Such lovely little phrases as "All in day's work" or "Missed the boat" are often thrown into everyday speech as an easy way of making a point by referring to an already familiar expression.
Unfortunately, clichés don't add a lot of value to what they're describing. They're unoriginal and, for the most part, overused to the point of being stale. Good writers know to avoid clichés, but every once in a while a cliché manages to sneak its way into journalism.
In his recent Huffington Post article "The Galleon Trial and the Future of Hedge Funds," Robert Amsterdam uses one of the most common clichés in the book:
"From the investors' standpoint, I am told that there is already an increasing culture of due diligence, and in counterparty selection as well, which can only be a positive development. At the risk of beating a dead horse, the fact of the matter is that if anyone had asked more questions of Bernie Madoff, a lot of this could have been avoided."Beating a dead horse? Really? How many times have we all heard that one? Amsterdam's point would have been made much stronger with a different word choice. How about saying: "I don't like to keep reiterating the same point, but..."
Now, I hate to sound like a broken record, but it warrants repeating: Clichés are as overused as the day is long and can only be justified being used in journalistic writing once in a blue moon!
(See what I did there?)
Amsterdam, Robert. "The Galleon Trial and the Future of Hedge Funds." The Huffington Post. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/robert-amsterdam/the-galleon-trial-and-the_b_853930.html. 26 April 2011.
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