The Use of "I" Statements

I know that for many years students are taught to use "I statements", I feel, I think that...Many times when you interact with others it is an appropriate way to voice your opinions. That doesn't hold for everything; especially when writing essays, research papers or speeches.

Avoid referring to yourself in your essays. I know that it was something you were probably taught to do when you were younger, but it gives the impression that it is more of an opinion (which it is).

In your writing you’ll want to be precise and persuasive.

Here’s an example:

Using “I Statements”—In this paper I am going to discuss the difference between Conservatism and Liberalism.

Not using “I Statements”—The definition of Conservatism is...

If you state your opinion as fact it automatically becomes more persuasive as if you are the authority speaking on the topic.

It will force you to take out any of the fluff and rely on the actual opinion being discuss. Notice how it would pretty much delete your entire introductory paragraph? That means you’ll have to interest your reader through facts, statistics, or other means.

It is a much more persuasive way of writing and lends some authority to your analysis.