Power words for business writing
Swap “was responsible for” and “helped with” for verbs that say what you actually did, or what you need the reader to do.
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Findings
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Show results
CVs, reports, performance reviews
Show leadership
Proposals, bios, promotion cases
Show improvement
Status updates, retrospectives
Make a request
Emails that need a reply
Persuade
Proposals and pitches
Show analysis
Reports and recommendations
Weak phrases and stronger verbs
| Instead of | Try |
|---|---|
| was responsible for | led / ran |
| helped to | supported / enabled |
| worked on | built / delivered |
| made improvements to | improved |
| came up with | devised / created |
| got rid of | removed / eliminated |
| looked into | investigated |
| was involved in | contributed to |
| took part in | joined / contributed to |
| put together | assembled / drafted |
| set up | established |
| found out | discovered / learned |
A power word earns its place only when a fact follows it. “Cut vendor costs by 18% in two quarters” beats “dramatically transformed procurement” every time.
Questions people ask
What are power words in business writing?
Power words are specific, active verbs and adjectives that make a sentence carry weight: “led”, “cut”, “delivered”, “approve”, “proven”. They replace vague phrases like “was responsible for” or “helped with” and tell the reader exactly what happened or what you need.
How do I use power words without sounding like a sales pitch?
Pair every power word with a fact. “Reduced onboarding time from 10 days to 4” is persuasive; “revolutionised onboarding” is hype. Use strong verbs for actions and results, and keep adjectives rare.
Which power words work best in a CV or performance review?
Result verbs (achieved, increased, reduced, saved, delivered) followed by a number, and leadership verbs (led, built, launched, mentored). Start each bullet with the verb and cut “responsible for”.
What words should I avoid?
Weak verb phrases (“worked on”, “helped to”, “was involved in”), hedges (“just”, “maybe”) and empty intensifiers (“very”, “really”). The checker above flags the weak phrases and suggests a stronger verb.