Four-letter words

There are four-letter words you should never use in business. They're not fuck or

shit. They're need, must, can't, easy, just, only, and fast. These words get in the

way of healthy communication. They are red flags that introduce animosity,

torpedo good discussions, and cause projects to be late.

When you use these four-letter words, you create a black-and-white situation.

But the truth is rarely black and white. So people get upset and problems ensue.

Tension and conflict are injected unnecessarily.

Here's what's wrong with some of them:

Need. Very few things actually need to get done. Instead of saying "need,"

you're better off saying "maybe" or "What do you think about this?" or "How

does this sound?" or "Do you think we could get away with that?"

Can't. When you say "can't," you probably can. Sometimes there are even

opposing can'ts: "We can't launch it like that, because it's not quite right"

versus "We can't spend any more time on this because we have to launch."

Both of those statements can't be true. Or wait a minute, can they?

Easy. Easy is a word that's used to describe other people's jobs. "That should

be easy for you to do, right?" But notice how rarely people describe their own

tasks as easy. For you, it's "Let me look into it"--but for others, it's "Get it

done."

These four-letter words often pop up during debates (and also watch out for

their cousins: everyone, no one, always, and never). Once uttered, they make it

tough to find a solution. They box you into a corner by pitting two absolutes

against each other. That's when head-butting occurs. You squeeze out any middle

ground.

And these words are especially dangerous when you string them together:

"We need to add this feature now. We can't launch without this feature. Everyone

wants it. It's only one little thing so it will be easy. You should be able to get it in

there fast!" Only thirty-six words, but a hundred assumptions. That's a recipe for

disaster.