Who hasn’t enjoyed a game of bullsh*t bingo at work? Moving forwards, taking it offline, and circling back have been perennial favourites. And when someone states that they are going to ‘socialise’ a document I wonder if that involves taking it out for a beer to get to know everyone or maybe a nice lunch?
The pandemic, and subsequent lockdown has introduced us to a whole new lexicon of phrases that no one would ever use outside of work – I’m looking at you ‘I have a hard stop at…’! I’m the first to put my hands up and admit that I use some of these bullsh*t phrases from time to time, try as I might, it’s just so easy to slip into this way of talking. And I’ll be honest, I get annoyed with myself when one of these phrases slips from my mouth. Why do we speak a different language at work, using phrases that would never be uttered outside in our personal lives?
I’m currently reading The Art of Insubordination, from the brilliant Todd Kashdan, who is a professor of psychology and leading authority on well-being, courage and curiosity. The book is for anyone who wants to create a world with more justice, creativity and courage, I think that’s all of us right? I can already predict it’s probably going to be my book of 2022.
I’m going to post a full review soon, but I’d highly recommend you pre-order it, you won’t regret it. Todd recently shared some thought-provoking stats on ‘reading levels’. You might be surprised to learn that authors who are regarded as great tend to produce work at a lower reading level than you’d expect. For example the like of Ernest Hemmingway, Jane Austen, and Hunter S. Thompson can be read by pre-teens, although I wouldn’t recommend Hunter S Thompson books for that age group. And non-fiction books which feature in best-selling charts, such as anything by Malcolm Gladwell, Jon Ronson and Chip and Dan Heath, are readable by year 9s, which is circa 14-year-olds. These are very clever people who could write copy for a university graduate audience, but they choose not to. Therefore their books are accessible for a much broader range of people and enjoyed more widely.
So what does this have to do with bullsh*t bingo? There is an art, and a skill, that comes with making yourself understood in a clear and simple way. Great authors know that, but it isn’t just about the written word, it’s the spoken word too. I am always in awe of the way Professor Brian Cox can explain mind-bogglingly complex theories so that even I can get my head around them. When someone puts effort in to get rid of the jargon and bullsh*t terminology it’s engaging, we feel like they care about us, they want us to understand what it is they are saying. And it is absolutely not about dumbing down, which is often the excuse given for writing or speaking in a complex and let’s face it, exclusive way. It’s harder to talk simpler. Which is probably why many of us use the bullsh*t bingo phrases in the first place.
Fighting back against this way of talking, and writing, in organisations is long overdue. If we begin to challenge some of these phrases I’m hopeful we can start to talk in a more human-centric and authentic way. For example I have a real issue with the word talent when used in people functions. It makes me think of talent shows from 1980s Butlins holidays. I think the only situation you should be able to call yourself a talent manager is if you’re working in the entertainments industry and you are managing singers, musicians, actors and the like. The word talent does not feel inclusive to me, because surely talent only applies to special people, and many of us would not see ourselves as talent; we see ourselves as people who get jobs and go to work, and probably have some great skills and strengths, but would anyone really refer to themselves as talent? And for me, talking about the war for talent feels pretty insulting to anyone who has been in an actual war. It is not a war. And the talent marketplace?? It makes me think of the film Gladiator for some reason, which in this context is not a good thing.
No doubt if I reviewed some of my old blogs I am sure I talk about talent somewhere, and I know I cringed when I re-read them back. But I think I can do better, and I hope you’ll challenge yourselves to do better too.
Going back to Todd and The Art of Insubordination, he talks about ‘principled rebels’, which is rebellion coming from a place of good to make positive change happen.
So let’s start a rebellion against using outdated, exclusive, disengaging phrases and language at work. Are there any bullsh*t bingo phrases you’d love to get rid of? Let me know, I’d love to hear about them.
