Chances are, you’re as guilty as I.

so

Image credit: Oxford Dictionaries

It just sneaks in.

My desire to eliminate this “So” thing began a few months ago.

In spite of my efforts to avoid it, I still catch myself.

It was beginning to seem as if I was alone in my disdain for a pernicious speech pattern taking the country by storm.

Easy to have such a perception when so many people have succumbed to what I consider a lazy sentence construction.

It’s even begun to appear in the printed word. [sigh] And from presumably otherwise intelligent reporters and pundits on TV.

It’s almost as bad as that unnecessary “that,” or “like.”

When it comes up on conversation, it’s been pleasing to discover others share my concern. It’s almost as bad as not teaching cursive writing in elementary school. How does a kid sign his/her name? (Another topic for another blog.)

A quick check of the thesaurus reveals a number of alternatives and in many cases it seems “so” is nothing more than a filler for a silent pause. It’s an unnecessary segue to the next sentence.

Just say what you want and get on with it.

Silent pauses are preferable and most of the time, much more effective.

I first began to notice this construction when my boss called me. As usual, the call began with preliminary pleasantries. Then a “so-pause.” He would say, “So…..” and I knew the reason for his call was about to be revealed.

My favorite substitutes are “aaaaahhhh” and, “ummmmmm.”  

Mike Sitton of the Asheville Toastmasters confirms that in addition to “aahs,” they also make their speakers aware of “so” and other unnecessary “filler” words. They use a clicker or a horn. Maybe we could all use verbal reminders. (I bet the Toastmasters club in Starkville, Mississippi uses a cow bell.)

We’ve discussed this at work. I asked my co-workers to stop beginning a sentence with the word, “so.” I’ve begun responding by saying, “No so!”

AntiSoTo this point, no one has complained I’m violating their first amendment rights. Hopefully, none of them show up at work with a black ski mask and a baseball bat.

Which reminds me. Maybe I’ll create a group to fight this “so” usage and crusade for more appropriate speech.

I’ll name the group, “Anti-SO” and see if I can get major funding from a guy whose name begins with “SO.”