(Bottom Line is an annoying business term and is just one of the 212 Most Annoying Business Phrases Managers Effuse, Confuse, and Overuse detailed in the hilarious must-have guide for every workplace: The 30,000-Pound Gorilla in the Room. Available right now on Amazon.)

Bottom Line

If we’re talking about net profit, then we have no problem with referencing the bottom line.

Of course, when you’re annoying managers speak about the bottom line, they’re really just talking about some important point… or the essential element of a deal… or the expected outcome of a project… or a myriad of other things wholly unrelated to the true bottom line.

So, so annoying.

Look, the bottom line on this annoying expression is that it’s unnecessarily dramatic. The bottom line is you don’t need to constantly refer to the bottom line when you’re really just trying to make a point. The bottom line is that people will respect you more if you simply stop beginning every sentence with “the bottom line is… .”

The bottom line is this can get very annoying… very annoying. Can’t it?

We think we made our point.

Replacement phrases: Important point; Essential element; Expected outcome

See also: Total-Total

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The 30,000-Pound Gorilla in the Room is available on Amazon