Words That Work: It's Not What You Say, It's What People Hear

And therein lies an essential lesson of linguistic context: Popular perception can overwhelm truth and accuracy in establishing a communication connection. Or, in plain English, it’s not what you say, it’s what people hear that matters. Moreover, words that had certain definitions when your grandparents were your age may have an entirely different

a company’s communication with the public must be proactive, consistent, and ongoing.

The language lesson: A+B+C does not necessarily equal C+B+A. The order of presentation determines the reaction. The right order equals the right context.

In the end, the ongoing battle over political language is more about comprehension than articulation. There are at least two sides to almost every issue, and people on each side believe in the deepest recesses of their souls that they are right.

I am a committed advocate of political rhetoric that is direct and clear. It should be interactive, not one-sided. It should speak to the common sense of common people—with a moral component, but without being inflammatory, preachy, or divisive. In a perfect world, political language would favor those with enough respect for people to tell them the

Keep in mind that a crisis, by definition, still refers to a decisive moment in time. If something drags on for decades, it may be a chronic problem, it may be of the utmost importance, but it’s not a crisis.

i. Never use a metaphor, simile, or other figure of speech which you are used to seeing in print. ii. Never use a long word where a short one will do. iii. If it is possible to cut a word out, always cut it out. iv. Never use the passive where you can use the active. v. Never use a foreign phrase, a scientific word, or a jargon word if you can thin

Orwellian may be a current synonym for linguistic confusion, and yet he himself was the strongest advocate of his time for clear, explicit, uncomplicated political prose. In fact, he argued that streamlining communication and improving its accessibility to the masses would not, as critics today might argue, “dumb down” political discourse but in fa

“Accurate” data is more important than honest, credible, or truthful data because it is a statement of fact rather than someone’s explanation. For similar reasons, “facts” and “fact-based” are more powerful descriptors in the legal world than “evidence.” It may seem like a distinction without a difference but it really does matter. Facts are indisp