13. “F That” - Is It Okay To Swear At Work?

Are you second-guessing your off-the-cuff use of a curse word to make your point?

On the one hand, research suggests that swearing signals a lack of professionalism. On the other hand, research suggests that swearing signals authenticity or passion for a topic.

As usual, the context should dictate. The more informal the culture and the more you know the crowd, the more likely your swearing won’t offend.

Curse words, by definition, have some degree of stigma as being taboo. So when you do use them, they have the potential to wake people up. They carry an emotional impact.

However, if you really need to use a curse word to have an impact, the problem is probably the content of your message, not the delivery.