Shift that Paradigm Outside of the Box

There's an interesting and well-written article in this Sunday's Globe by Kate M. Jackson about a supposed backlash against corporate jargon. I don't know if people are really going to give up on phrases like "win-win" and "get on the same page," though. Once words and phrases get a toehold in the English language its hard to, like, root them out, even if they are as stupid as "value-added" and "think outside the box." It almost seems like wishful thinking on the Globe's part. But maybe corporate America will pay attention to some of the finer points in the article. For example: using big words in order to sound smart usually achieves the exact opposite result.

There are some great quotes throughout the story. My favorite: "Copernicus's revelation that the Earth revolves around the sun brought about a paradigm shift ... Your revelation to outsource the payroll department probably shouldn't carry equal cachet." (Jon Warshawsky, co-author of "Why Business People Speak Like Idiots.")

Click here to read Jackson's article, "Buzzword backlash looks to purge jibba-jabba from corporate-speak."
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