Editor's Corner

Today’s Editor’s Corner is an excerpt from Quick & Dirty Tips (Grammar Girl), written by guest blogger Martha Brockenbrough (author of the book Things That Make Us [Sic]. The question of the day is “Does Grammar Really Matter?” Here are Ms. Brockenbrough’s reasons for why it does.

Getting a Job

It matters, for example, when you’re applying for a job. In one survey of hiring managers, 75 percent said it was worse for an applicant to have a spelling or grammar error on his application than for him to show up late or—get this—swear during an interview. Holy bleep.

Keeping a Job

It continues to matter when you’ve landed that job. Remember the fictional TV lawyer Ed? He lost his job in a Manhattan law firm because of a misplaced comma in a contract. Just in case you think this sort of thing only happens on TV, think again. A utility company in Canada had to pay an extra $2.13 million in 2006 to lease power poles because someone stuck a comma in the wrong spot.

Staying Out of Jail

Grammar matters even if you have an illegal job. A bank robber once got nabbed, in part, because he spelled "money" M-U-N-Y. The bank teller realized the man was such an idiot, he could be tricked into robbing the bank across the street—where police summoned by the teller were waiting.

And get this: A woman who killed her husband and then wrote notes to the police was caught in part because of her tendency to misuse dashes and quotation marks. All police had to do was compare her regular correspondence to the anonymous taunts sent to the police and they had a powerful piece of evidence against her.

Finding Love

Grammar also matters if you’re looking for love. Raise your hand if you’d want to go out with someone whose personal ad contains spelling and grammar errors. That’s right. It’s a turnoff. It’s the equivalent of having spinach in your teeth, or having the zipper on your jeans undone. [KC – I’m not sure I’d put
any of these things in the same category.]

Understanding Appropriateness

Speaking of jeans, grammar and clothing have a lot in common.

Let’s say you see a man in a Speedo. Are you at the beach? Let’s hope so. If he’s wearing a Speedo on public transportation, the man’s probably a lunatic. [KC – In some countries, this is just called “confident.”] At the very least, you don’t want to sit next to him on the bus.

In just the same way, using the wrong kind of language in the wrong place can send some pretty nutty messages.

Let’s say you sent your company president e-mail and you used the number 2 as shorthand for "to." Essentially, you’re saying, "I don’t need that raise this year after all. In fact, I might not really even need this job."

That doesn’t mean you can never use shortcuts like this. Even though people who love grammar are less likely to do so, it’s fine to save your thumbs when you’re texting. It’s all about context.

You don’t wear a Speedo or other super-abbreviated forms of pants on the bus. Likewise, you don’t use really abbreviated language where it doesn’t belong.

Of course, you know this already, you with your pants carefully zipped, you with your shirt covering your navel.

Getting and Giving Respect

You know that being grammatical isn’t just about following the rules like some sort of robot. It’s about paying attention to context. It’s using language that’s most likely to be understood. It’s about sending a message that will be met with respect, just as it shows respect.

So thank you for caring—and good luck out there.

For the full article and surrounding info from Mignon Fogarty, see Grammar Girl’s website.

Kara Church

Technical Editor, Advisory

619-542-6773 | Ext: 766773

www.symitar.com

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