I was recently in the magazine section of a local grocery chain. I hadn’t been there in a while and I decided to read some of the magazines that were in line with my interests just to see what was in them.
I came across one that reminded me of a few things in regards to professionalism and the demonstration of personal power. We carry ourselves in person and in written word in particular ways. There are certain tells that can give away our levels of self confidence, mindsets, and other data about us. If we pay enough attention to these tells we can filter out the information we need about individuals and groups.
This magazine I was reading stylized itself as the “Badass” source of information. It had a number of interesting articles and was littered with swear words from beginning to end.
I’m a bit old fashioned in my tastes, especially in the written word. I do not appreciate serious articles to be filled with profanity. That doesn’t mean profanity doesn’t have its place or that people shouldn’t use it in their daily lives. That last point is more down to personal preference than anything.
But when I’m reading something that is supposed to inform me about something useful profanity can detract from it. For me I try to avoid using profanity in my blogs, unless it is absolutely necessary to describe something like I did earlier. This is because I believe the strength of the information or thoughts that I’m sharing should be enough to drive home the point.
Profanity to me is something you toss in to an article to shock the audience or make up for a lack of content. There are better ways to shock an audience. And if your content is lacking, try to get more information into it. This latter problem reminds me of Purple Prose. I’ve written about Purple Prose in the past, but a refresher is always helpful
Purple Prose is the adding of additional words to a written piece to “pad out” the word count and/or to fill up information gaps that the author couldn’t fill with information. The lack of information or the skill to find information leaves the author panicking. So they begin to fill the piece with fluffy words that make it sound academic but actually don’t do anything.
I believe profanity falls into the Purple Prose category. It’s a slight of hand trick to distract you from the some details that may not be as well made as the author wants you to think.
When I see excessive profanity in a piece I get this mental image of someone trying to “act tough”, “act older”, or “act cool”. But it’s just that, an act. They are not being what they want you to perceive them as.
I know of dozens of instructors, professionals, and public speakers who absolutely swear like sailors (some of them actually were sailors or in the military). But when they step into the role of educator, whether in person, recordings or texts they prioritize the information they are trying to share. And the guy who can make a 17 word sentence with two words not being swear words suddenly doesn’t use profanity at all. It’s a transformation from relaxed to professional.
This is generally from the years of effort they put into learning their trade, and the trade demands respect. A small amount of profanity can creep in. But it should not be over used. It is a tool like anything else, reserved for the right time.
The apparent need to have profanity everywhere these days, in my opinion, detracts from the over all sharing of information. I try to keep my posts as clean as possible because I don’t know who is going to read them. They might take offense at profanity, they might be extremely young. I want what I write to be accessible to as many people who need it.
For me, profanity damages that goal. You have to have a clear goal in mind and a set of basic rules to follow in order to achieve that goal. This will focus your efforts and guide your actions so that you will be efficient.
Think about your intended audience.
Sincerely,
The Irreverent Gentleman
gentlemansuniversityofmanliness 