Banishing buzzwords:
Can we save thought leadership?

14 August, 2024

By Brittany Williams

The quickest way to turn off a reader? Bore them. Mislead. Use hollow words.

Many have opined about jargon and cliché. George Orwell wrote, “Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can think of an everyday English equivalent.” And per usual, Albert Einstein sums it up nicely: “If you can’t explain something simply, you don’t understand it well enough.”

There’s science behind jargon. Research has consistently shown that individuals adopt group-specific language, or “groupspeak,” to signal membership and foster a sense of belonging within social and professional circles. In business, this linguistic mimicry feeds on jargon. A new startup employee, for example, might embrace terms such as “disruptive innovation” or “agile” to fit in, even if they don’t fully grasp the concepts.

As I settle into my role as VP of Editorial & Content Operations at iResearch Services, I wanted to kickstart a conversation about refreshing the language we consciously and subconsciously lean on in thought leadership and business more broadly. By “we,” I mean anyone trying to get their point across without creating paradigm shifts or working past pain points to move the needle.

So I turned to my LinkedIn network—a diverse group of professionals from my college and grad school days, previous jobs, current MBA program, and current role—with a simple question:

What words and phrases drive you crazy?

The response was bountiful, affirming, and enlightening. We put together a list of nominated terms, suggested alternatives, and guidance for adding specificity and value to your language. Discover more

The most-hated term: “synergy.” (In the wise words of my colleague Amy Stettler, “Synergy. Ugh.”) When you find the term on the tips of your lips or fingers: stop, take a breath, and consider whether you can explain how the interaction you’re describing produces a combined effect greater than the sum of its parts. Or just swap it out for something less wearing on readers’ weary eyes, such as “cooperation.”

Another category of overuse consists of clichéd abstract phrases. “It’s in our DNA” and “digital transformation” are two biting examples given I’ve used them both. (Look, I’m sorry. No one’s perfect.)

“Unparalleled,” “unprecedented,” “revolutionary,” and other hyperbolic words also received fire from the group. I appreciated Daniel Heffner’s suggestion of banning “only” (as in ‘the only company that XYZ’). Because, no. No, you’re not.”

I was pleased to see several of my most-hated phrases called out by the connoisseurs in my network, including “cutting-edge” (and its equally violent cousin, “bleeding-edge”); “leveraging” as a verb (I will die on this hill); and “ask” as a noun, as in “Make the ask.” As Morgan Strunsky noted in his nomination message, “Unlock” as a noun; ‘spend’ as a noun. Pretty much any nouning of a verb.”

Yes, William Shakespeare nouned verbs and verbed nouns with the best of them. But even Shakespeare might shudder at being asked to “solution a problem.”

At home, at the beach, with your friends—synergize the hell out of that game-changing road map. But at work, you’ll stand out by using words correctly and precisely. And if you must use any of these phrases, use them ever so sparingly.