I’m working on a mission and vision statement for a soon-to-be-launched design house in Sweden. It’s fun. And it’s amazing how much work goes into a few lines of text, primarily because of how much impact these two statements have on shaping the business. Honestly, it’s quite humbling to be involved.
My passion has always been in working with start-ups. It’s like giving birth. Scratch that. It is NOTHING like giving birth. Been there, done that. And if you’re a Mommy, there’s nothing quite like THAT experience ;-). I’ll compare working with start-ups to the beginnings of a new, romantic relationship. So much excitement, mystery, passion and hope mixed with confusion, awkwardness, fear and anxiety. It’s a rush.
Just like a new romantic relationship, you have visions of a beautiful end result. Marriage, a family? In the case of a small business, hitting big customer and $$$ milestones? Words like: “market-leading, world-renowned, the biggest/best, the #1” become part of your presentation jargon. After all, at this early stage, The world is your oyster (cliche-alert).
So…in working with this cool new start-up, I loved their use of the word ‘iconic’ to describe the ultimate destination for their brand. And then my balloon deflated when I read this…
“Some writers say that the terms “icon” and “iconic” have been overused. A writer in Liverpool Daily Post calls “iconic” “a word that makes my flesh creep,” a word “pressed into service to describe almost anything.”[24] The Christian Examiner nominates “iconic” in its list of overused words, finding over 18,000 “iconic” references in news stories alone, with another 30,000 for “icon”, including its use for SpongeBob SquarePants.[25]
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cultural_icon
Boooooooo! And then I started looking at every word and term in our draft vision statement critically. And I started second-guessing the text. And worse, coming down on myself as a writer because I was ‘guilty’ of employing overused words and cliches in my copy.
How many do you use on a regular basis?
Then, I put my head back on straight (idiom), dusted myself off (another!) and leveraged (overused) my proven experience (a no-no word in CVs/resumes) as a copywriter to teach myself a lesson (cliche).
Disclosure: Even as a professional copywriter, I am still not 100% clear on the difference between idiom and cliche. Though I do know an idiom can be a cliche and vice versa. Have a read on the differences yourself and feel free to correct me in cases where I may be wrong.
Because if the shoe word fits, wear use it!
What I’m trying to say in a very roundabout way here, is this:
Don’t get yourself all worked up trying to avoid overused words, idioms and cliches. When you’re writing an important piece of copy, just go for it. You can always go back and replace a word you feel may be overused (cue: Thesaurus) or pare down a jargon-filled paragraph. In the case of my client and the drafting of the all-important mission and vision statements, being bold in your language should trump worries of ‘overused words’ every time.
After all, if you don’t toot your own horn/sing your own praises/, no one else will ;-). That said:
1. If you’re appealing to an an international audience, be forewarned that idioms that work in your native tongue usually don’t translate well to another language.
2. The KISS Principle: Keep It Simple Stupid Sunshine! Go for a word like ‘use’ over ‘utilize’.
3. And if you’re still freaked out about potentially ‘utilizing’ overused terms, have a read through the following links:
- This general list contains a mix of funny and serious: Enough already! 2012’s list of most overused words and phrases
- Get on that LinkedIn Profile folks (heading there straight after I hit ‘Publish’): 10 Most Overused Words On LinkedIn Profiles
- I am guilty of using a lot of these words. That said, I still consider some of them irreplaceable: A Bizspeak Blacklist
What words do you want to see banished to the fiery pits of Mordor? Do share!
Until next time, Jenn
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