Five Clichés and “Don’t Says” to Avoid Like the (Well, You Know)
At the End of the Day…Business Clichés Are Lazy Language!
Those pointless little phrases you use at work might be sending exactly the wrong message (for instance, that you’re too lazy to come up with something better). Venture capitalist, speaker, and best-selling author Richard Moran explains why it’s time to ditch those business clichés.
Look up “business buzzwords” or “business clichés” and you’ll find article after article about these irritating, overused phrases. In fact, new ones come out each year documenting the latest crop that’s flourishing in workplaces across America. In a world drowning in buzzwords, tweets, and hashtags, spouting mindless clichés in the workplace may seem harmless. But Richard Moran says using too many professional platitudes could be more problematic than you thought.
“Not only can business clichés be annoying to others who hear them day in and day out, they are the language of laziness,” says Moran, author of The Thing About Work: Showing Up and Other Important Matters (Routledge, 2016, ISBN: 978-1-62956-158-5, $22.95). “When you use them, you effectively fail to focus your thoughts and really identify what you’re trying to communicate and accomplish.”
Language that is “mindless” isn’t also “harmless.” The risks of vague language aren’t just practical detail mix-ups between coworkers. Many of these phrases are actually actively promoting terrible morale that shoves projects and careers into stagnation. By abusing clichés, you might be projecting an apathetic and lazy attitude without even realizing it.
“If you’re too lazy to come up with a way to say something other than resorting to a trite buzzword, isn’t that a sign that you’ll be lazy in other areas at work as well?” asks Moran. “Whether it’s true or not, that’s the message you’re broadcasting.”
Moran, who currently serves as president of Menlo College in Atherton, California, has pioneered the “Business Bullet Books” genre for over a decade. Blending impressive and invaluable corporate and academic experience and leadership with everyday insight, relaxed humor, and a touch of pathos, his advice is not only highly applicable to any person contemplating how to navigate their career; it makes the contemplation itself more enjoyable.
Accessible for all working generations and speaking from the most traditional of suited workplaces to the domains (and domain names) of Zuckerberg hoodies and office dogs, his newest book offers tips for what not to say in your day-to-day. For instance:
“It is what it is” is the sound of defeat.
The subtext of “it is what it is” is: “I give up.” That negativity enforces the kind of thinking that kills projects and how coworkers understand your attitude. It makes you the Debbie Downer in business clothing. Moran points out that you might as well say, “Life sucks and work is even worse,” and this attitude gets old very fast.
If the “low-hanging fruit” even does exist, going after it is just bad strategy.
The analogy of going after what requires less effort normalizes what is too easy and simply not existent. “Even if it does, the fruit on the top of the tree is ripest, and that’s where the greatest returns for your effort will be,” notes Moran.
The only thing that happens at the “end of the day” is, well, the end of the day.
Referencing the elusive “end of the day” is common in politics, academics, and especially business. “It’s so ubiquitous that it seems to imply that it’s news that each day ends,” explains Moran. “The truth is that, given technology and workdays that never end, the end of the day is a myth.”
These next two aren’t exactly clichés but they’re still all-too-common phrases you should probably avoid, says Moran. (Call them the “Don’t Says” perhaps.)
Ditch the R-word and the B-word.
Though they’re not the hot-button words you’re likely thinking of, Really? and BUT often exude snark, bad attitude, or are just plain irritating. It’s certainly not true in every spoken instance of these little words, but when your go-to response is “Really?” when a coworker asks for help or you’re constantly using “BUT” to excuse your own responsibility or knock down something (or someone) else—well, it’s really annoying.
“I don’t know; what do you want to do?” is a known verbal con-job.
Moran cites the “Abilene Paradox,” a group dynamics phenomenon. When nobody knows what exactly they want to do, it’s likely the group will settle on a decision nobody in the group wanted at all. It’s best to stop these indecisive circles in their tracks with an assertive, “I don’t want to do that.”
“Pay attention to what you’re saying at work and what it really means,” concludes Moran. “If you’ve gotten in the habit of falling back on clichés or other forms of lazy language, you might be surprised by how much effort it takes to stop and really think about what you mean. But it’s absolutely worth making the effort.
“And if you’re a leader, just listen to what employees say over and over,” he adds. “Be alert to the phrase du jour at work. It may tell you more about the people around you than you ever imagined.”
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About the Author:
Richard Moran is the current president of Menlo College in Atherton, California, and the author of The Thing About Work: Showing Up and Other Important Matters. Inspired by his experience and accomplishment in the world of business, the book provides accessible advice for all-level employees from an insider perspective that changes how we think about work.
Moran has served as a venture capitalist and consultant to Fortune 500 companies, including Apple Computer and News Corporation. An evangelist for organizational effectiveness, he has authored several books and pioneered the genre of “Business Bullet Books” with Never Confuse a Memo with Reality. He is a frequent contributor and influencer on LinkedIn, hosts the weekend radio show In the Workplace on KCBS, and has inspired many as a frequent speaker on workplace issues.
For more information, visit www.richardmoran.com.
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