Be Specific - Grasshopper

I saw a phrase in an article I was reading recently that triggered my anti-fluff training. “Fluff” is a non-specific word or phrase that needs clarification.

Fluff is everywhere in our day-to-day interactions and for the most part is harmless. It’s just part of aimless chit-chat that we often have. “I hope the weather is ‘good’ for the big game.” “Good” is a fluff word. What specifically do you mean by good?

But in friendly banter, you wouldn’t challenge that usage because you would be rightly judged a pain in the ass.

The example I heard was an attempt to be personally absolved of responsibility. The phrase was, “mistakes were made.” Any time you hear that phrase, you want to go into fluff busting mode if you want specifics.

“Who specifically made the mistakes?” “What specific mistakes were made?” “What specific mistakes did you make?” These are just some starter questions to get you past the wall of fluff and not have you settle for the bluff.

Again, fluff is part of our everyday life and will remain so forever. But when it stands between you and a desired, specific piece of information, amend a phrase from the Academy Award nominated song “Ghostbusters.”

“Who you gonna call? ‘Fuffbusters.’”

All the best,