Today's topic: Big Picture

"Big Picture" is a phrase that is used by people who clearly have no say in how the “big picture” actually turns out. It's a word for pawns stuck in middle management.

I did a search to see exactly what others said about the phrase. I went as far as to look for “big picture jargon” to see what some different takes on the phrase were.

That is when I found this:

Armando's Paper Writing and Presentation Page

It's a paper on how to give good speeches. His rules are:

1. Rule No. 1 - Don't use jargon
2. Rule No. 2 - Keep the big picture in mind
3. Rule No. 3 – (according to me) Hire someone to write this paper who knows what they are talking about.

We’ve been over this before. Jargon is bad. Clichés are bad. And “Big Picture” is a little bit of both.

Before I go on a rant, let me say this: "Big Picture" isn't the worst phrase in the world to use. It does after all help others remember the ultimate goal of a company. The problem with the phrase is that it is over used and often used without anyone having a clue what it means.

Instead of using this middle management phrase, think of other ways to convey what you want to say.

How about: “Here's where I see this going.” Or “It all leads up to this” or anything to make you sound like a regular person and not someone regurgitating information.

Or, better yet, say what the "big picture" is. If your company’s long-term goal is to increase profits, say so. If you want to cut losses, say so.

Corporate America needs to stop shrouding messages in catch phrases. Just say what you mean. When you start to say things that have real meaning, people will listen.

Today's topic: "In my opinion…"

But not just "in my opinion." On the block today are "the way I see it," "in my head," "to me," "from my perspective," and anything else vaguely resembling these phrases. They are often used as nothing more than vocal pauses—a chance to say something meaningless to use a second or two to gather a string of thoughts. But that doesn't make it right.

You've been in meetings like this before. It's a round table discussion and you're brainstorming your division's next great idea. Everyone is contributing and the creative juices are really flowing. But that one guy, usually his name is Tad or something like that, he just sits there quietly taking it all in. Your manager notices that he's not had any input.

“Tad, what do you think?”
“Well...in MY opinion...”

Really Tad? You've giving us your opinion? We figured that you'd give us the opinion of someone else.

If someone asks us a question and we answer, aren't we usually giving our own opinion? So why do we often start sentences by saying, "in MY opinion…" as if our listeners might think we have suddenly begun channeling another entity? Of course it's your opinion. Why else would you be talking?

Now this doesn't apply when you're telling "he said she said" stories or when you're giving the opinions of multiple people–that's why we need these phrases. But business related conversations mostly involve sharing our own thoughts. So these kinds of phrases are usually unnecessary.

Now, I'm not suggesting that we throw these phrases out. And, by all means, clarify when you need to. But there's no reason to count on people being confused.

Just assume that if you are sharing your own thoughts, people know that it's your opinion.