Drilling down into going the extra mile to circle back on jargon

Let’s ditch the pretentious event speak

Words and phrases that give me the ick range from “fur baby” and “bestie” to “hun” and “hubby”. Holibobs. Drinkies. Wine-o-clock. Kiddo. My other half. Preggers. Wifey. Mama bear. Living your best life. Finding your tribe. At the end of the day.

Come to think of it, ”ick” is pretty annoying too. 

We all have different triggers (is “trigger” irksome?) in everyday life that impact how we perceive someone who uses these words. I have no problem with “moist”, and yet it has come up repeatedly as a cringeworthy word in all sorts of surveys and online discussions.

One such recent survey of 2,000 Britons by the marketing and PR research agency Perspectus Global found one in four of us have sighed in disappointment when they heard someone use a word they deem cringeworthy.

A fifth even admitted their opinion of the person goes down, and a further tenth go out of their way to avoid the person who used the annoying phrase, with neuroscientist Dr Rachel Taylor saying: “If someone uses a word or phrase that we find embarrassing, as humans, we instinctively want to distance ourselves from them - hence the cringe, which can be seen as physically making ourselves smaller.”

I’m no neuroscientist or psychologist, but I imagine we have the same reaction to business jargon and clichés.

I certainly do, although it might stem partly from journalism sub-editing stints. In newsrooms, words such as “utilise” invoke immediate weariness and wariness. Just use “use” – it is shorter and simpler, anyone can understand it, the meaning is clear, and you don't sound like a pretentious know-it-all. Regardless of the target audience, you want to sound real. (“Authentic” instead of “real” is up there on my irritability scale. But then I have a long list: think outside the box; reach out; grab the low-hanging fruit; touch base; leverage; going forward; circle back; take it offline; drill down; go the extra mile all make my stomach turn.)

Jargon in business communication is more than merely irritating, though. Whether you are marketing an event, delivering a podium speech or writing a conference report, it may reveal more about you than you intend, and not what you want.

Professor Adam Galinsky, the Paul Calello Professor of Leadership and Ethics in the Management Division at Columbia Business School, studied the effects of using jargon and what language says about your power and status.

“We use jargon when we’re feeling insecure, to try to help us feel like we have a higher status,” Galinsky says. 

When people feel insecure about their status, the research shows, they rely on jargon as a flashy sign to convey higher standing.

Another problem is that jargon masks real meaning. Jennifer Chatman, management professor at the University of California-Berkeley’s Haas School of Business, told Forbes. “People use it as a substitute for thinking hard and clearly about their goals and the direction that they want to give others.”

So, grab this window of opportunity and action some blue sky thinking to leverage a paradigm shift and break out the ick. Just say no to the cliché.