The Complicated Language of Business
Acronyms, fancy-sounding words that are meaningless, lengthy LinkedIn posts that have no context. We’ve complicated communication for one reason, sales & marketing. Even writing this I am programmed to making my words sound “professional” …Why? Why can’t I write how I would converse? That’s all this blog is, just me broadcasting a message to an audience, so why is our business communications so complex?
Acronyms
There’s only one acronym I like, KISS. Keep It Simple & Short (I adjusted it slightly, which is another issue with acronyms). Acronyms in writing is acceptable, if you’ve spelled out the full word the first time, so the reader understands the acronym, i.e., Internet Protocol (IP). The only reason for use of acronyms in writing is to shorten the length of text.
Acronyms should be avoided in conversation. Every person in a conversation should be able to understand the context and contribute. Let’s say we have 2 techies and a marketer in a room, this conversation would be a disaster for the marketer if the techies used acronyms (there are a lot in the world of tech). But it’s the marketer’s role to portray the tech to the masses, so if the techies’ removed acronyms from their conversation, the marketer could have an educated guess for what the full word meant. i.e., If I were to say IP in a conversation and you weren’t technical, you’d probably be lost or think of something that wasn’t related to the conversation like intellectual property or intelligent puppies. But, if I said Internet Protocol, you could digest each word and guess that it’s the protocol for the internet.
There is no universal system that governs acronyms, which makes them even harder to understand. The same acronyms with different meanings are used multiple times across different industries & subjects, so how can we keep up?
Fancy wording
“Employees in a distributed workforce can access critical business data from anywhere. Learn how to implement truly agile, cloud-first data protection.”……What a load of $**t.
This kind of stuff is just marketing gone mad. Do we forget that we are communicating and selling to other humans? Would you say this kind of sentence in a conversation? No? then why do it in writing? We’re all trying to be something we’re not; we’ve lost the art of communicating. Why is there this pressure for us to sound “professional”? You should sound authentic and consistent. You are talking to another human being, rephrase your communication so anyone can understand the context and contribute.
LinkedIn Posts
I don’t know if this is a recent trend or because I’ve gone on a connecting spree, but all I see on LinkedIn is long posts. I’m at the point where I’m hesitant to click “See more.” What is the need for a long post on social media? It makes me appreciate the character limit on twitter. If you can’t get to the point in less than a couple of sentences, then write a blog (Like I have). Social Media should be nuggets of information and if the reader wants to learn more, provide a resource. I appreciate the knowledge share on LinkedIn, but if I click “See more.” and your post takes up my screen, I’m scrolling right past.
Another thing, let’s be cautious on the advice you provide on LinkedIn. Just because it helped you, doesn’t mean it’s relevant for others, your advice and experience are appreciated, but provide context, i.e., “Say XYZ on a cold call to be successful” instead rephrase to “I said X to a customer in industry Y because of Z”. I now understand the context where it was used and can apply it when it’s relevant for me. Some things are universally applicable, but most are situational and personal to each of us, so please provide context!
Conversations
We are slowly losing the art of conversations. It’s difficult to engage and have a flowing, meaningful conversation. We spend more time conversing and interacting via a screen than we do with real people. We’d rather send an email than pick up the phone. We’ve created an artificial barrier between ourselves and others. When you walk into a store, do you ask the attendant how they are? When walking past someone do you smile and say Hi? It’s like we are afraid to engage in real conversations. Be approachable with your body language and engage with people!
Here are some pointers when having a conversation
- Be present. Engage in the conversation, forget about anything else on your agenda and focus your mind on the conversation.
- Be curious. Dig deeper into things you hear, even if on the surface it doesn’t peak your interest as you dig deeper your interest will grow and so will your knowledge.
- Don’t be selfish. A conversation involves more than yourself, so be interested in people. They care what you’re up to, what you’ve done, how you are, but they also want to know you care to ask about them.
- Include humor. Everyone loves to laugh, make sure your humor is tailored to the recipient’s sensitivity threshold. I learned a technique from a podcast recently called forward apology. If you are a direct person with a high tolerance for insensitive jokes, then apologize at the beginning of the conversation so your audience is prepared, almost like a disclaimer. Just like when shows say “Don’t try this at home” Or “This show contains violence” You are prepared for what’s coming.
- Don’t rush. Tell a story, use your emotions to engage the audience, ask questions. Don’t rush the conversation because you want it to end. You are rarely in a rush, you just think you are. Time is precise and valuable, but most things can wait.
- Enjoy the conversation
- Don’t overthink — I wrote an article on this. Please check it out.
Hope you enjoyed this read :)
