Good interpersonal communication is always very important, especially in business or professional-relevant situations. As someone who constantly strives to improve, I’ve thought a lot of about the ways I can do better when speaking to others in a non-casual setting.
Here are some things on my mind along these lines.
“A bit” or “a little”
Despite wanting to express our true sentiments, we often inject “a bit” or “a little” because of the concern of being too abrupt or impactful with what we’re saying. I’ve decided now that unless there’s an important reason otherwise, I should be able to just express sentiments without the need to minimize them. For example, if I truly believe a draft of an article is really rough, I should be able to state as such, without saying “it’s a bit rough” to soften the blow.
“Leaning into”
The phrase “leaning into” something is used so often, to the point that it can be vague in its true underlying meaning. I would prefer to be more exact with what I want to say. For example, instead of saying that I should “lean more into” Claude Code, I’d prefer something like “engage more actively with.”
“That’s a very good question.”
A phrase used so excessively as to lose its effectiveness and intention. You should only use it to acknowledge someone’s astuteness in asking you a very specific question. And never, ever, say this in a job interview unless you really mean it. Don’t use it to try and make yourself look good.
Making the same point repeatedly
Admittedly, this is on me. Sometime I’ll say something emphatically, to make a point, then reflexively repeat it over and over again in the course of a conversation. Recently, I’ve wondered if I have ever annoyed anyone by doing so. As a result, I’ve become more conscientious and now try to avoid needlessly repeating what I say.