“Perfection is achieved not when there is nothing left to add, but when there is nothing left to take away.”
– Antoine de Saint-Exupéry
At Outmark, we keep a tally in the office every time someone says actually or literally. Actually, if you use either word in a conversation, we’ll literally shame and beat you in public. Just kidding. (Or am I?)
Now you’re actually confused.
We track these words because people use them so often, they’ve lost their meaning. Literally now means “figuratively,” and actually just makes you sound like a timid schoolboy too nervous to speak plainly.
So why do we keep dropping them into our sentences?
Because like a linguistic steroid, they seem to add strength and power.
But actually, they don’t. They do the opposite.
Let’s fix that…
Both words weaken your writing. Get it now?
I hope you actually do.
