The Only Chart You’ll Ever Need For Simplifying Business Jargon

A great writer once said, “the most complicated skill is to be simple.” 

I'm sure that anyone who has any experience with business blogging would agree.

Whether you're writing it or reading it, we've all come across our fair share of overly complicated compositions that ultimately amount to nothing. Even when armed with a dictionary and a thesaurus to cut through the noise, the message ends up lost in a web of complexity.

Aware of this writing injustice, we set out to help writers simplify their approach by providing actionable tips and alternatives to the business jargon we can all do without. 

The jargon translator:

A few weeks ago, we published an interview with Ann Handley on our blog.

While nearly everything she said was tweet-worthy, there was one line from her interview that particularly struck me: “Never use a 25 cent word when a nickel word will do.”

It was this line that inspired us to create the following chart. I realize there's a reason many writers rely on 25 cent words: because they make you look and feel smart. But consider this – they have a tendency of making your audience feel stupid. 

So really, who wins?

Well...now you can. 

The Business Jargon Translator

Here's a downloadable version for your desktop! 

Putting an end to business jargon

Which ones did we miss? 

We may be working on a project in the near future and we'd love to hear your feedback. Let us know in the comments below!