Attrition by Bloviation
When will he ever stop talking
You asked a simple question and the reply is rambling, incomprehensible,
self-serving, boring monologue that never ends. Your attempts to interrupt,
refocus, and get back to the business at hand are ineffective. No one can stay
focused through this. You are a victim of attrition by bloviation.Why
it Happens
The bloviating speaker may be deliberately trying to avoid an issue, disguise
a lack of information, change the topic, distract attention from your issue,
attract attention to his issue, recast an issue, indulge himself, avoid
responsibility, aggrandize, demonstrate
power, bully you, make you
uncomfortable, or just waste time, perhaps to avoid confronting an issue or to
delay a change. Alternatively this may just be the speaker's bad habit that has
persisted too long. Unclear expression, equivocation, or waffling may also
indicate unclear thinking, or a lack of commitment to a particular direction or
position. It is impossible to accurately attribute the action to an
intent without getting much more information from the speaker.
Consequences
How it Happens
Effective Defenses
Quotations
- Good writing is clear thinking made visible.
References
How to Use Power Phrases to Say What You Mean, Mean What You Say, & Get What You Want,
by Meryl Runion
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