I've discussed before how developing and improving your public speaking skills can also improve your personal confidence (see here).On a similar vein, I'm discussing my views on the importance of good articulation skills, i.e. how you use language, vocabulary, your voice and inflections such as pauses. The reason why is through research and experience I know that people who can demonstrate a grasp of language succeed better in the workplace. It's similar to the psychological phenomenon that overweight people are perceived as less intelligent (with no actual basis of evidence behind it.) Becoming more articulate can change how others percieve you to your advantage.
I am not saying though that by using language more skillfully *actually* makes you more intelligent or a superstar in the workplace. What I am saying is that other people may perceive you to be!
The basis of good articulation is knowing what words and phrases more succinctly and appropriately get your point across. Its not about using fashionable buzzwords. Its about precision. A simple example: You might say "This stock has a really good chance of increasing in value", or more articulately say, "This stock has growth potential". It's a matter of using a better mix of words that sum up your point quickly but without confusing folks. In technical conversations, you could argue that jargon fits this description, but it's true that non-techies may struggle to understand what the words used mean. Good articulation is also about making your language accessible to your audience. The whole point can be lost if you use specialist words that only a small group of you comprehend.
So I may have shown you why good articulation is a benefit to you. But how do you learn it? Well like most things in life, you learn by practice, some trial and error and hopefully feedback. Something I do is if I hear a word that I haven't comes across before (and I should point out that it's likely others haven't too) then I look it up in a dictionary or a thesaurus, so I could use the word's meaning in a similar context but maybe using a more accessible word. For example, I may hear the word 'astruse' used, so I look it up and find out it has the same meaning as 'esoteric' or 'puzzling' - the first less commonly used than the latter so I would likely use 'puzzling' if I am conversing with a youngster as they're more likely to know my meaning.
Good articulation comes with having a wide vocabulary, so what's better than exposing yourself to a wider wordset than reading a variety of genres of books, magazines, journals, websites? If a word crops up you don't understand, look it up.
Now this might seem a bit of a language-101, but my argument here is that in business, particularly if coming from a technical viewpoint, good articulation can win over audiences and build confidence in others and yourself. Good articulators climb the career ladder quicker, statistically speaking, and if you're intent on using your techncial skills in a wider business context then good articulation is a must for you.
If you want to learn more about language and articulation in business, I thoroughly recommend the following book:
