Using this idiom makes you look “stupid.”

“Always use the simplest word,” Cuban told Wired in October. Video question and answer.

When asked which “business buzzword” bothers him the most, Cuban was immediately mindful of one.

“There’s no reason to use the word ‘cohort’ at all when you can use the word ‘group,'” he said. “A typical group is a group of people. Say ‘cohort’. You sound stupid when you use the word ‘cohort’, because you’re trying to sound smart.”

Corporate jargon and buzzwords often get on the nerves of those who hear them repeatedly. Terms like “new normal,” “company culture,” and “going backwards” topped a recent list of the most disturbing examples, according to poll More than 1,500 Americans conducted by language learning platform Preply.

Cuban agrees with the likes of fellow billionaire Warren Buffett, who likes to keep things as simple as possible. Buffett writes his annual letter to shareholders as if he were talking to his two sisters — which, of course, doesn’t mean in any terms — he said in 2019.

Elon Musk, currently the richest person in the world, also despises jargon, especially in the workplace.

“Do not use abbreviations or meaningless words for things, software or processes at Tesla. In general, anything that requires explanation hinders communication,” he wrote in a 2018 letter to Tesla employees. “We don’t want people to have to memorize a glossary just to work at Tesla.”

Using very complex words to seem smart to him actually Reverse effectIt makes you look less intelligent and can confuse your message as well. Studies show.

“We use terms when we feel insecure, to try to help us feel like we have a higher status,” Adam Galinsky, professor of leadership and ethics at Columbia Business School, said. he wrote in an article in August For the school website.

This creates the effect that using overly complex terms, where simpler terms will easily suffice, gives the impression that you are insecure about your intelligence and are trying to overcompensate. Instead, it’s better to speak clearly and concisely, according to experts.

“People with higher status care more about expressing themselves and communicating effectively,” Galinsky wrote. In other words: it’s the most effective way to get your point across, and is more likely to impress than jargon.

Disclosure: CNBC has exclusive off-network cable rights to “Shark Tank,” which features Mark Cuban as a panelist.

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