Written by Craig A. Coffey, Founder & President
Way Maker Leadership LLC
When did business leaders forget how to speak clearly and simply?
“Radio silent”
“Let’s not boil the ocean”
“Let’s do a deep dive”
“Out of pocket”
“Low hanging fruit”
“Run the numbers”
“Ducks in a row”
“Buzzworthy”
“shovel ready”
Communication is one of the most important things that happens in business. Its intention should be to set context, perspective, engage, inform, persuade, direct, correct, encourage, explain, request, apologize, thank, inspire and a series of other essential purposes.
Sadly, business jargon too often invades communication and makes otherwise reputable leaders appear goofy and out of touch. In a leader’s attempt to sound intelligent, show authority, be impressive & confident, and perhaps even approachable, it actually creates the opposite effect. Colleagues and team members will politely listen and even shake their heads in public agreement. However, behind the scenes, most are confused and have no common or consistent idea of what the leader is trying to convey. And yet, business jargon continues to persist.
I find there are few scenarios when this useless language surfaces most frequently:
- A leader is trying too hard to be clever. In their self-centeredness, they believe if they can create or use some linguistic expression that is memorable, they will set themselves apart from other leaders. Sadly, these leaders are merely reusing old material that was not very appealing or effective the first 1000 times it was used by somebody else.
- A leader is highly insecure. Perhaps they lack confidence or are in a job too big for their skills and talents. They are not sure what they want or need but want to forge ahead anyway. With a “fake until you make it” attitude, these leaders begin mirroring behavior, buzzwords and phrases they observe from other leaders. I find the more a leader uses these wonky, annoying and empty phrases the less comfortable they may be on a topic or in their job.
- A leader is trying to disguise that business is going badly (now or will be very soon). Leaders start using these phrases when business gets more demanding, and tough decisions impact people’s work and lives. This colorful language of business jargon helps minimize, distort, or mask the unpleasant news or decisions of weak business performances, budget cuts, firing people, elimination of raises, etc. One piece of advice for leaders in this situation; employees, want and can handle the truth. There are now five generations in the workforce. Countless studies have reinforced younger generations seek companies where transparency is a core value. No one ever benefited from “bubble wrapping” bad news. Eventually, the hard facts will come out, and leaders who relied on “business babble” to convey the earlier information look weak and disingenuous.
Regardless of which scenario is taking place, business jargon often results in generating unnecessary work, conflicting priorities, unclear deadlines and other inefficiencies that sink employee engagement and morale.
Admittedly, business professionals are all guilty of trying to make the language of business a little less boring or inject a bit of humor at times. But whenever you hear an excessive amount of camouflaged language from a leader, something idiotic or distressful will undoubtedly follow.
Business people have come to loathe this ridiculous rhetoric. When we are not cringing from the overused or misplaced euphemisms, metaphors or buzzwords, we are mocking them through activities like business jargon memes or the ever-popular “Jargon Madness” (a homage to the NCAA basketball tournament-style bracket). And while it provides a much-needed temporary laugh and escape, it does not solve the problem.
But what if we made a collective attempt to stop business jargon altogether? Consider this a call to action for everyone to stand up to colleagues who have embraced “business babble” and require simpler, clearer, authentic communication. Here are a few suggestions for how to do it.
Three Things to Force Transparent, Precise, Straightforward Communication
- Unite as a group to ask for clarity. There is truth to the phrase “power in numbers.” If everyone listening to the leader can collectively band together and ask for clarity, that would be powerful. In the meeting, you can each take turns asking phrases like, “WE are not clear what you said.” “What are you asking US to do?”. “What is OUR next step?”. “What does that mean for EVERYONE?”. When speaking as a group, it’s an honest call for directness while also preventing any one person from being called out, ridiculed, or punished by the leader. It could be a culture-changer for many companies.
- Summarize or paraphrase what you heard before the conversation ends. Either as a group or an individual, if you can repeat what you heard in simple phrases, it will help interpret the communication and gain agreement from the speaker.
For example:
So, to summarize what you said, the situation is (paraphrase what the leader described). As a result, you are asking me to do (paraphrase the task or action requested). You want me to work with the following resources (paraphrase the people, tools and/or budget). You want it completed by (date).
This simple step (repeating back what you think you heard) forces the communicator to agree or correct you. And if you are corrected, summarize that change back to them.
“Apologies, my misunderstanding. What you are saying is (summarize what was said).
Repeat as often as needed to gain understanding or until the leader totally gives up.
- Own what YOU say. Avoid “business babble “phrases. When you communicate, pride yourself on simple, straightforward communication. Resist the urge to fall back on unnecessary business-speak. One trick is to imagine talking to a close childhood friend who knew you before you entered business. If you were using these various empty phrases, they would cut you off after 10 seconds and hysterically laugh at you.
In closing, remember who you are, where you came from, and how you want to be remembered. It’s unnatural to say things like “skin in the game,” “drop-dead date,” “human capital,” and “pick your brain,” and expect to be taken seriously or think colleagues understand your intent.
We have all worked with the person at some time in our career who over-uses these types of phrases...and if you don’t recognize the leader, it might be you.
Ridiculous Rhetoric Revealed
Setting: A video conference with an ineffective leader and an assembled team.
| Business Jargon & Posturing | What It Really Means |
| Let’s get the ball rolling. I have limited bandwidth. | I’m in a hurry, self-important, and have more exciting things to do. |
| I have a hard stop at 10am. | I’m leaving, even if we’re not done. But continue working this issue. |
| I touched base with the CEO, and we decided to pivot. | The company changed its mind (again) with no explanation (again). I was too afraid to ask why (again). |
| Let’s do a brain dump on next steps. | I’m trying to sound casual and inclusive as I steal your ideas. |
| We need to think out of the box on this one. | Your ideas need to be big, exciting and innovative. I have no ideas. |
| This is the perfect storm, so we need to act quickly. | This is a total mess. It’s urgent so, don’t leave me hanging. |
| Do a deep dive. | Explore ALL options and possibilities. |
| But, let’s not boil the ocean. | Don’t explore everything. The really great ideas won’t get executed. |
| This is crunch time. | Plan to work overtime and the weekend, but don’t count on me too. |
| Do more with less. | There is no budget left. |
| It is what it is. | Deal with it. I’ve got nothing inspiring to say. I’m just talking to fill the awkward silence. |
| Use best practices and benchmark our competition. | Recycle past ideas that worked and steal successful ideas from others. |
| Run the numbers. | Ensure the idea is cheap. |
| Ensure it is buzzworthy and moves the needle. | Get people talking and give the illusion of progress. |
| We need all hands on deck. You’ll have air-cover from me. | Get every department to drop its priorities for this. If you get yelled at by their managers, you’re on your own. |
| Any idea needs to be shovel ready. | The idea needs to be so simple I can understand it and explain it. |
| That’s it. If anyone has questions, let’s take it offline. | I have NO interest in your questions or pushback. Bye. |
