The words you use matter. They determine how people see you and remember you. Do you strive to use the most precise words? Do you settle for simple, lazy words? OR, do you use unapproachable words and make people feel dumb? Do you swear a lot? Do you use disrespectful slang all the time? Do you misuse words often? All of these things affect how people see you and, most importantly, how they remember you because people remember how you make them feel and that is shaded by the words you use and how you use them.
We are in the process of trying to erase the word “Yeah” from our household. I use it too much and, of course, now my kiddos do. I am sometimes lazy in my word choice and that is an easy crutch. There isn’t anything inherently wrong with the word, it is just lazy and somewhat disrespectful. So we are charging our kids 25 cents for each occurrence. Trying to at least replace “yeah” with “yes”.
With the proliferation of texting and other non-personal communication, this has become even more complicated because people read different feelings into words. You lose the benefit of tone and emotion in the delivery. This complication makes it even more important to pay attention to your message and the specific words that comprise it.
What are some words that affect (negatively) your image? Swear words, colloquialisms, mispronunciations, bad word choice, etc. Share your favorite (least favorite).
