Page 142 - The New Articulate Executive_ Look, Act and Sound Like a Leader

WRITE LIKE YOU SPEAK 133

Buzzword: It is necessary that we interface with our research
and development employees.
Revised: We’ve got to sit down and talk with our R&D people.

Buzzword: Therefore, we must maintain a dialogue.

Revised: So let’s keep talking.
Buzzword: The results of our sales survey will impact the bot-
tom line.
Revised: The results of our sales survey will have an impact on
the bottom line. (It is still preferable to use impact as a noun.)

Buzzword: We must garner our resources to compete in the
marketplace.
Revised: To compete, we’ve got to spend more money on R&D
and on our own people.

Buzzword: With work, we can expect to achieve superior
synergy.

Revised: We expect a good fit.

Buzzword: One of our goals is to enter into a policy of empow-
erment with our human resources.

Revised: We are going to let our own people make their own
decisions and be accountable for the results.
Not everyone will fault you for sounding like a bumblebee—
mainly because many others in the organization have probably got
the buzz, too. But you can distinguish yourself and become a more
believable speaker (while still remaining a team player) simply by
shooing the bumblebee out of your language.

5. Be specifi c. Don’t rely on indefinite reference pronouns—the he’s,

she’s, they’s, them’s, it’s, one’s, and we’s that clutter our everyday con-
versation. Repetition in prose is a vice that should be avoided. But