Veiled threats or polite requests convey a message without making it "official" common knowledge. This preserves the existing social relationship (e.g., friends, colleagues) by providing plausible deniability, even when the underlying meaning is clear to both parties.

A true peer-to-peer coaching culture requires more than just goodwill; it needs a shared, precise vocabulary for sales tactics. When everyone understands terms like 'Socratic question' or 'reframing,' they can conduct effective deal clinics and give specific, actionable feedback to colleagues.

Corporate communication often fails because professionals mimic the bland, jargon-filled style they see from other companies. They are 'LARPing' (live-action role-playing) what they think an executive should sound like, creating a self-perpetuating cycle of hollow, ineffective communication that lacks authenticity and impact.

Frustration with business language isn't just about annoying words. According to linguist Anne Kerzan, it often reflects a deeper societal concern that corporate culture and its values are becoming too dominant in everyday life, expressing a worry about the "outsized" influence of business on society.

Economist Michael Greenstone recounts how his academic communication style, efficient among peers, was perceived as abrasive and exclusionary in government, nearly getting him fired. To have real-world impact, experts must translate specialized jargon into accessible ideas, a skill academia doesn't teach or reward.

In specialized fields like fintech, subtle differences in terminology (e.g., "payment" vs. "payments") are powerful in-group signifiers. Getting these details right is critical for brands and ghostwriters to establish credibility. Getting them wrong immediately marks you as an outsider.

The "99% Invisible" team uses shorthand phrases like "CWGHF" (Can We Get Here Faster?). This coded language transforms potentially harsh criticism into a shared, objective problem to solve, depersonalizing feedback and protecting creative morale during intense group edits.

Bad writing often happens because experts find it impossible to imagine what it's like *not* to know something. This "curse" leads them to assume their private knowledge is common knowledge, causing them to omit jargon explanations, abbreviations, and concrete examples. The key to clarity is empathy for the reader's perspective.

Harris consciously develops analogies ("bicep curl for your brain," "swarm of bees") as his primary communication tool. He argues that every industry develops off-putting lingo. His expertise lies not in the subject matter itself, but in translating it into engaging, accessible language for a general audience.