Tell Hetrick

The Meijer Coporation earned a warm spot in my heart when it moved into Indiana, simply because it uses the word “fewer” on its express checkout signs (“20 items or fewer”) instead of the word “less.” Meijer then earned my grammatical anger when I heard the wonderfully talented Jennie DeVoe singing, “There’s a million reasons in a single store.” There is?

As a media professional, I have a vested interest in using the right word for the job. I lead an advanced broadcasting course at Butler University and strive to teach my students that understanding the words they’re using is key to both accuracy and clarity. I’m not a grammatical purist, and I teach them that “conversational grammar” can be correct. But I also teach them that having extra sets of eyes review the project can help eliminate errors that are embarrassing, or worse.

For example, when you apply or interview for a job, you become the product you are trying to sell. Any executive would think twice about hiring someone who couldn’t properly fill out his job application or submit an error-free resume. As a producer and project manager for 25-plus years, I frequently have hired or recommended staff for projects. But when the person under consideration ends sentences with “at” and uses words like “irregardless” (let’s not even discuss subject/verb disagreement), I’m not buying that product.

When I see or hear such errors, I think: sloppy and inattentive equals unreliable and potentially disastrous. Certainly in this day of weak hiring and continued layoffs, basic language skills are a must-have.

What mistakes make you doubt the quality of the work (or the person) behind the message?