The day after Human Beings invented talking, they invented the trite business phrase. In those days, business consisted mostly of acquiring food, shelter, and the necessities for procreation, much like business today. The first trite business phrase, loosely translated, meant "gimme that." Despite its rapid descent into triteness, "gimme that" did serve a higher purpose, because it led to the invention of a phrase of great utility even today: "in your dreams."
Since then, the more inventive among us have tried to stay ahead of the triteness curve — so to speak — but now cable TV makes that impossible. As soon as an authoritative author or a pontificating pundit unveils a clever new verbal invention, it's blasted around the world on the 24-hour news cycle, and everyone scrambles to be the first to use it in email or a meeting.
Clever new verbal inventions
have short shelf lives.
Everyone scrambles to be
the first to use them
in email or a meeting.The rest of us must repeat the same old too-familiar phrases, often forgetting what the phrases once meant. They might have had real impact when they were new, but now they're just filler.
Here are a few examples of once clever and colorful, but now trite and tired business phrases. Recall the first time you caught yourself using them, and decide if you want to continue.
- that said, having said that
- We used to say "but." Nowadays we seem to need more syllables.
- with all due respect
- Probably popularized in modern times by Perry Mason or those characters on C-SPAN, this one is a real oldie. See, for example, The Devil's Dictionary, by Ambrose Bierce  (Order from Amazon.com).
- at the end of the day, bottom line
- Two different ways of saying "finally." "Bottom line" comes from accounting and finance, and used to be cute.
- on the ground
- Desperately trying to remain vital, this one is transforming itself into "boots on the ground." It's probably military in origin — a flyer's or paratrooper's term.
- ahead of the curve, behind the curve
- The "power curve" describes the relationship between drag, airspeed, and vertical speed for an aircraft. In business, the "ahead" form means advanced or innovative, while the behind form means "in too deep to ever dig out." Originally, using this image meant you were a pilot, which carried status. No longer.
- on our radar screen
- This one means "in our awareness." It used to be clever-sounding.
- get your arms around
- This one means "master," "grasp" or "understand." It's a highly charged physical image that can be somewhat risky.
The language we use reveals much about us. If leadership in writing and speech is a part of being a leader, then it's important to choose consciously the language we use every day. Choose yours. Next in this series Top Next Issue
Is every other day a tense, anxious, angry misery as you watch people around you, who couldn't even think their way through a game of Jacks, win at workplace politics and steal the credit and glory for just about everyone's best work including yours? Read 303 Secrets of Workplace Politics, filled with tips and techniques for succeeding in workplace politics. More info
For more examples of high falutin? goofy talk, see "High Falutin' Goofy Talk: II," Point Lookout for January 17, 2018.
Your comments are welcomeWould you like to see your comments posted here? firstname.lastname@example.org me your comments by email, or by Web form.
About Point Lookout
Thank you for reading this article. I hope you enjoyed it and found it useful, and that you'll consider recommending it to a friend.
Point Lookout is a free weekly email newsletter. Browse the archive of past issues. Subscribe for free.
Support Point Lookout by joining the Friends of Point Lookout, as an individual or as an organization.
Do you face a complex interpersonal situation? Send it in, anonymously if you like, and I'll give you my two cents.
More articles on Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness:
- Food for Thought
- Most companies have employee cafeterias, with the usual not-much-better-than-high-school food service.
By upgrading — and subsidizing — food service, these companies can reduce turnover and improve
- We Are All People
- When a team works to solve a problem, it is the people of that team who do the work. Remembering that
we're all people — and all different people — is an important key to success.
- Coping with Layoff Survival
- Your company has just done another round of layoffs, and you survived yet again. This time was the most
difficult, because your best pal was laid off, and you're even more fearful for your own job security.
How can you cope with survival?
- One Cost of Split Assignments
- Sometimes management practices have unintended consequences. To reduce costs, we keep staff ranks thin,
but that leads to split assignments for those with rare skills. Here's one way split assignments can
lead to higher costs.
- How to Waste Time in Meetings
- Nearly everyone hates meetings. The main complaint: they're mostly a waste of time. The main cause:
us. Here's a field manual for people who want to waste even more time.
See also Personal, Team, and Organizational Effectiveness and Effective Communication at Work for more related articles.
Forthcoming issues of Point Lookout
- Coming June 14: Pseudo-Collaborations
- Most workplace collaborations produce results of value. But some collaborations — pseudo-collaborations — are inherently incapable of producing value, due to performance management systems, or lack of authority, or lack of access to information. Available here and by RSS on June 14.
- And on June 21: Asking Burning Questions
- When we suddenly realize that an important question needs answering, directly asking that question in a meeting might not be an effective way to focus the attention of the group. There are risks. Fortunately, there are also ways to manage those risks. Available here and by RSS on June 21.
I offer email and telephone coaching at both corporate and individual rates. Contact Rick for details at email@example.com or (650) 787-6475, or toll-free in the continental US at (866) 378-5470.
Get the ebook!
Past issues of Point Lookout are available in six ebooks:
- Get 2001-2 in Geese Don't Land on Twigs (PDF, )
- Get 2003-4 in Why Dogs Wag (PDF, )
- Get 2005-6 in Loopy Things We Do (PDF, )
- Get 2007-8 in Things We Believe That Maybe Aren't So True (PDF, )
- Get 2009-10 in The Questions Not Asked (PDF, )
- Get all of the first twelve years (2001-2012) in The Collected Issues of Point Lookout (PDF, )
Are you a writer, editor or publisher on deadline? Are you looking for an article that will get people talking and get compliments flying your way? You can have 500-1000 words in your inbox in one hour. License any article from this Web site. More info
- "Rick is a dynamic presenter who thinks on his feet to keep the material relevant to the
— Tina L. Lawson, Technical Project Manager, BankOne (now J.P. Morgan Chase)
- "Rick truly has his finger on the pulse of teams and their communication."
— Mark Middleton, Team Lead, SERS