4 expressions to avoid that make you sound clueless at work

4 expressions to avoid that make you sound clueless at work4 expressions to avoid that make you sound clueless at workAfriend of mine was recently telling me about her new job. I like it, except my anfhrer is hard to read, she said. I wish shed just come out and say what she thinks Instead, her boss useswishy-washy expressions like, Hopefully youre okaywith this? and, I might possibly have a suggestion for you.Asorganizations become flatter, communicating well in every direction is gettingmora important. But managers and leaders are often worried about sounding too controlling, so they soften what they say. Their team members, taking their cue, bury their own ideas under hedging expressions that muddle their meaning. Before long, everyone just winds up sounding less clear,confident, andauthoritativethan they actually feel.In order to make koranvers you sound like you know what youre talking about, cut these common words and phrases from your vocabulary.RelatedThis Three-Word Phrase I s Subtly Undermining Your AuthorityIm bedrngnis sure butFor starters, its okay not to be sure about something. After all, false confidence is often just as bad as open ignorance. But saying Im not sure when you reallydohave a decent grasp on the matter only undercuts your cause.When your employee, for instance, says, Im not quite sure, but I should have the report done by Friday, youre left to wonder whetherthat means youll actually have to wait until the following week, or that theyre just being modest. There are better ways to communicate tentativeness in cases like this Im waiting on a few moradata points from our finance team, so as long asthosecome through tomorrow, the report will be ready by Friday.Nowyour employee sounds like she knows what shes talking about.Similar qualifiers to avoid includeonly a thought, just my opinion, hard to say, and this might be a silly question. None of these humbleidioms help you make a compelling case about a complicated topic, or let you under score what youdoknow in a situation where there are unknowns. The goalisnt to minimize uncertainty or downplay risks. Its to be taken seriously as someone who cannavigate those gray-area experiences with well-founded confidence.RelatedSix Words And Phrases That Make Everyone Hate Working With YouSort of or Kind ofWhen someone says, I sort of think or I kind of suspect, its clear they either dont want to come out and speak the truth or elsedont really know their own mind.Maybe asales manager says something like this I kindof think we should approach that client againits been a long time since weve heard from them. What do you think? Is she uncertain about going forward and genuinely wants your opinion, or is she just trying to give direction by softening her statement?Or perhapsyour boss says, I sort of liked the work you turned in last week. Perhaps shes suggesting your work wasnt up to snuff, or perhaps shes just giving you a compliment and softening her language. It might seem lik e an unimportant difference, but in reality it leaves you not knowing how to respond Do you keep doing what youve been doing, ordo you ask for feedback on how to do better work next time?Not only do these phrases create a lack of clarity for team members, they also make team leaders who use them sound less confident and transparent than they should.Maybe, Possibly, and PotentiallyMaybe, possibly, probably, basically, largely, and hopefully are all words that smack of indecision. If a manager says to a staff member, Hopefully youll be okaywith this change, his listener might wonder whether she actually has leeway to challenge it.Many qualifiers like these have a similar effect. An employeetells asupervisor, The project is largely completeinstead of actually saying when itwillbe done or why its not quite there yet. AnIT manager says to an internal client, Its basically a software problem, but possibly we can fix it pretty soon ourselves. Is this good news or bad news? Who knows None o f these phrases instill much confidence that the speaker has a handle on the situation.Using the past tense when you mean the presentHow many times have you been in a meeting and heard a colleague say,I thought I should mention that. . . or, I was thinking we should . . . ? It sounds like the person talking no longer quite believes in whatever idea theyreputtingforward. Compare those past tense expressions to phrases like Iwant to mention . . . and I think we should . . . and the difference is clear.Similarly, whenyou say, I just wanted to point outthat our project is well under way, the first part of the statement hedges the rest of the sentence that comes after it, which is actually positive. Its as though you reallydidhave something to say, then thought better of it, but finally decidedhesitantlyto put it out there anyway. Youve just created confusion, rather than announcing clearly and confidently that your project is going just fine.If you want to sound like a capable speaker who knows what youre talking about, dont water down your message. Avoid these four patterns and expressions. They dont make you sound more approachablethey justmake you sound uncertain, even when you arent.This post originally appeared on Fast Company, and has been reprinted with permission.