The next time you find yourself yawning away in a series of vendor presentations, drawn out training sessions or long boring conference calls, consider spicing it up with a round of Buzzword Bingo.
It’s very easy.
Simply create a bingo card and fill it with the most annoying business jargon. Make a few versions and send copies to a friend or two. At your next meeting, keep track of each time a speaker utters one of the buzzwords on your card. First one to get bingo wins.
Note: It’s best to not yell “bingo” loudly in the middle of a meeting. Give your fellow players a secret signal, or if you’re playing virtually, a skyped “BINGO” will do.
Here’s what my bingo card looks like.
|
B |
I |
N |
G |
O |
|
pivot |
arsenal |
scalable |
innovative |
hard stop |
|
touch base |
baseline |
epic fail |
proactive |
twitterverse |
|
heavy lifting |
monetize |
FREE SPACE |
stakeholders |
drill down |
|
ideation |
deliverables |
repurpose |
transactional |
framework |
|
secret sauce |
ducks in a row |
low hanging fruit |
client-centric |
toolbox |
What would you add?
(If you need some inspiration, try these sites: The Most Annoying Business Jargon and Overused Words and Phrases )
Marta Steele is a Partner at PeopleResults. She can be reached on Twitter @MartaSteele.
STORY IMAGE: Photo courtesy Dave Willet.
I would add “win-win”. My 10 year old was talking about a “win-win” situation regarding a discussion with his 4th grade teacher – that was when I knew the term was officially overused jargon!