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OMG, I’m LMAO Over that #EPICFAIL!

I’m finally learning to accept the fact that Twitter-speak, text-speak and social media language conventions are invading just about every part of our lives. We see Twitter #hashtags displayed during TV commercials, people LMAO over the fact that we can all haz cheezburgers and a great convo with a girlfriend isn’t over dinner but instead by a rapid flurry of texting while watching the Academy Awards.

Then, as I was wondering if anyone out there still knows how to spell, I stumbled upon an article in Wired magazine suggesting that we abandon standardized English spelling in favor of letting people spell the way they want to (or at least the way they already do). One of my friends calls me a “grammar barbarian” and while that may be true, at least I can spell and use proper grammar – especially compared to the customer service representative for a very famous computer company who sent me this in an email (I’ve changed the company name to protect the guilty): Thank you for writing back and letting me know that you would like to get in touch with an Mapple team member via email or telephone. I know how eager you are to contact Mapple team member. Your inquiry is very important to me, so I have requested assistance with the issue you reported. You will receive an email after the matter has been investigated and further information is available. Thank you for your patience. Mapple wants your Mapple experience to be as enjoyable as possible. Thank you for being a valued Mapple customer. Even funnier, or perhaps not, is that I received two more emails from the company that were just as garbled and nonsensical as this one and no, I never got to speak with a Mapple team member.

That brings me straight to the point of today’s blog – there is no place for bad grammar or Internet shorthand in your professional communications with your attorney-clients. As a CLNC® consultant all of your communications with your attorney-clients should be professional in every way. This means more than using the spell check, it means being able to communicate in a manner that demonstrates to your attorney-client that you are the professional you are presenting yourself to be.

If you’re a Certified Legal Nurse Consultant responding to a text from a client and they’ve initiated an LOL moment, you could certainly respond in kind, but I don’t recommend going down that path from the start. Tweeting “OMG @AttyJackJohnson your baby doc expert rocked” is not proper communication. At least not yet.

Success Is Inside!

P.S. Comment here and share your favorite (or infamous) grammar errors.

2 thoughts on “OMG, I’m LMAO Over that #EPICFAIL!

  1. Hi Vickie, Your article brings to mind something a fellow insurance nurse case manager shared with me a number of years ago. I was new in the field, and was used to writing a clear concise assessment, common in the clinical field. She pulled me aside and said “drop the fluff! We only need to know why you approve the additional days in the hospital.” In other words, keep it short, sweet and simple. Fluff might sound ok when talking, but in professional writing, it can be confusing. For that reason, I’m not afraid to have another set of eyes critique what I put in my marketing materials before sending that information to my clients.

  2. Oh Vickie! You and I are soul-mates in this area!! It makes me crazy seeing typo’s and poor use of grammar. (there/their, your/you’re, it’s/its- eeek!!!)

    Thank you for keeping the bar high!

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*The opinions and statements made by Vickie Milazzo, the founder of Medical-Legal Consulting Institute, Inc. are based on her experiences and expertise, should not be applied beyond the specific context provided, and do not guaranty or project actual results. Vickie Milazzo is no longer involved in the operations or management of the business, but is involved as an independent education consultant.

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