Markets change. Narratives rotate. Yet certain sentences never die.
They show up in bull markets, bear markets, and the weird in-between markets where everyone says "it's a stock picker's market" while buying the same seven mega-caps.
To be clear: this isn't a takedown. It's a confession.
Most of us have used at least a few of these lines—sometimes because they're convenient shortcuts, sometimes because the blank page is scary, and sometimes because we truly mean something… but haven't yet translated it into something measurable.
So, with affection (and a slight squint), here are ten expert-sounding phrases that often say very little, followed by a framework to turn them into something your future self can actually defend.
The Top 10 "Sounds Smart, Says Little" Market Phrases
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"In a choppy macro environment, investors need to remain agile and nimble." A timeless classic. Like "eat healthy" but for portfolios.
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"Elevated uncertainty around macro and geopolitical risks continues to weigh on sentiment." Uncertainty is always elevated. Even when it's low, we're uncertain about how low it is.
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"Liquidity conditions are tightening as central banks normalize policy." This can mean rates up, rates down, QT, or simply that someone looked at a chart and frowned.
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"We expect increased dispersion, creating opportunities for active managers." A phrase that reliably appears right before… more indexing.
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"Markets are recalibrating expectations around the terminal rate." Very sophisticated. Also: no one knows what they expected yesterday, either.
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"Balance sheet repair remains a key theme for corporates and banks." The theme that never ends. Like the sequel to the sequel of the sequel.
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"We are late-cycle, but not at the end of the cycle." Both late and not-late until the NBER opens the box.
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"Valuations look stretched in some areas, but still attractive in pockets of the market." "Pockets" is doing heroic work here.
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"A wall of maturities is approaching, which could pressure weaker balance sheets." Approaching… at a pace that suspiciously resembles "always a couple years away."
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"We remain focused on risk-adjusted returns." As opposed to what? Risk-ignored returns? "We like returns, but with a hint of chaos"?
Again: these phrases aren't wrong. They're just often unhelpful unless we upgrade them into something testable.
Which brings us to the antidote.
The "BS-to-Signal" Framework: Turning Vibes into Something Useful
Think of market commentary as sitting on a ladder. The higher you climb, the more your words can be challenged—and that's a good thing.
Level 0 — Pure Vibe
Vibes. No variables. No timeframe. No mechanism. "Markets are choppy; stay nimble."
If it could be pasted into any quarter since 1998, it probably lives here.
Level 1 — Anchored, still vague
You name a theme, but it's still hard to verify. "Macro risk is rising." "Dispersion is increasing."
Better—but we still don't know how, where, or when it matters.
Level 2 — Variables + direction
Now we're talking. You specify at least one metric and a reference point. "1-month realized vol is up vs. the last quarter." "Credit spreads have widened, led by lower-quality issuers."
Even if the reader disagrees, they can at least locate your claim on a chart.
Level 3 — Mechanism + conditions
You connect the dots and explain when the claim matters. "If real yields rise, long-duration equities tend to lag because discount rates dominate earnings upgrades."
Now your reader can say: "I buy that" or "I don't, because…"
Level 4 — Decision rule + timeframe
This is the gold standard: thesis + implication + horizon + what changes your mind. "Over the next 3–6 months we prefer quality value vs. high-duration growth; we'd revisit if real yields fall below X or earnings breadth improves."
At Level 4, you're no longer writing commentary—you're communicating a view.
The 7 Quick "Signal Tests"
When you see a sentence that sounds smooth, run it through these checks:
- Metric test: What 1–2 metrics make this true/false?
- Reference test: Compared to what baseline?
- Time test: Over what horizon does it matter?
- Mechanism test: What's the causal chain (A → B → C)?
- Conditionality test: When does it not hold?
- Trade implication test: What do I overweight/underweight if I believe it?
- Falsification test: What would change your mind?
If a statement fails #1 + #3 + #7, it's usually more vibe than view.
A Rewrite Template You Can Reuse
Here's the simplest upgrade path from cliché to clarity:
Cliché: "Elevated uncertainty means we're staying nimble."
Signal rewrite: "Because [driver], we expect [metric] to [move direction] over [timeframe]. Implication:[positioning]. We'd change our view if [trigger] happens."
This doesn't make writing harder—it makes it honest. And strangely, it often makes it shorter too.
Two "Upgraded" Examples (Just to See It in Action)
"We expect increased dispersion… benefits stock pickers."
Signal version: "Single-stock dispersion is above its 5-year average and correlations are falling; this historically improves the payoff to idiosyncratic positioning. We favor market-neutral pair trades over broad beta for the next quarter; we'd reassess if correlations rise again and dispersion mean-reverts."
"We remain focused on risk-adjusted returns."
Signal version: "We're prioritizing strategies with stable expected returns per unit of risk, not just headline upside. In practice, that means limiting left-tail exposure and sizing positions to keep drawdowns within X. We'd increase risk if volatility compresses and breadth improves sustainably."
See the difference? Same intention—more signal.
A closing note (from one cliché-user to another)
The goal isn't to banish these phrases. They exist because they're convenient placeholders for real ideas.
The goal is to notice when we're using them as a substitute for thinking—especially when we're tired, busy, or trying to sound "market-y" on a deadline.
So keep the humor, keep the humanity… and when it matters, upgrade the vibe into a view.
Because markets will always be uncertain. But your writing doesn't have to be.
