Page 99 - The Voice of Authority

Eliminate Euphemisms
That Elude Meaning or Action

The absence of all the gory
There is no wisdom like details makes everyday life
frankness. civilized and bearable. Who
—Benjamin Disraeli wants to hear, “I need to go
vomit up my breakfast” in-
stead of the typical, “Would
you excuse me, please, I’m
not feeling well. I’ll be back in a moment.”
Who wants to hear, “A mugger ripped my cousin’s guts
out a few years ago and left him to bleed to death before
anyone found him” rather than “My cousin was killed by
a mugger a few years ago”?
Likewise, euphemisms have their place in social settings.
“Our neighbors plan to downsize in the next few months”
sounds more gracious than “Our neighbors are selling
everything they can to raise cash and avoid bankruptcy.”
In a parent-teacher conference, the parents often hear,
“Johnny is a natural leader” rather than “Johnny distracts
the whole class with his antics.”
But euphemisms complicate things at work: A manager
says to her subordinate who continues to come to her with
problems and for help with decisions rather than taking
initiative on his own: “Jordan, I trust your judgment as a
supervisor” when she means “Would you stop bothering
me with such petty issues.” Other examples may sound fa-
miliar:

“His vision for this department is a little different.”
(Strange philosophy? Management style? Weird con-
trol policy?)

Is It Purposefully Unclear? 87