Business communication: how to choose the right words
“You’re a spoiled, annoying little two-footer. Plus, you’re a lousy kid.”
Hopefully no adult ever said something that mean (or exaggerated!) to you when you were a kid. But if they did, here’s some news: a study called “words can change your brainco-authored with Mark Robert Waldman and Andrew Newberg, MD states that our brains are “programmed to respond to certain kinds of speech.”
If the study is correct, it means that our neural pathways can actually be changed by the kinds of words that are routinely spoken to us. Therefore, negative language will foster a negative mindset, while positive words will have the opposite effect. So the words we use matter.
The importance of the words we use came up in a conversation I had with a business acquaintance the other day. This gentleman pointed out that in a recent discussion with a Cambridge linguist, she emphasized the idea that “words matter.” In light of the study’s findings, what the linguist said actually rings true. The actual choice of a word can have a significant impact on the quality and effectiveness of communication.
If you’ve ever tried to write anything, be it a memo or a novel, you’ll know exactly what I mean. How many times has he sent a written communication only later to find himself thinking, “I wish I hadn’t used that word (or words); he didn’t mean exactly what he meant”?
In an age of fast-paced communications (email, Twitter, text messages) it’s all too easy to be careless with your choice of words. But in business communication, the words you choose to use can have a significant impact.
Think of it this way, if you constantly choose negative words to express yourself in your business communication, you are the equivalent of a mother yelling at her child. If you tell people that they are incompetent or irritating too many times, they will start to believe it or at least resent being spoken to that way. (And being told you’re incompetent or irritating is demotivating to say the least.)
So here are some quick tips to apply to both written and oral business communication. They should help you stay on track to make sure you his words matter, in a good way.
Our “Make Your Words Matter” Tip Sheet
– Accentuate the positive: A general rule of thumb is that for every negative or critical word or term you use, balance it with three positive words or terms.
-Location, location, location: Start any form of business communication with the positive; then introducing words that may be critical or have some negative weight is a better approach than the other way around.
-Concise and precise: Do not waste words. Keep your communications concise, rather than wordy. People will tune out the verbiage. For some good examples, take a look at ‘wordy vs. concise graphic on the professional development website, Wet Feet.