Every day, we live in a world that feeds us a near endless run of business words at work, in the media, and online. Everyone from corporate managers to motivational speakers often use the same words to motivate, instruct, and guide their employees. These terms are words that can either help, or they can be used as filler, without real meaning or understanding. Today, we are going to discuss the difference between Buzzword and Buzzlanguage.
What’s the difference? Buzzwords are terms and words that reach popularity quickly, usually regarding a trend or concept. Buzzlanguage is the vocabulary that is often used without meaning or context, undefined and unclear. When you get down to it, buzzlanguage is a great way to say words without really saying anything at all.
Here we have compiled a list of popular buzzwords and commonly used buzzlanguage, and we will help you determine what is real and what is not.
Corporate Synergy
What does it mean? Collaborating and working together within the organisation. Often thrown around and overused, the word has generally lost a lot of meaning. As far as we can tell, it’s still used because synergy sounds interesting.
Our opinion? Buzzlanguage.
Brainstorming
Generally, brainstorming is the creative process by which may businesses generate new ideas. There are multiple techniques, from idea-webs to word association, but the principle is the same: alternative forms of thinking that will allow for new ideas. We’ve all heard the term before, originally coming from school teachers and now from our bosses.
Our assessment? Buzzlanguage. Although there might have once been some originality in the word, it’s been reduced to an overcomplicated way to tell people to think.
Streamlining
What does it mean? Cutting down and eliminating extra content or functions within a business or structure. This can mean unifying underlying ideas, focussing attention on certain areas of concept, and trimming the extra. And while the idea behind the term is useful, it’s often used without precision.
Our vote? Buzzlanguage.
Outside the Box
It’s hard not to roll your eyes when you hear the term “outside the box”. Perhaps the most overused turn of phrase in the English language, it means to consider alternative methods. It may have been new once, but now “out of the box thinking” is slapped onto anything that requires creative problem solving without actually meaning anything.
Our verdict? Buzzlanguage. Not to say it’s without value, but now the term is tired and overused.
Unicorn
A unicorn is a start-up valued over 1 billion dollars, which is to say it is as rare as the mythical creatures. The term comes from the finance world and represents the very few startups that make it to such a level of success. Some companies include Airbnb, Snap, Inc., Uber, and Pinterest.
Our thoughts? Buzzword. Unicorn represents a very real and very interest statistical anomaly in the business world.
After reading this, you might be surprised by some of the results. The truth is, it’s very easy in our daily business practices to fall into patterns. What matters is remaining focused and conscious of your choice of words. It can help you communicate better with your employees and truly improve your business. Check out some of our buzzwords here, here, and here.
