Avoiding redundancy (4)

In previous posts (1, 2, 3), I used real-world examples to demonstrate that redundancy causes more damage than we think. Here’s another example:

Today I stopped for gas at a Citgo station in Hanover, NH. Attached to the pump was this sign:

PLEASE PREPAY FIRST
OR USE A CARD HERE
BEFORE PUMPING ANY GAS

A triple redundancy!

(paying before pumping = paying first = prepaying)

The Takeaway: Remember two things about redundancy. First, every redundancy impedes your reader for a second or two. Second, redundancies have a cumulative effect; the more redundancies you use, the worse you look. At some point, your reader will conclude that you are careless or stupid.