When did the excessive use of the phrase ‘go ahead’ become so prevalent?
Posted by hopzhead@reddit | AskAnAmerican | View on Reddit | 40 comments
I don’t know if this is a YouTube-specific issue or if it extends to language in everyday use in America, but every video I seem to watch on YouTube seems to contain excessive and unnecessary use of the phrase ‘go ahead’. It seems to prefix (almost every!) action that someone is going to take. e.g. “I’m going to go ahead and press this button”, or “I’m going to go ahead and take this out”. Surely saying “I’m going to press this button” or “I’m going to take this out” would serve just as well. Why the use of “go ahead”?
Is this a YouTube presentation thing, and something new, or is this something that’s always been around for a long time in everyday speech?
Thanks, I’m curious, I’m a languages geek 😁
03zx3@reddit
I'm 37. I've been hearing and saying that my entire life.
IrianJaya@reddit
Look for nuance in the meaning when they say "go ahead". Often it's used when it's something they were hesitant to do, but finally decided to do after some deliberating.
"I'm going to press this button" - means that the button operates something I'm familiar with and should have not major impacts on my life after I press it.
"I'm going to go ahead and press this button" - could mean that I'm not sure what the button does, and it seems like a bad idea to be pressing unknown buttons, but I've given it some thought, narrowed down the possible buttons to press, and I'm now ready to risk it because I think it's the right one.
Avery_Thorn@reddit
There are certain linguistical memes that have come into popularity in American professional white collar office environments. They are mostly around inviting collaboration and inviting feedback from others and building inclusion into decisions.
In other words, they are building synergy and a shared thoughtspace to enable collaborative cooperation and an inclusive work culture to enable greater inclusion and cohesion within the work team.
Saying "I am going to push the button" does not invite collaboration.
Saying "I am going to go ahead and push the button" either invites collaboration by asking if everyone is in agreement to push the button, or it is acknowledging that a discussion was had, viewpoints were aired, and the person making the statement is making a call based on the input of everyone that it is best to push the button.
There are a lot of American youtubers who are or were formerly in white collar professional office jobs. It is not surprising that some of these linquistical memes would carry over.
ColossusOfChoads@reddit
Sometimes it's more like "uhhhh, yeah. I think we need to just, y'know, 'move things along', so I'm just gonna 'go ahead' and 'push the button', m'kay? Yeeeaaaahhh...."
pirawalla22@reddit
Why do you believe this to be "excessive"?
hopzhead@reddit (OP)
Because I’ll hear it dozens of times in a video that’s only a few minutes long, and each use is unnecessary, like the examples I gave.
ColossusOfChoads@reddit
That's probably more a personal quirk of the Youtuber in question.
In real life its use would be a lot more sparing and occasional.
AnalogNightsFM@reddit
I think that’s just representative of the typical proclivity for extremes for a majority on social media, especially when discussing Americans. It’s just not believable that you’ll hear it more than once in a video that’s a few minutes long, and even less so to hear it dozens of times. That’s absurd.
Sirhc978@reddit
Its been around forever. Go watch the 1999 movie Office Space.
JesusStarbox@reddit
"I'm going to need you to go ahead and come in Saturday."
It's the sign of someone who never comes out and says something in a straightforward way.
krilu@reddit
I just gonna come out and say something in a straightforward way.
sgtm7@reddit
If that was true, you wouldn't have used the words "come out and" in your post.
annaoze94@reddit
I'm from the Midwest I don't know if this has to do with anything but I've always said go ahead. I've also used it to be polite about something. Like Midwest Nice™ kind of like Office Space but in less of a dickhead passive aggressive way lol.
But I also regularly used it in terms of if someone asked me if they can do something I may respond "Yeah sure, go ahead!"
shelwood46@reddit
I can't get Two Princes by the Spin Doctors out of my head now.
TrixieLurker@reddit
As someone who is sort of old, I will confirm that it was a very common phrase for years before that movie.
hopzhead@reddit (OP)
I adore that film! It actually came to mind when Reddit wouldn’t let me complete this post without adding “flair” 😂
BRBInvestments@reddit
August 21 1988
yahgmail@reddit
It's pretty common where I'm from & where my dad is from (Midwest), ( I'm from the same place as my mom -Maryland-Easy Coast).
Chemical-Mix-6206@reddit
Thank you for this post. I thought I was being ornery. There's one cajun cooking guy whose recipes I love but have to mute it because it he's not going ahead with something, he's going in with it. Urgh.
High_Life_Pony@reddit
I’ve heard this phrase overused for decades. It’s certainly not new or YouTube related.
annaoze94@reddit
Right I don't know where they got the idea that YouTube was a factor
jephph_@reddit
That’s been around forever
Idk, I say it.
I’m not exactly sure how to describe it but:
“I’m going to go ahead and do this”
..is slightly different than
“I’m going to do this”
It adds a little suspense or signifies “this” might not go so well or can say you’re going to do it but you don’t really want to
annaoze94@reddit
I think it's yeah definitely if you're going to go ahead and do something instead of saying straight up that you're going to do something it doesn't necessarily connotate less confidence but more of a softer approach to things. Kind of like instead of asking someone "Please do this" You might ask them "hey when you get a second would you mind doing this?"
annaoze94@reddit
This never bothered me because I think I've always talked like this but when people say stuff like "yeah this dress is going to go ahead and be the ugliest thing I've ever seen" That's a little jarring.
I think that go ahead is sort of like the southern phrase "fixing to" I'm going to go ahead and go to the store. "I'm fixing to go to the store" That's just my observation though. Anypne who doesn't know, the word "finna" is short for fixing to. So when they say "I'm finna go to the store" fixing to is kind of like I'm about to" or "I'm getting ready to"
WingedSeven@reddit
it's a youtuber issue. different parts of the country and different professions have different "nonsense phrases" that don't really add anything substantive to a sentence, but end up getting used in every other sentence. in my neck of the woods that'd be stuff like "i tell you what" or "now" at the start of a sentence.
Mission-Coyote4457@reddit
I don't think it's a youtube thing, maybe it's just my limited anecdotal experience but I've heard that used in that way kind of my whole life. I think it's just a colloquialism
baalroo@reddit
Inserting "go ahead" is done to indicate that the thing being references is about to happen right now.
"I'm going to press this button" could mean you'll press it... eventually.
"I'm going to go ahead and press this button" means you're about to press it right now.
MontEcola@reddit
Age 60. It has been in my regular vocabulary as long as I can remember. Go ahead means I will let you go first. Or, I am finished giving directions you may start. Or, try it out this way. Maybe I am not watching the trendy videos? I don't notice anything at all.
DrWhoisOverRated@reddit
I'm not sure how or when it started, but I have noticed it more on Youtube. It's one of those language quirks that most people don't even realize they're doing until it gets pointed out, and is (I'm guessing) prevalent in videos that involve people who aren't great at public speaking showing a step by step process of how to do something. In this case, "go ahead" is synonymous with "I'm moving on to the next step."
TheBimpo@reddit
Could you go ahead and give me some examples? I don’t really notice it being as prevalent. Maybe it’s a frequency illusion of once you notice something, you can’t help but notice it constantly and believe it’s more frequent than it actually is. I’m sure you could go ahead and find the same thing happening for other phrases.
hopzhead@reddit (OP)
Umm, I like, totally, basically think you might be right!
ShelbyDriver@reddit
I noticed it too a while back. Super annoying.
jeremiah1142@reddit
I’ve used and heard this in everyday speech for decades.
DankBlunderwood@reddit
No, people have always said that.
Cacafuego@reddit
It's a common filler. It adds a casual air to whatever you're about to say. I think some people who are saying it's an odd youtube thing just haven't noticed it, because it is completely unremarkable.
cherrycokeicee@reddit
this sounds like YouTube voice to me. people get weird when they have to narrate things to a camera & they end up falling back on/repeating transition phrases. there are different quirks in different genres too. like every makeup YouTuber says "go in with." it drives me nuts. "and next I'm going to go in with [makeup product]"
TheBimpo@reddit
I don’t really watch many Youtubers, but when I notice other people watching them, there are so many different tics and stalling techniques that these inexperienced presenters use that they make me insane. Being a good public speaker or presenter of information requires training, these folks just watch other people doing the same thing and mimic them. It’s really strange to me.
mothwhimsy@reddit
This is probably the answer. I follow a channel who drops "actually" 2 or 3 times a thought. It's just because he's trying to talk and do stuff at the same time for 15 minutes straight and doesn't realize he's doing it. It gets pretty annoying though.
I can't wait to start noticing all the "go ahead"s now that it's been pointed out
Danibear285@reddit
Another day, another internet account using the internet to learn about the real world.
Don’t believe the internet
Gladyskravitz99@reddit
That is weird and surely yet another YouTube quirk. I don't notice people saying it much irl.