Dont use workplace jargon

Dont use workplace jargon Dont use jargon. I know youve heard this rule before, but maybe no one has ever told you the real reason for the rule. Your choice of jargon reveals your weakness. A lot of jargon is specific to an industry and if you use it outside the industry no one will understand you. This jargon will undermine you because you are so likely to alienate someone by using words or phrases they dont know. Theres also jargon that goes across most industries. The phrases you hear whether youre an accountant in consumer products or a programmer in health care. Most people understand this jargon, but using it makes you look bad because most cross-industry jargon is a euphemism for being desperate or incompetent or calling someone else desperate or incompetent. Here are some examples: Lets think out of the box: Really means, Can you creatively anemic people please come up with something? People who really do think out of the box do it whether they are told to or not. Thats how they think. If you feel like you need to tell someone to think out of the box, then its probably hopeless. The person who says, Lets think out of the box is usually desperate for a new idea and surrounded by people who are not known for generating ideas. So the phrase is actually an announcement that says, Im in trouble. I need someone who can hit the ground running: Really means, I am screwed. Because no one can hit the ground running. You need to at least assess what race youre in and who else is running. Everyone has a race strategy when they are in the blocks. You need a little time to get one. In the case of a new hire this means taking some time to assess company politics. If your employer needs you to hit the ground running then youve already missed your window to achieve success. Do you have the bandwidth? Note that bandwidth is not time. It is something else. If you ask someone Do you have time? you mean, Am I a priority? If you ask someone Do you have bandwidth you mean, You seem like your brain is fried. Can you pull yourself together to do this for me? Lets hit a home run: Im desperate to look good. Even though the odds of a home run are slim, Im banking on one because its the only thing thatll save me. Something for all your sports fans to remember: If you have a bunch of solid hitters you dont need a bunch of home runs. You and I are not on the same page: Get on my page. Your page is misguided. No one ever says, Were not on the same page, so let me work really hard to understand your point of view. If you want to understand someone else, you say, Can you tell me more about how youre thinking. Im calling to touch base: I want something from you but I cant say it up front. Or I am worried that you are lost and Im sniffing around for signs to confirm my hunch. Or Im calling because you micromanage me. Lets run the numbers and see how they look: I know they look bad on first blush. But the true use of Excel is to keep changing the formulas until you find a format that makes the numbers look good. My plate is full: Help Im drowning, or I would kill myself before Id work on your project. Lets close the loop: Let me make sure Im not going to get into trouble for this one. Lets touch base next week: I dont want to talk to you now, or You are on a short leash and you need to report back to me. Keep this on your radar: This will come back to bite you or me.