NCO Primary Leadership Subjects
Organizing Your Paper and Material, Continued
The following table will assist you in choosing the appropriate format for your paper:
Types of
formats
If your paper...
Then use...
will
remain
internal
to
your
the informal memorandum.
headquarters, command, installation, or
similar organizational element,
will go outside your headquarters,
the formal memorandum.
command, installation, or similar
organizational element,
is in reply to or forwards a statement
an endorsement.
added to a memorandum,
documents a mutually agreed upon
a memorandum of understanding
statement of:
(MOU) or memorandum of agreement
(MOA).
Facts,
Intentions,
Procedures,
Limits of future actions either or
both parties will take,
Present or future coordination,
Present or future commitments,
summarizes preceding correspondence
a memorandum for record (MFR).
or shows the authority basis for action
taken,
should reach all units in a command,
a military order, directive, circular,
bulletin, or numbered memorandum, as
appropriate.
shows the facts and reasoning that leads a staff study.
to a conclusion,
After deciding on a format, use it together with your note cards to make an outline
Make an outline
and develop your ideas. An outline will serve as a blueprint for you to follow in
preparing your paper. It saves time by forcing you to arrange the main points and
the supporting material in a logical order before you begin to write. It also prevents
distractions which can confuse the issue and make your job more difficult.
Continued on next page
4-24
Writing Mechanics and Composition
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