While you may have found yourself rolling your eyes when you heard a colleague talking about “synergy” or “circling back,” you’re not alone.
Terms often thrown back and forth in office meetings or on email strings have become so overused that they’re “meaningless” at best, or actually detrimental to how colleagues think of you, at worst, says Adam Yong, the CEO of Agility Writer, to the website StudyFinds.
“Jargon masks real meaning. When emailing your boss, you want to be clear, concise, and get straight to the point. Buzzwords and meaningless phrases just get in the way,” Yong says.
To his point, he offers six terms you need to retire right away: “think outside the box”; “circle back”;
low-hanging fruit”; “leverage” (as a verb); “synergy”; and “move the needle.”
Instead, he offers clearer — and less eye-roll-worthy — ways to say the same thing.
Instead of “think outside the box,” Yong offers actually explaining what you have in mind, using engaging terms like “innovate,” “be creative” and “explore new ideas.”
For “synergy,” try specifying what qualities you’re hoping to combine, stressing terms like “collaboration” and “team effort,” he says.
“Move the needle” should be replaced with more direct phrases, like “make a significant impact” or “advance our goals,” Yong suggests.
“Leverage,” when used as a verb, is overused, Yong says, pushing for the use of its actual meaning: “capitalize on” or “harness.”
Instead of the overused “low-hanging fruit,” try “quick wins,” “easy tasks” or “readily achievable goals.”
“Circle back” has infected everything from boardrooms to the White House press room. Try “revisit” or “discuss again later” to let colleagues know you’re not blowing them off, Yong says.