Do you say things like, "I'll give this project 110%!"? Stop it. I beg of you.

Today’s article is brief. I want to share an annoyance I have with the way people speak to one another. It’s similar to the general problem I have with people’s sloppy use of the terms “odds” and “probability that I’ve written about here, and spoken about here and here.

(Warning: That first video link will work only for paid subscribers to the Haman Nature Substack — and thank you!)

For today, my verbal (and conceptual) bugaboo is when people say things like, “I love this job so much, if I get it, I’ll give it 110%!” — or similar.

Oh? Out of how much? If it’s 100%, you’re just speaking nonsense. If it’s “something else”, then what? Should I prefer the candidate who says they’ll “give it 1,000%”? What the hell are you both talking about?

Of course, using percentages above 100 makes perfect sense in a huge number of scenarios. If we sold 100 widgets last year and this year we sold 210 widgets, our widget sales increased 110%.

But words — and again, concepts — have meaning. When we use them sloppily it just… bugs me.

Presumably, giving some job or project 100% of your effort is the absolute maximum possible. One would have to sacrifice literally everything else in your life to focus 100% of your effort on the thing. Abandon family, friends, other pursuits. You’d turn into an absolute maniac.

As for giving 110%, again, that’s literally impossible.

So, why do so many people speak this way? I assume to communicate an above average interest or devotion to a thing. But again, that’s lazy and sloppy.

Just say what you mean. Don’t degenerate into meaningless hyperbole. Say specifically what you are trying to convey. You’ll find that the sentiment lands much more powerfully if you do so.

Because, again, how is the receiver supposed to evaluate someone who will give 110% versus someone who will give 200% or 1,000%? Out of how much?

Okay, curmudgeonly linguistic griping session complete. Now go out there and sin no more!

Naturally,

Adam