The Curse of the Overused Phrase

The Curse of an Overused Phrase???

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Someone once said that there are no silly questions. If it’s not silly to ask, then, are there silly answers?

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Not too long ago, a trustee during a semifinalist interview debrief pointed out that one interviewee answered most every query by beginning with, “That’s a great question.” The trustee smirked sarcastically, “What’s your name? That’s a great question.”

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Clearly, the candidate overused the phrase during the interview, and the trustee took notice. Similarly, meaningful words and phrases like “transformational,” “blessed,” “agency,” “visionary,” “collaborative leadership,” and “sustainability” can become watered down with overuse, losing the power of the message itself.

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People who make a positive impression do not overuse a word or phrase. For example, if they have made a point about transformational or collaborative leadership, they might admit to the questioner that they have used such terms earlier in the conversation, but they are repeating themselves to make a different point.

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People are going to ask interesting, thought provoking, meaningful, exciting, and great questions. Being able to answer does not require an affirmation of each question’s quality. Answers that demonstrate knowledge, experience, and expertise of the topic are far more impressive to—and likely to earn the respect of—those leading an interview.

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So, are there silly answers? Maybe not. But if we start the response to a question with an unnecessary or overused phrase, we may lose the audience before we get to our answer.