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Day 187: Use ultimate words cautiously.
Good writing displays confidence. A confident writer states information objectively and as facts. However, this confidence can get a writer into trouble if he or she uses “ultimate” words. Examples of “ultimate” words are absolutely, definitely, certainly, clearly, and without a doubt. These words cause problems for two reasons.
First, they are unnecessary. They don’t add new information. Instead, they describe the writer’s attitude (i.e., opinion) about the content and provide an artificial sense of importance to the statement. For example,
“This pie is definitely the best I have ever eaten”means the same thing as
“This pie is the best I have ever eaten.”Second, and more relevant to this tip, these words beg the reader to disagree, and they make it easy for the reader to reject your information. They indicate opinions. For example, if you write
“People are certainly going to be unhappy about the new plan,”the reader can think “This is not certain, only probable.” By making that counter-statement, the reader can reject your conclusions based on information you claimed was “certain.”
As another example, if you write
“Clearly, the president has a hidden objective,”the reader can respond, “That’s not clear. It is only an opinion, so you are making a non sequitur.” If you avoid “clearly,” you state a fact, which is stronger and less likely to be contradicted.
My recommendation: avoid these words entirely. Your writing will be more concise, more direct, and more persuasive.
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