4 Words to avoid when you speak

There are words you use every day that are wishy-washy and weak. If you want to up-level your power to persuade and influence people, you need to be aware of them. Here are 4 words that endanger your ability to convey your best ideas and claim your impact.

1. JUST
When used as an adjective, “The soldier fought for a just cause,” it’s a noble word that means conforming to reason or a standard of correctness. But when used as an adverb, it becomes a minimizer, “She just made it to the train,” meaning barely or by a small margin. As an adverb it also lessens the importance of something: “He’s just an intern,” implying lower competence and smaller in value.

2. SHOULD
This is a deal-breaker. It transmits guilt, self-judgment, and regret when you use it on yourself: “I should have skipped that piece of pie.” Or it is bossy, imposing, and superior when spoken to or about someone else: “You should not speak to your boss that way.” Or “You should have let me drive and we would have arrived on time.”
In the context of self-improvement and human development, the use of the word should is a way of punishing ourselves and others for not hitting a mark or reaching a goal, which could well be artificial or impossible.

3. ABSOLUTELY
Listen to media interviews and you will likely hear “Absolutely” used in response to a question—even an insignificant one.
Question: “Would you ride a bicycle in the rain?”
Answer: “Absolutely.”
A better answer would be to simply say “Yes” or “No.”

4. NEVER
Few things in nature are everlasting, forever, or permanent. Similarly, never, the antonym of always holds little weight in the context in which we may use it for business and everyday speech. The adage, “Never say never,” suggests that you could look foolish if what you said would never happen comes true.

Think twice about your choice of words and amp up your leadership communication.

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