Cliché-terminating thoughts

Last updated Mar 22, 2025 | Originally published Mar 22, 2025

Thought-terminating clichés are statements that — inadvertently or not — constrain what’s possible or allowed in the rest of a conversation.

For instance, saying “Let’s not reinvent the wheel!” suddenly makes everyone who was participating in a reinvention feel stupid and wasteful.

Knowing about thought-terminating clichés is like a magic ward that allows you to resist them: anyone who can identify a thought-terminating cliché can have cliché-terminating thoughts! If a creative conversation is suddenly stymied by the refrain above, pointing out how “let’s not reinvent the wheel” is a thought-terminating cliché may be a productive way to challenge the thought-terminator’s paternalism.

Aside: A thought-terminating cliché is an interesting example of facilitation-by-participation.