is necessary to have a fulfilled and committed relationship” (Psych, 2023). Thank you Gen Z.
Everyone has their own beliefs and opinions about why marriage is or isn’t for them. For some it’s finances, for others they feel that it’s outdated, some don’t feel they need marriage to feel fulfilled, and others just simply don’t want to. Whatever floats your boat. But, as of 2023, only 23% of individuals think that marriage is “very important for living a fulfilling life” (Schaeffer, 2023). So, if you’re eager to get married, hopefully you meet someone in that 23% very soon! If you aren’t looking to ever get married, though, it would be best to find someone who is one of the “44% [of people who] don’t believe that marriage is important” (Schaeffer, 2023) in terms of life fulfillment.
Are you 40 and still unmarried just because you simply didn’t want to? That’s okay, and also not shocking because of all the people who are not planning to get married, “72% [of them] just aren’t interested in getting married” (Psych, 2023). Essentially by making it this far in life without having to pay for a wedding (or possibly a divorce), you’ve saved a lot of money. For 2025 the predicted average cost of a wedding is $36,000, but many still go way over budget. Speaking of finances though, according to those participating in the study, “73% feel it’s too expensive to get married in the current economy” (Psych, 2023).
Despite the fact that 25% of 40-year-olds being unmarried is record breaking, many of the reasons behind this decision are not brand new. The shift in societal standards have allowed people to not feel the pressure of marriage like they have previously, therefore less people feel obligated to tie the knot. Whatever your reasoning is, it’s okay. You do you!
Scenario One: Executive Summary
This scenario one summary document was written about the Pew Striking Findings of 2023 topic “A record-high share of 40-year-olds in the U.S. have never been married”. Even though marriage is an important, rather serious topic, I think for those who are 40 and unmarried it would be a more interesting read if it was light hearted. That being said, I used ChimpMail’s style guide as my guide and my intended audience is those who are 40 and unmarried.
ChimpMail’s style guide states that their goals and principles are to have the writing be educational, respectful, friendly, empowering, and clear. In order for me to achieve these goals as well I included some important statistics to back up the claims that I was making. I also ensured that I didn’t talk down on any age group within my writing to make sure that everything was respectful and empowering. This topic itself is clear so I just made sure that I didn’t include any quotes that might be “too” complex. The style guide also had important guidelines for numbers and symbols. For example, using the % symbol rather than writing “percent”, and using 00’s instead of 2000’s, and lastly, not writing out numbers unless necessary. These are things that I made sure I followed because it’s these little details that make it fit with MailChimp much better. Lastly, humor is such an important part of what makes MailChimp’s writing stand out. On the style guide it says “our humor is dry”. So it was important that there be some dry humor included that was in no way condescending.
The first sentence, “If you're 40 and still feel like you have no desire to get married, you aren’t alone.” exemplifies MailChimps guide to be respectful, friendly and empowering. Throughout the writing I use the % symbol many times, like for example, “ But, as of 2023, only 23% of individuals think that marriage is “very important for living a fulfilling life””. This just works to make the writing feel less formal. And lastly, is a hint of humor which I tried to represent by saying “Essentially by making it this far in life without having to pay for a wedding (or possibly a divorce), you’ve saved a lot of money.” I believe that these small, yet impactful, aspects of MailChimps style is what sets it apart from other websites and what makes it so welcoming to everyone.
Reference:
https://thrivingcenterofpsych.com/blog/millennials-gen-z-marriage-expectations-statistics/
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