Evolving From Violent Language

EVOLVING FROM VIOLENT LANGUAGE Anna Taylor INSTEAD OF SAY THIS We're going to pull the trigger We're going to launch I'll take a stab at [it] I'll take the first pass at [it] Did we jump the gun? Did we start too soon? I'll bite the bullet I won't avoid it any longer That'll kill two birds with one stone That'll feed two birds with one scone What's the deadline? What's the due date? We have to pick our battles We have to choose our opportunities Can you shoot me an email? Can you send me an email? That was overkill That was a bit excessive I bombed the presentation I didn't do my best Let's just roll with the punches Let's just move forward We can soften the blow by... We can make it a little easier by... I'm going to take a shot in the dark I'm going to take a guess That's not a bad idea That's a good idea Let's not beat a dead horse Let's not focus on that anymore I was blown away by her presentation I was impressed by her presentation I was kicking around an idea I was thinking through an idea He's a straight shooter in meetings He's pretty direct in meetings

An infographic contrasts violent idioms on the left with gentler alternatives on the right. The joke is that familiar expressions about shooting, killing, bombing, and fighting are humorously rewritten into harmless workplace language, making it useful as a reaction to overly aggressive wording or corporate euphemisms.

• @right_wing_dev_squads / 13971 2026-03-04