‘Trust me, I’m a doctor.’ Do you know anyone who says this? If so, ignore them or you’ll be dead by tomorrow.
There are lots of innocent little phrases people use: ‘have a nice day, thanks for calling’ etc but some you really need to beware of.
They are weasel words that sound innocent but belie the true intention of the user.
In my long experience people who say, ‘to be honest’ are likely to be telling a huge porky; eg, ‘To be honest, I posted your cheque yesterday.’ Yeah, right.
If you are involved in negotiations involving money, watch out for: ‘I’ll be straight with you’. It’s a killer phrase used by those for whom the truth is as elusive as an Essex lion.
Whenever anyone says: ‘Tell you the truth’, I reply immediately with: ‘Please refrain. Do not be ‘straight’ with me, ‘honest’ or ‘frank’ just give a simple yes or no to my question’. Deprived of their customary flannel such individuals often develop a stutter or dash off to a previously unmentioned appointment.
Under no circumstances trust anyone who offers to ‘swear on my mother’s grave’. The last scoundrel who used that on me forgot I attended his mother’s funeral 20 years earlier. I had a terrible feeling I’d be swearing on his grave before he repaid what he’d borrowed. The worst of all are those that claim to ‘call a spade a spade’ which is shorthand for: ‘I use insults freely but scream like a cornered rat should they be directed at me.’
To be straight with you, I don’t have faith in anyone who uses weasel words. Trust me, they have no scruples.
To be frank with you, I would not let them anywhere near my mother’s grave (doctor or not).
