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When Did It Bekome Acxeptable to Spell Incuhrrectly?
Sloppy Mistakes Tarnish Your Personal Brand
Marc Brownstein |
OK, I admit, I'm a stickler for spelling. English was always my thing in high school and college. So I look for attention to detail in communications to me, especially as it relates to taking the time to spell properly.
Part of the problem is that we are all writing quickly. Time is precious, and we are all under greater pressure to deliver more content in less time. I'm all over that. Another cause is that little, wireless device we carry around on our hips. It allows us to write fast, but often not thoroughly. What's better: fast or accurate? I believe the last factor in the sudden increase in poor spelling is the fact that people seem to accept the sloppiness. It's a battle of content and detail. And content wins. But why not both?
I know some of you are gonna consider my gripe about spelling old school. Maybe it is. I just can't help but cringe when a high-level job applicant spells my name wrong, and the spelling mistakes continue from there. How am I supposed to have confidence that the candidate will be thorough in his/her role in our agency? I mean, we're in the communications business! If anything, we should be thought leaders in respecting the English language.
As much as I try to have zero defects when writing from my BlackBerry or laptop, I make the occasional typo. Even after I proofread it two or three times. It happens. My issue is with serial offenders. The ones whose content are riddled with typos. It's just bad form. And the worst part is that it becomes a reflection of your personal brand. You could write some great ideas, and when they are submitted in an unprofessional manner, I have as much pause as praise.
So, to weed out more spelling offenders moving forward, I propose a few guidelines:
- Write slower. It takes more time to re-write an e-mail, document, or body copy than it does to tap out your thoughts a little more conscientiously in the first place.
- Be your own proofreader. Re-read your writing a few times over before clicking send.
- Pay attention to spell check. It's there for a reason. I'm always amazed at how many people ignore it.
(Editor's note: I can't believe I forgot this recent example of very public misspelling.)
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I'd only add one suggestion for your readers, Marc: proof read by reading your material in reverse. It's a great way to catch the mistakes your brain makes by speeding over words your brain "assumes" are correct.
It is definitely not okay to have misspellings in professional documents. I think you're spot on, we are our own brand and our work is a direct reflection of that brand.
This becomes even trickier when we're dealing with AP Style as media writers. Clients will say it doesn't matter, my answer is that we don't write for the 80 percent who don't know, we write to the 20 percent who do know and do care.
What's more, I think all this abbreviated language as a result of texting and IMing has definitely contributed to the problem. I'm amazed when people can't spell everyday words -- and multiple times in a document sometimes.
It may be old school but maybe it's time for a revolution of sorts. I had a teacher that hounded us for this, but when you're in a writing-intensive industry, it only makes sense.
Thanks for your comments on this topic.
In a web 2.0 world where websites-turned-verbs are appearing faster than any online dictionary - let along print dictionary - can track, I believe that spelling accuracy is an old and outdated skill.
Also, I'm asking myself whether the irony escapes Mr. Beldin that he used two formally incorrect and mis-spelled words - "texting" and "IMing"
Don't get me wrong, I understand where you're coming from in regard to demonstrating a certain level of professionalism, especially when applying for a job, and I can appreciate that, at the same time I feel a fundamental shift has taken place, effectively deprecating certain skillsets in favor of others.
Also - not sure if url's are allowed in comments, but wanted to post a link to our site:
http://www.bykd.com/labs/
We build interactive online solutions for marketing agencies and other clients :)
How can I trust an agency that doesn't even know basic details about its own clients' products?
And in many cases, it has been seen in the magical world of ads on TV.
So... like... we should be used to it by, like now. Isn't this how language, like evolves.
All that said, I'm on your side, I cringe whenever I see these destructive constructions.
Glad I'm not alone. Maybe I'm just too old.
Another way of looking at it. Maybe our language is falling into disrepair in the same manner as our bridge and tunnel infrastructure, and similarly, it needs some care and attention.
Particularly with regards to resumes and cover letters, this is a direct reflection of the best possible representation a person can portray. If job applicants can't get it right in a resume and cover letter, I can only imagine the types of errors that will creep in to various work projects when pressure and deadlines set in.
I'm not sure what can be done about this other than more selectivity on our end when it comes to who we interview and hire. Additionally, we can reach out to universities through their career services and impress the importance of correct grammar and spelling to potential graduates. They should probably also reconsider having their MySpace pages set to "public". But that's another topic...
If you want to spell like a jackass when you text, emil or BB message your close friends and family -- by all means, go ahead and do it. I know I do it when I'm on my BB and I'm in a rush to get a message to a friend about dinner or happy hour plans.
On the other hand, when you're sending an email to a colleague or anyone that isn't simply just a personal contact you could at least put a little effort into it. Like mentioned above, the option to check spelling is there for a reason -- use it! But we are all human and we do make mistakes but if you're consistently making them...you may want to consider signing up to take an English class in your spare time.
Wilder Baker
On nit - I was surprised to see "gonna" in your post. Unless, of course, it was a wry example of how using slang in the midst of a formally written piece can bring the reader up short.
Nobody's perfect!
There is a TV spot for a bladder control medicine that ignores the difference between adjective and adverb by saying "less interruptions," when they mean "fewer interruptions." I'm sure it was intentional to parallel the tagline: "Life, less interrupted." Fine but any decent copywriter could rework this.
The point is that clients and agencies excuse themselves under the guise of creativity, relating to their audience, creating a brand style, sounding better to the ear and a host of reasons.
My roots are in the design and graphics side of the business. Much of the reason I've enjoyed some modicum of success is that I actually can read and write copy. I have never claimed to be a great proofreader, but have always valued good ones.
Which brings me to a related concern. It seems that fewer people in the advertising and publishing business know proofreaders' marks. I fear that this concise shorthand for corrections is being lost. It's no wonder that so many errors and typos get through.
Bob Hoot
Hoot Communications - Middleton, WI
The spelling and grammar bit is easy to explain. It's simply not taught anymore. I taught remedial and intro English at the college level a few years ago and already it was frowned upon to "force" students to learn grammar. Why, it might turn them off of writing and reading! Better just to let them read and get them to write a lot and sort it all out later. Disgusting really. I have friends who teach at the high school level and they have to sneak grammar lessons in because they've been told not to teach it.
We wouldn't want to crush the precious egos of the Millennials by telling them that their sentence structure sucks. I say we airdrop nuns into every school and college in America and give them full power to force students to diagram sentences. They graduate only when they're able to diagram the Preamble to the Constitution (which also has the added bonus of exposing them to something else they probably haven't seen yet) ... http://grammar.ccc.commnet.edu/grammar/diagrams2/preamble.htm
Then again, you work in an industry that has turned "concepting" into a verb because conceive, I guess, was too boring. :)
In general, I find that the people who use proper spelling and punctuation are the ones who perform best on a professional level. They're the ones who weren't nodding off in school. They're the ones who take pride in their work. They're the ones I feel I can depend on. When I see missing punctuation and misspelled words, I see red flags.
Spelling and grammar are two things that are very much within one's control and care should be taken to get them right. There will be plenty of opportunities for mistakes to happen in other areas. You can at least get your writing correct.
- Kim Banks, Greenville, SC
The problem is not that people's spelling has gotten worse. I believe it is no worse than it ever was. The problem is that, over the last 30 or so years, both the advertising business and the print media have discharged a great many proofreaders in the name of efficiency and cost savings. And the plethora of misspellings we encounter today is the direct result.
It used to be that ads were the one place you didn't see misspellings. But no longer. Now, you can hardly open the newspaper without finding a misspelled ad headline, or watch TV without seeing some local TV spot with a misspelled super.
Language evolves. That's okay. No, it's not great that it seems to be happening at an accelerated rate and at the hands of people who are just lazy with the language, but that's the price we pay for neologisms:
- Tolkien created "hobbit" from an Old English word for hole-builder
- Carroll coined "chortle" from "chuckle" and "snort"
- "Brunch" is breakfast and lunch
- People misspelled and mispronounced "chasma" (Latin) so much that it became our "chasm"
...But we're not all on this blog (a neologism in itself!) complaining about words like "brunch" and "chasm", are we?----even though they're the result of laziness.
(Oh, and, Kalen, it's "URLs" not "url's".... Plural not possessive.)
- Joanna, Edmonton, Canada
As a parent of two "tweeners" I can attest to the fact that kids write the way they talk and text. We are the spoken grammar police in the house, correcting the "me and Katie" and "like--like--like" abuses right and left. I'm confounded by papers that are brought home with high grades that are rife with spelling and grammatical errors and I have a lively discourse going back and forth with the language arts teachers at school. Many of their emails to me contain typos :(.
Finally, a word in defense of dyslexics. Spell check doesn't pick up many of the most common errors. Slowing down and re-reading it may not, either. So I know that I temper my expectations with folks when I know that they're not being sloppy -- they simply can't see the errors. Enough said. Back to work!
There will always be plenty of work for editors and proofreaders.... :)
It became acceptable to misspell, as well as punctuate incorrectly, when the adults in the industry abdicated their professional and moral standing and gave children who possessed an acquaintance with new technology run of the place. Misspelling became "standard," as writers took their cues from David Letterman's shtick and hip-hop verse and gave up their Strunk and White. Of course, the geniuses at the Brand identity firms haven't helped with their new names for the millions of products introduced over the last decade, particular those aimed at our feckless youth. But does it matter. Senator Clinton tells a lie on at least four separate occasions and when called to account for her dishonesty, she describes it by saying she "misspoke." (Although some graying feminists complain she should have said she Msspoke.)
Thank you for catching those typos. As for "graying feminists," it's a term being tossed about this primary season to refer to some of Hillary's most ardent supporters and is not intended to denigrate either age or gender.
My local small-town paper had a headline on an article about a local river being "Damned." The same newspaper has ads offering free copies to the local schools for use in English classes. Help!
In addition to spelling, horrendous grammar errors appear in all types of media --- to read a grammatical error in print or hear it on radio and television makes me cringe.
I learned "grammar" as part of the English curriculum in school , had parents at home who inisted of good speech patterns (my father came from Russia, knowing no English ; but to assimilate in this country, learned it quickly and correctly.
Thank you for letting me vent my feelings and thank you for the wonderful article, keep up the good work (hope I didn't make any spelling/grammar mistakes in this.)
I appreciate the parent who corrects the kids at home; that doesn't happen enough now. I actually had to give 15/16 year olds a lesson on conjugating to see. Here are the most common:
"Ain't she the one who has alot of..." I'm cringing as I type this!
I appreciate the parent who corrects the kids at home; that doesn't happen enough now. I actually had to give 15/16 year olds a lesson on conjugating the verb to see. Here are the most common:
"Ain't she the one who has alot of..." I'm cringing as I type this!
~ Suzanne Sarsfield
Steve Langerman, Portland, ME
I was lucky enough to have an English teacher in high school who taught—and strictly enforced—proper grammar. She even sent "Grammar Grams" to businesses and publications that violated grammar rules (according to legend, she was responsible for getting Meijer's, a supermarket chain in the Midwest, to change the signs above its express lanes to say "10 items or fewer" instead of "10 items or less"). I wish more English teachers were so passionate!
Unfortunately a lot of otherwise capable young people, usually the worst and most frequent offenders, get judged by their web 2.0 SMS IM communication habits and take themselves right out of the running for a job. I've dismissed outright candidates who were very qualified in others aspects of a particular position. As always, one should write for one's audience. If the communication is SMS and the medium is cell phone, there is forgiveness. If it's a resume and cover letter, you had better remember the King's english. --Scott Ellingboe, Minneapolis
This is the kind of magazine that will teach children proper grammar and spelling? K.Swaynie, Indianapolis
And as for "...the ones whose content are riddled with typos," when will they learn that "content" are singular?
Is grammar less important than spelling?
Martin Calle, Calle & Company, www.CalleCompany.com
That being said, I think the fact that text messaging has made abbreviation of words the norm hasn't done us any favors. We've all seen mnemonics take the place of entire phrases, and we may not use them, but we certainly know that they mean, IMHO.
1. The kinds of grammar and spelling errors that label the writer as someone who never learned the language and doesn't care to. Universally a bad thing.
2. Typos and editing mistakes. A casualty of our hurry-up-and-get-it-out mentality, and it didn't help that we fired all the proofreaders and copy editors. Sometimes they slip through, and it's a problem.
3. Tone and audience errors. Using the language of IM and SMS in resumes and cover letters, or otherwise mismatching tone to audience. Likewise, it would be just as big a mistake to use the language of a doctoral dissertation in an ad for cat food -- and there are clients who want to do that, too.
And a fourth issue I've experienced is people (often clients) who don't have a firm grasp of the rules making up rules that don't exist. Sometimes this comes from over-zealous English teachers, who sincerely thought the rules existed, but they don't.
For instance, you really can end a sentence with a preposition. It's Winston Churchill who said that particular (non-) rule was something "up with which he would not put." I think that's also the source of those folks who want to use "and I" as the object of a sentence -- they got criticized one too many times for saying "me and him went to the store."