Writing 
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How-To Section
Banning Buzzwords and Jargon!
Zap the Buzzwords.
Buzzwords are like the latest fashion craze -- they pop up everywhere for awhile, fade away, and finally become dated and look silly!
With fashion, if you hold on to some of those styles, they'll came back some day. (Remember bell-bottom pants?) That's not true for buzzwords though. They are fun to use for awhile, but when they become out-of-date, they can pollute old written materials, making them seem dated and sometimes invalid! If you saw an article entitled "How to Get on the Information Highway!," you'd probably assume that the content is just as dated as the title and not even read it. Instead, it may contain some valuable information that still relates to the current Internet. So be careful of using too many buzzwords that could make your writing go out of fashion!
Take a look at the following words and phrases. Some are old and some are still "in fashion" but could go out of fashion any day now, so avoid them or use them sparingly to avoid polluting your writing!
Print the list by clicking on the link at the bottom of the chart, add some of your favorites, and post the list for yourself (or others!) to see. (Be sure to change your page set-up to print backgrounds if you want to print the chart borders.)
Ban These Buzzwords! |
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| prioritize | implement |
| empower | surf the net |
| deliverable | value proposition |
| brain trust | seamless |
| outside the box | intellectual property |
| mission critical | leverage |
| address | |
| Print this table. | |
| Bonus: Business Buzzword Bingo! |
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As you may have noticed, a lot of the buzzwords that started in the business world have become popular in our government world. If you click on the bingo link above, you'll get a bingo game that you can use at your next meeting! Here are the instructions: "Print this bingo card and take it with you to your next meeting. Mark the buzzwords as you hear them; the BINGO square is a free square. If you get five in a row (up, down, diagonally), shout "Bingo!" You've won!" You can even create a custom bingo card for buz words that are popular in your field. |
Go on to the next section on jargon by clicking on continue below. (You can practice banning buzzwords and jargon after you go through the jargon section.)
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