The 'R' word

First the governor of the bank of England and now the Prime Minister have conceded the possibility of recession (whisper it low). Why the reluctance, after all the ‘r’ word has been the stuff of every news report for … well some time now.

Well of course this illustrates the power of vocabulary particularly in a febrile economic atmosphere in which every pronouncement of the powerful is scanned for hidden meaning attracting the same sort of attention once reserved for the internal organs of unfortunate chickens.

Of course leaders have to be concerned with the message they portray especially when those they lead are unable to see the example they set. So too with a business presentation it is essential that we develop and deploy a precise vocabulary that states clearly and precisely what we wish to communicate.
In difficult situations this will require discipline but it is to be hoped that with some practice and a little technique development it should be possible to express ourselves honestly and precisely without a script, presenting our message heads up.