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I posted a few days ago on the value of simplifying your marketing language - whether written copy, or verbal communication. I’ve been trying to be aware of this myself, and boy it’s hard. I suppose I’m cursed by too many hours spent with my nose pressed in books, but I keep realizing (always after-the-fact) that I’ve let another 25-center slip out when a nickel or dime word would have sufficed.

To be honest, I suppose there is some subliminal instinct to show off (I learned all these words, and dammit, I’m going to show people that I know them). But I think it’s at least partly accidental. You are what you eat, you speak what you read or hear.

On the other hand, self-awareness is half the battle, ie. recognizing that you have a problem. Problem in this case is only a problem to the extent that you’re in danger of speaking over the heads of most of the general population if you insist on dropping nuggets like aggrandize, or b-school-speak like operationalize into your everyday conversation. But it’s a problem nonetheless if you’re trying to sell widgets in Wisconsin or doodads in Delaware.

I wonder if you can trick out Outlook’s spell-checker to highlight all words longer than 3 syllables?