What's in a Word? A lot. A chain of links this morning reminds us of the importance of word choice.
A Tale of Two Cliches
You're thinking, "But we also say, 'don't sweat the small stuff.'" There's some substance in this trite phrase as well. Word choice shouldn't paralyze us or slow us down. But there's a happy medium between clear, concise Hemingway-style writing and writing that helps differentiate us that also makes sense.
So here are a few reminders of how important word choice is, starting with this video from Good magazine on URLs.
2) The best invoice terms to get you paid faster: Freshbooks Blog -- I was using the (NSFW) Goodfellas approach to accounts payable. Perhaps this is a better approach. Seriously though, this speaks to using math to determine what your best words are. Big data is everywhere. Hug your calculator in 2012.
3) The 10 Most Annoying Management Terms of 2011: Business Insider -- Word choice is a news generator. We always see articles on words we love to hate, along with the Word of the Year.
4) 10 Buzzwords to Take Off Your LinkedIn Profile Now: Time Magazine -- Words can help you get hired or ignored. This is also a teeny tiny reminder of the importance of word choice as it relates to paid and organic search marketing.
5) Share Your Knowledge and Help a Younger Writer Succeed: Minneapolis Star Tribune -- How often do you see writing advice in the business section of a daily newspaper? This writer suggests we pay it forward.
Word choice is something I've blathered about before on "that other blog." And there are plenty of resources a Google search away for anyone that wants to brush up on their skills. This post is a reminder as to why you should brush up.
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