Jargon and Acronyms Can Derail Your Message

Almost every business-writing expert downplays the use of jargon and acronyms. I am no exception. Overuse wears people out, can be viewed as cliquish, and sometimes obfuscates the issue as writers hide behind letters or phrases.



Think CIA just stands for a governmental agency? Think again, CIA also stands for Culinary Institute of America. FBI? It’s an acronym for a food and beverage organization. NATO refers to a theatre owners’ organization. And, COLA is governmentese for “cost of living adjustment.” An article by the Robert Half company looks at some current acronyms that confuse or bore.


Remember, your reader always determines your word choice.

Take Heed! Danger Ahead

Well, it’s happened again. Someone with no common sense fired off an email that got him in huge hot water. A school board member decided to wax philosophical on his views on race and intelligence, put them in an email and press "send." I will not repeat his offensive words in this post. We all know that everything is discoverable. What was this guy thinking?


Needless to say, the board has asked him to resign. Can you imagine—He’s “thinking” it over! So again, the lessons learned:


1. Always read your writing aloud.


2. Always ask yourself the question: Would I really say this to someone?


3. Don’t send anything inflammatory, illegal, or sexual in nature.


4. If mad, count to ten.


Any other ideas you have to add to this short list? Our guest expert on email liability later this month will share with you how to keep yourself and your company out of legal trouble.

Too Much Facebook, Too Little Face Time

The Seattle Times ran an interesting editorial several weeks ago, titled "Too Much Facebook, Too Little Face Time," about the latest issues around technology. I know you’ve heard them all by now, but it posits that technology "threatens to infiltrate our lives to the brink of being too much.” The interesting premise the paper discusses is what does the too-much-screen-time not enough face-time do to personal interactions? And, the natural next question is with everyone emailing and texting everyone, what’s happening to our relationships with colleagues and customers? A response to this came from several of our clients. They said it is wreaking havoc in the workplace—morale issues popping up, non-existent team building, problems simmering, and initiatives delayed.



So in response, my clients are instituting email free days, three-email limit (After that limit, person must pick up the phone or walk down the hall to resolve the issue), scheduled face-to-face meetings, deleting email more than two-weeks old. Some are drastic, some are practical, and others may improve productivity as well as the workplace climate. What are you doing at your work site? We are all looking for answers!