{"id":116282,"date":"2021-02-11T17:49:14","date_gmt":"2021-02-11T22:49:14","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/rbach.net\/?p=116282"},"modified":"2021-12-20T13:25:54","modified_gmt":"2021-12-20T18:25:54","slug":"most-hated-business-buzzwords","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/rbach.net\/index.php\/most-hated-business-buzzwords\/","title":{"rendered":"Most Hated Business Buzzwords"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

\"\"Even after a year of working from home – some things never change. One of them is buzzwords. Merriam-Webster<\/a> defines<\/a> a buzzword<\/strong> an as important-sounding usually technical word or phrase often of little meaning used chiefly to impress laymen. And it seems people hate business buzzwords<\/p>\r\n

The word-smiths at\u00a0GetResponse<\/a><\/em>, surveyed over 1000 people to identify the most hated business buzzwords<\/strong>. GetResponse asked respondents to tell them their most hated jargon terms. Here are the top five most hated business buzzwords….<\/p>\r\n

\"thinking<\/p>\r\n

5. Thinking outside the box<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

Wikipedia<\/a><\/em> writes<\/a> that thinking outside the box<\/strong> is a metaphor, which has become a clich\u00e9. <\/strong>It means to think unconventionally or from a new perspective. The term is widely used in business environments, especially by management consultants and executive coaches<\/strong> starting in the 1970s challenging their clients to solve the “nine dots<\/a>” puzzle, whose solution requires some lateral thinking.<\/sup><\/p>\r\n

4. Raising the bar<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

\"bosses<\/a><\/p>\r\n

The phrase originates<\/a> in athletic terminology from around the turn of the century. It is from the track and field events of pole vault and high jump, where it is necessary to\u00a0raise the bar\u00a0<\/em><\/strong>after each jump to reach a new height record and increase the competition. In the workplace, bosses are continually setting new targets or goals<\/strong> for the workers to achieve, hence raising the bar there too.<\/p>\r\n

3. Touch base<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

\"hated<\/a>Merriam-Webster<\/em> says<\/a> this hated business buzzword comes from baseball where both runner and fielders have to “touch base” in order to be safe or record an out. Perhaps the idea of the “base” became associated with “home base” or place of meeting, before becoming the idiom we know today.<\/p>\r\n

2. Teamwork<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

\"Teamwork<\/a>The origin of the word \u201cteam\u201d goes as far back as the year 825. Grammarphobia<\/em><\/a> reports<\/a> it originally meant a set of draft animals. it\u2019s derived from old Germanic sources having to do with drawing or pulling. In the early 1500s, the noun was first used to refer to people, either working together or associated in some joint endeavor. In 1886 this gave us the sports uses, such as \u201cteam player.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\r\n

The blog claims the verb \u201cteam\u201d also showed up in the 1500s. The Oxford English Dictionary says <\/em>It originally meant to harness or yoke, as a farmer might \u201cteam\u201d horses or oxen. We\u00a0still use the verb more or less this way,\u00a0but\u00a0with things instead of\u00a0animals.<\/p>\r\n

1. Synergy<\/span><\/h3>\r\n

\"Synergy<\/a>Synergy is the most hated business buzzword. In the business world the term implies that, when the right two companies merge, they’ll produce a profitable synergy. Synergy<\/em> became a trendy buzzword<\/a> in the\u00a01980s after it appeared in an Economist<\/i>\u00a0article (even though it’s actually been around since 1632<\/a>). The idea of synergy was one factor in what became a “merger mania;” unfortunately, business synergy often turned out to be harder to achieve than to imagine.<\/p>\r\n

Here is the entire list from GetResponse<\/a><\/em><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>\r\n

2020's Most Hated Business Buzzwords<\/h2>\n\n\n\n\n\t\n\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t\n\t
Rank<\/th>Jargon Term<\/th>% who hate it<\/th>\n<\/tr>\n<\/thead>\n
1<\/td>Synergy<\/td>4.29<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
2<\/td>Teamwork<\/td>3.43<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
3<\/td>Touch base<\/td>2.08<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
4<\/td>Raising the bar<\/td>1.96<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
5<\/td>Think outside the box<\/td>1.72<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
6<\/td>Work harder<\/td>1.72<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
7<\/td>Best practice<\/td>1.47<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
8<\/td>Paradigm shift<\/td>1.47<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
9<\/td>The next time you feel the need to reach out<\/td>1.35<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
10<\/td>Empower<\/td>0.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
11<\/td>Keep up the good work<\/td>0.98<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n
12<\/td>At the end of the day<\/td>0.86<\/td>\n<\/tr>\n<\/tbody>\n<\/table>\nGetResponse, surveyed over 1000 people to identify the most hated business buzzwords. <\/span>\n\r\n

rb-<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\r\n

I don’t use these hated business buzzwords at home. It’s not weekend talk. Buzzwords and jargon are generally the domain of “office speak.”\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\r\n

Why do we have jargon overload in the business environment? There are many possible reasons.\u00a0People want to fit in and belong, be seen as an insider, or mimic their bosses so it seems like it’s the right thing to use hated business buzzword.<\/em><\/p>\r\n

 <\/p>\r\n

Stay safe out there !<\/a><\/strong><\/em><\/p>\r\n

Related article<\/strong><\/p>\r\n