discussion 5

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Upskill Value add Warning shot

I’m sure you could add to the list. Such phrases are often metaphors, as you can see, and taken in bulk they’re just comical. Things really get interesting when writers begin to mix these metaphors; the result is often pure nonsense:

Have you noticed that the farther you move toward fulfilling your potential, the higher the needle moves forward?

Wait, which way is the needle moving? Up or forward? It’s a silly example, but it came from a real document, and it illustrates what happens when people rely on these expressions too much: they stop thinking. Consider how distinctive and refreshing your voice as a writer could be if you cut down on your use of this kind of jargon.

Instead of Going forward, we should drill down into actionable initiatives rather than blue-sky thinking.

Try In the future, we should focus on initiatives that we can actually implement rather than unproven ideas.

Instead of At the end of the day, we can advance by targeting quick wins and low-hanging fruit in the market.

Try Ultimately, we’ll succeed if we focus on easily achievable goals.

You’ll note that both of these examples do more than eliminate offending phrases. The revisions are more specific and easier to understand than the originals. They present concrete ideas that can be discussed and perhaps disagreed with. Do we really want to stick with what we already know how to do, without exploring other avenues? Is focusing on easy goals really the right thing to do now? When you strip these suggestions of their jargon, it becomes much easier to understand and discuss them.

Needlessly Complicated Language

In Step 4, Be concise, we looked at the bad habit of using long phrases where short ones would do. In that step, we were concerned about saving space and writing economically. Here we’re concerned with a different issue: how using language that’s needlessly complicated can instead impinge on your ability to communicate.

What do I mean by “needlessly complicated” language? Here are some examples:

Utilize = use Initiate = start Subsequent to = after Prior to = before In light of the fact that = because or since In the event that = if In close proximity = near

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