(08-08-2012 05:40 PM)john_corey Wrote:  It drives me nuts when Brits come to a RE meeting I am leading and state: "Can I ask you a question?".

I think it's just down to a cultural difference - us Brits have better manners !
Only joking, couldn't resist.

My two bug bears online are Emoticons and "text speak" such as LOL, from the original blog, I think the point about business cards is spot on, I went to a Chamber of Commerce meeting to promote my bosse's business, I was used to BNI which is all about gradually building relationships, but this Chamber event was people throwing business cards at me as if they were ninja stars!

(08-08-2012 06:08 PM)Mary Latham Wrote:  These are the words that drive me MAD in the property business

"How many properties do you own?"

My reply

"Half as many as I did before my divorce!

Even if we forget that the person is asking about a landlords private affairs - why does the number of properties matter? One landlord might own 100 properties with 85% mortgages and an average value of £150k. Another landlord might own 10 properties with no mortgages and an average value of £500K

As this is the naughty step one might think of a better reply to that question?

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I dont get mad when people ask me this. Its the most natural thing in the world to ask someone you meet how many they have. Albeit I agree some people can be uncomfortable asking and some uncomfortable telling. We all want to know though as we are nosy by nature. People are curious. It is also a useful yardstick to use as an indication of where you are in the investing scene but yes only one indicator.

It can then lead on to other questions about what level do you buy at and what is your LTV how long have you been investing etc etc etc . You build a picture of that person as an investor and ask further questions resulting from that initial information. If the questions are too intrusive I just say I would rather not say. No harm in asking though

If I was interested specifically in finding out about the sometimes complex procedures and the processes when buying property I would rather talk to a person who has bought 100 houses as they are going to be more experienced in the buying / negotiation process than someone who who has bought only 5 The latter would be relative novices whereas the former would have considerable experience. Their property worth in equity could be similar though if the 100 had been bought at 50K @ 85% LTV and the other 5 x 150K properties for cash.

(08-08-2012 07:11 PM)daniel_booth Wrote:  

(08-08-2012 05:40 PM)john_corey Wrote:  It drives me nuts when Brits come to a RE meeting I am leading and state: "Can I ask you a question?".

I think it's just down to a cultural difference - us Brits have better manners !
Only joking, couldn't resist.

Daniel, it would only be polite if they asked the right question. They are using the wrong word as 'can I' is questioning their ability to do something, not if they have permission.

What they mean to say is "May I ask a question?" That would be the correct way in English to request permission. I find it funny that most Brits get it wrong and it is an American who notices. British English is supposed to be 'more correct' than American English

Quote:Dictionary for may: (2) used to ask for or to give permission:

I enjoy cliches / phrases / sayings . Its language in action. Some that irk me though are ..............

I`m going to give this project 110% ( impossible )

I`m going to redouble my efforts ( boy you`ve been real lazy up to this point then working at only 25% effort rate)

I want to drill down on this issue. ( now theres no need to get violent - cant we just talk about it sensibly)

This deal has `fallen out of bed` ( I love property but I dont take my files to bed with me - thats weird! )

Btw txt spk is grt n i luv windin friends up by using it lol

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(09-08-2012 12:04 AM)john_corey Wrote:  

(08-08-2012 07:11 PM)daniel_booth Wrote:  

(08-08-2012 05:40 PM)john_corey Wrote:  It drives me nuts when Brits come to a RE meeting I am leading and state: "Can I ask you a question?".

I think it's just down to a cultural difference - us Brits have better manners !
Only joking, couldn't resist.

Daniel, it would only be polite if they asked the right question. They are using the wrong word as 'can I' is questioning their ability to do something, not if they have permission.

What they mean to say is "May I ask a question?" That would be the correct way in English to request permission. I find it funny that most Brits get it wrong and it is an American who notices. British English is supposed to be 'more correct' than American English

Quote:Dictionary for may: (2) used to ask for or to give permission:

Language is organic fluid and ever changing. There is no correct way to speak.. The editor of the OED sits down every year and decides what words are now common usage and can be included and what is now obselete.

In olden times when people departed company they would say ` God be with you`
This gradually got shortened over the years to `Goodbye` . One can imagine when that first started to be shortened a mother would chastise her child and say - speak properly say `God be with you` I dont want to hear you say `goodbye` once more in this house!.

Nowadays the mother would happily say `goodbye` and think she was perfectly correct but if she saw her child write in a text `gudby` she would possibly see red and tell them off. Hypocrisy. Language 1000 years ago was nothing like todays and in another 1000 years it will have changed again. I fail to see why each generation considers their brand of English to be the correct one. If you can understand what the words mean then you can communicate with your fellow man.

My mother innocently uses certain words on occasions which would potentially get her arrested today as their meaning and mainstream acceptability has changed in her own lifetime. ( shes 86) She means no harm by it it is just the way she was brought up and they are ingrained in her. If she slips up and says one of them she may clasp her mouth and say - ooh sorry your not allowed to say that these days are you.

(09-08-2012 12:04 AM)john_corey Wrote:  

(08-08-2012 07:11 PM)daniel_booth Wrote:  

(08-08-2012 05:40 PM)john_corey Wrote:  It drives me nuts when Brits come to a RE meeting I am leading and state: "Can I ask you a question?".

I think it's just down to a cultural difference - us Brits have better manners !
Only joking, couldn't resist.

Daniel, it would only be polite if they asked the right question. They are using the wrong word as 'can I' is questioning their ability to do something, not if they have permission.

What they mean to say is "May I ask a question?" That would be the correct way in English to request permission. I find it funny that most Brits get it wrong and it is an American who notices. British English is supposed to be 'more correct' than American English

Quote:Dictionary for may: (2) used to ask for or to give permission:

I was once called oldfashioned because I use "may". I pointed out that "may" was the correct word on that occassion but I could not the other "Brit" understand that "can" did not have the same meaning. Those who have not grown up in the UK often see the faults in the way that "Brits" use our language, while we have become used to the misuse of certain words and the lack of use of others. Three words that seem to be vanishing from the English language are "please" and thank you" - I am oldfashioned but I have always been proud that the British were known for our good manners.

Follow me on Twitter @landlordtweets

Jonathan,

As I said earlier, one of the strengths of English is how new words can be invented and the language adapts. At the very same time, using the wrong word does not mean the speaker has been understood as they intended.

I think it's interesting how everyone has different things that drive them nuts, even though it rarely actually hinders understanding.

When we're speaking, context clears most things up. John knows that someone's not asking him if they're physically capable of answering a question. I know what someone means when they say they "could care less", even though the're expressing exactly the opposite. I know that if someone says they "literally died laughing", they didn't. But that doesn't stop me from being irrationally annoyed by it.

Phrases like "thinking out of the box" and "getting our ducks in a row" probably start out as useful spoken shorthand, but when they become cliches they can be used to obscure the fact that the speaker doesn't really know what they're talking about. I used to work in the music industry, where most people don't have a clue what's going on for much of the time, and 'buzzword bingo' was one of my favourite passtimes in meetings.

Excerpt from blog:

When jargon replaces thinking

Many businesses find it impossible to run a meeting without lacing it with cliched jargon. Ridiculous phrases, odd metaphors and allegories seem to be increasingly used without a great deal of thought into what’s really being said or any consideration for those present who may not have heard this nonsense before.

Here are some of the most used and what you could say instead:

Blue-sky thinking: Think of some idealistic or visionary ideas – don’t worry about their practical application

Get our ducks in a row: Have things efficiently ordered

Brain dump: Tell everything you know about a particular topic

Think outside the box: Don’t limit your thinking to within your job description

Joined-up thinking: Take into account how things affect each other

Drilling down: Get more detail about a particular issue

Push the envelope: Improve performance by going beyond commonly accepted boundaries

The helicopter view: An overview

Low-hanging fruit: The easiest targets

Guestimate: A guess

Going forward: from now on

Singing from the same hymn sheet: talking about the same subject

How about...."This thread is closed" when information of possible use to involved parties or the general public is choked off as the vitriol becomes too wild.

I have 2 friends who I used to work with one in what we dubbed `cliche city` and when we meet up with every now and then we revel in finding and saying any cliche we can lay our hands on. It always results in enjoyable guffaws and groans.

Nothing better than returning for a 2nd round of childhood once in a while :-)