What's the Buzz?

"Ideas on Earth were badges of friendship or enmity. Their content did not matter.  Friends agreed with friends in order to express friendliness.  Enemies disagreed with enemies, in order to express enmity."

- Kurt Vonnegut, 'Breakfast of Champions'

It seems every year there is a new crop of buzz words, the phrases that all the cool kids know and love to repeat.  You've heard them, you love them, but do you really know them?

Much of the power of the buzz word lies in our willingness to  suspend logic and accept the phrase as it is given to us.  Because if you look too closely you'll see the buzzword of the day doesn't really mean anything.  Or it's meaning is so obscure as to effectively block communicating any idea. 
 

I'll admit some buzzwords are useful.  There are terms that have been developed to express certain ideas more precisely.  

In the business world there are so many different ways to communicate. You can send a fax, an email, a text, an instant message.  If you're really old fashioned you can call them on the phone, or even send a letter.  But to let someone know you will make contact you "reach out" to them.  The form of the communication doesn't matter much, it's the reaching.

You can reach out to someone, reach a conclusion, or reach for the stars!  But don't reach for your assistant's assets.  

One buzzword that has always seemed a little, dare I say it, stupid, is "thinking outside the box."  What's "outside the box?"  For that matter, what is the box?

The box is the assumptions we hold, our beliefs about the limits of what is workable and acceptable.  What's outside the box is every idea, no matter how impractacle or just plain stupid.

In the world of science it is understood that progress is made by challenging the assumptions, not by throwing them away.  Without understanding why we do things the way we do any attempt to move forward will result in wallowing around with no direction.

Some buzzwords are actually euphemisms, words meant to disguise unpleasant truths. De-layering is laying off staff, people losing their jobs.  Anytime you hear "off shore" think "my job is going to a call center in India."  

There are no employees any more.  Everyone is either an associate or a team member.  Associates makes it sound like you're somehow an outsider, a consultant, and therefor not deserving of benefits.  Team members are there to enjoy the game.  Either way, if they change your title watch your paycheck.

Some buzzwords come about because people stick two words together in a hap hazard way, probably because they don't know what a thesaurus is.  Like "ginormous" (gigantic + enormous).  Auto-magically (automatically + magic).  My contribution, numbiot (numb skull + idiot).

One buzzword that I've always found a tad distasteful is referring to people as a "resource."  While it may be somewhat accurate, it does strike me as slightly dehumanizing.  You're not a person any more, with your own strengths and weaknesses, your own  desires and dislikes.  You're a resource, you belong to the company.

The truly unfortunate thing about buzzwords is when they corrupt the language.  Words have meaning, they have power, they can move us.  Or they should.  As an example I offer the word guru.

A guru once meant a wise man.  A guru was someone who had a long lifetime of experience to draw on, and the intelligence and insight to offer us deep spiritual truths about our lives.  A lifetime of suffering, denial, and communion with God brings a guru wisdom that he can share with his fellow humans to bring them peace.

Now, if you can install software in your computer without calling tech support you're a guru.  If you can ride a skateboard without falling down and skinning your knee you're a guru.  If you can pass wind and not mess yourself you're a guru.   

Then there are prefixes or suffixes that can make any word into a buzzword quickly and easily. Although not painlessly.  If you're not too old you may recall the advent of the fashionista.  A handy label for the elitist fashion snobs, or fashion fascists.  Now anyone can become an elite fascist. 

Words are about communication.  They carry meaning and emotional impact.  They carry ideas and inspiration.  If words hinder that process then discard those words and find words that can do the job.
 

And you know you can trust me on this.  I'm a blogista!