John Rentoul of The Independent was on Radio 4 the other day, celebrating the third birthday of his directory of clichés. For three summers, he’s been railing against big asks, moments in time, elephants in the room and game changers. He’s built his own online hall of shame. His campaign against the cliché has stuck in our imaginations because people get weary and annoyed by tedious, worn out phrases.

But language that needs its batteries changing is more than annoying. It’s harmful to business.

Someone told a big conference the other day that business ideas live in words. He’s right. When they’re chosen properly, our written and spoken words communicate with clarity and precision what needs to be done. They inspire action. They fire the imagination. They set the tone for innovation.

Looked at another way, a fistful of internal documents is a highly accurate blood test of the health or otherwise of a body corporate. Is the way those documents are written brimming with red blood cells? Or are they a bit anaemic?

The writer Clive James had a definition of cliché. He said it’s not that the words are being mis-used. It’s just that they’ve gone dead.

Once upon a time, the phrases that are now clichés were fresh and stimulating. There must have been a moment when conjuring up an elephant in the room was a graphic and imaginative way of describing something that was being studiously ignored. But we wore out the poor old elephant by over use.

I think this all puts an obligation on those of who are trying to make a bigger difference. Don’t we need to keep refreshing the words we use to describe the eternal verities?

My experience of writing in business tells me that most people are much better users of words than they realise. If they do slip into cliché, it’s often that they just didn’t give themselves permission to be interesting.

The old Fleet Street editor and Radio 2 presenter Derek Jameson had a great self-deprecating joke. “Any journalist worth his salt avoids clichés like the plague,” he said.

Leadership nudge: How often do you use your own natural powers of language to energise and inspire the people around you?

Take some time this week to notice what is going on when you or others use clichés to talk about something important. Practise finding your own words to express what you are really thinking or feeling.

By Chris van Schaick