10 phrases you should never write in an e-mail

September 8, 2008 by
Filed under: Employee computer use, Special Report 

HR spends a lot of time communicating with busy managers, execs and employees. Here are some ways to write more clearly and quickly get your message across to those time-pressed people.

When most people write, they use words and terms they wouldn’t say in person. Though some of those phrases are a part of standard business vocabulary, all they really do is add unnecessary words and muddle what you’re trying to say.

Here are the 10 most common wordy phrases and their quicker, clearer alternatives:

  1. Replace: “You will find attached” with: “Here is.”
  2. Instead of: “At this point in time,” just say: “Now.”
  3. Replace: “To summarize the above” with: “In summary.”
  4. Don’t write: “I am of the opinion” — just say: “I think.”
  5. Instead of: “I came to the conclusion,” just say: “I concluded.”
  6. Rather than: “Prior to that time,” use: “Before.”
  7. Replace: “Despite the fact that” with: “Although.”
  8. Avoid: “We made a decision to” — use: “We decided.”
  9. Don’t use: “It is indicative of” — just say: “It indicates.”
  10. Instead of: “We performed an analysis of,” just say: “We analyzed.”

There are plenty more ways to make your writing sharper and clearer. To see more phrases you should keep out of your e-mails and other communication, click here.

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Comments

16 Comments on 10 phrases you should never write in an e-mail

  1. Ginnie Redd on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 1:14 pm

    2. I do not know who writes the headlines for your articles but they are misleading at times to me. I was expecting to see something that I should never write in order to avoid potential problems if ever audited in this article. This article should have been titled – How to shorten your messages or How to e-mail more precisely.
    This is not the first time I thought that I would have an interesting article to read only to find out that it was just another “common sense” article.

  2. Sharon Dalton on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 2:31 pm

    3. I completely agree with Ginnie Redd. Your article titles lead me to believe one thing and the actual article is not even close.

  3. Ed Blumberg on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 2:33 pm

    4. I agree with Ginnie, If you feel the need to express yourself with such eloquence, by all means, do so. But to say, “never write these phrases in an email is misleading the reader into thinking Oh boy here’s somethig I can really use” Not the best HR Tech News article.

  4. Sena Joseph on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 2:35 pm

    5. Ginnie, I couldn’t agree more!

  5. Kevan Sanders on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 3:02 pm

    6. Ginnie, you should already know what you should never write.

  6. Bill Scher on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 3:06 pm

    7. I agree with Ginnie that title is misleading. It also contains unnecessary words and muddles what you’re trying to say. You wouldn’t use these words in person.

    Suggested alternative: “Writing Succinct Emails”.

  7. Mike on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 3:37 pm

    8. This is a great reminder of the short set of words we can use to convey our messages.

    With the small black berry buttons we have at our disposal…… the shorter the better.

    “Now” we needed that.

  8. Deacon Eisenhart on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 4:04 pm

    9. I am of the opinion that – I came to the conclusion – at this point in time – despite the fact that – the article headline is “misleading” – I would say that the headline names are designed to make you interested in reading. I absolutely agree with Ginnie, but I would say this technique is intentional.

    To summarize the above, I always enjoy reading the news on this site even if you manipulate my feelings with your intense headlines.

  9. Chad on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 5:23 pm

    10. What about #11- The Sky is Blue.
    As I continued to read this is the content I felt I would stumble upon.

  10. Laura on Tue, 9th Sep 2008 5:57 pm

    11. This reminds me of a very basic business communications class lesson.

  11. Jill Dickinson on Wed, 10th Sep 2008 7:54 am

    12. I also agree the heading is very misleading (as they frequently are…). However, I tend to read/scan most of your articles, usually starting with those that have interesting or more urgent sounding titles….

  12. Judith Gracey on Wed, 10th Sep 2008 8:48 am

    13. Ditto Ginnie!
    This is becoming a common tactic used by TV journalist as well! The listeners/ readers are sucked in to read or listen further. How dissapointing!
    Our time is very important. Please give us a little respect!
    Judith

  13. Erin on Wed, 10th Sep 2008 9:29 am

    14. I agree with Ginnie! I was expecting words or terms that should not be used in an email for legal purposes!

    While I understand we are all busy and short on time these days, I don’t think that changing the way we write is the way to go. At that rate, when will you post an article on text message shorthand?!

    As time passes, new and improved technologies are introduced to save you time but I believe they just make us busier. What did we do before the Blackberry? We had a quieter commute and relaxing vacations.

  14. Richard on Wed, 10th Sep 2008 12:40 pm

    15. The English language is a wonderful tool, capable of subtleties not possible in some other languages. I agree that some of the examples listed above are more wordy than necessary. However, some of the “forbidden” phrases imply much more meaning than the proposed replacement.

  15. Jumoke on Wed, 10th Sep 2008 4:16 pm

    16. Well looky here. This was at the bottom of the headline (the subtext in much smaller font, which should have been directly under the headline instead of under the computer graphic):

    “HR spends a lot of time communicating with busy managers, execs and employees. Here are some ways to write more clearly and quickly get your message across to those time-pressed people.”

    Now, that accurately describes the article.

  16. Rob on Wed, 24th Sep 2008 3:54 pm

    17. I can’t agree with Ginnie more. I was expecting phrases to avoid that could pose legal issues.