Talking points on social media

Many random scribbles put together bring about this infographic to illustrate what makes up for social media posts. This depiction is not based on any particular data.

Jargon hurts meetings

Wanting to sound smart at meetings makes people use heavy words and phrases. The flip side is, after the meeting, not many may recall what was said. Here is a collection of 50 odd words and phrases, used in only two meetings. Though most are part of normal conversations, choosing to use all of them repetitively only creates sleep-inducing blabber. The ones in bold tend to throw off listeners till one chooses to ignore it for the sake of the main message. 

Basically
Literally
Factor in
in totality
Client side
Be judicial
Benchmark
Touch upon
Make a note
How exactly
Key message
Elaborate on
Reality check
Leader-driven
Dedicated line
Sell internally
Call for action
Plan to roll out
Formal agenda
Rough estimate
Broad overview
Formal structure
Reflect a sense of
Pan-India basis
Subtle and classy
Having the luxury
Sensitizing people
Need to figure out
Operational details
Go down that road
That’s a good point
Assess the number
Top-down messaging
Elements considered
Evolved expectations
Good you raised that
Personalized message
Manageable logistics
Firm up the logistics
More-or-less in sync
Identify those aspects
Put a timeline on that
Take into consideration
Drastic spike in turnout
Maintain an element of
Fine to run for a few days
Focus on some key things
To give you a background
Garner maximum visibility
Thoughts were shared with
Ready to roll in a sense that…
based on previous assessment
Carry forward through the year
First question that came up was
Works like a substantial re-enforcement

Unnecessary use of heavy words puts people off and hurts the purpose of the meeting. When people do not understand what you are saying, there is a high chance that the decision may get postponed to another meeting. Some of our partners speak in plain and simple language, and they are able to get across very clearly what they want. That, we need to learn from.

Speaking in simple language IS best practice!

Jargon hurts meetings

Wanting to sound smart at meetings makes people use heavy words and phrases. The flip side is, after the meeting, not many may recall what was said. Here is a collection of 50 odd words and phrases, used in only two meetings. Though most are part of normal conversations, choosing to use all of them repetitively only creates sleep-inducing blabber. The ones in bold tend to throw off listeners till one chooses to ignore it for the sake of the main message. 

Basically
Literally
Factor in
in totality
Client side
Be judicial
Benchmark
Touch upon
Make a note
How exactly
Key message
Elaborate on
Reality check
Leader-driven
Dedicated line
Sell internally
Call for action
Plan to roll out
Formal agenda
Rough estimate
Broad overview
Formal structure
Reflect a sense of
Pan-India basis
Subtle and classy
Having the luxury
Sensitizing people
Need to figure out
Operational details
Go down that road
That’s a good point
Assess the number
Top-down messaging
Elements considered
Evolved expectations
Good you raised that
Personalized message
Manageable logistics
Firm up the logistics
More-or-less in sync
Identify those aspects
Put a timeline on that
Take into consideration
Drastic spike in turnout
Maintain an element of
Fine to run for a few days
Focus on some key things
To give you a background
Garner maximum visibility
Thoughts were shared with
Ready to roll in a sense that…
based on previous assessment
Carry forward through the year
First question that came up was
Works like a substantial re-enforcement

Unnecessary use of heavy words puts people off and hurts the purpose of the meeting. When people do not understand what you are saying, there is a high chance that the decision may get postponed to another meeting. Some of our partners speak in plain and simple language, and they are able to get across very clearly what they want. That, we need to learn from.

Speaking in simple language IS best practice!

Smart TV

By smart TV I meant interesting content and not the latest tech in TV that's frankly making us more numb. Though I stopped watch national TV many years ago, there is a certain kind of content I am attracted to that just got me all hooked up. Here's a list of some shows I watched in the last 4 years-

Curb your Enthusiasm - Brilliant piece of work here. Though its been 14 years since it aired, Larry David is still funny; born for improvisational comedy. He also co-created Seinfeld.

Breaking Bad - Best thing that ever happened to TV. Followed it till the end- talk about addiction (unintended).

Big Bang Theory - All 7 seasons were consumed in a span of two months. Give me a Sheldon any time.

Hung- Now don't raise your eyebrows without fully understanding the context. It is what it sounds like, but has a few interesting dimensions to it.

Californication - Same genre as 'Hung'; and I haven't laughed so much watching anything ever. Watched all 6 seasons.

Lie to me- Started out well in the first two seasons, when all facial twitches were explained. Then it got boring.

Mad Men- Though the art direction is well done, it didn't have the stickiness the other shows had. Couldn't get past the second season.

Community- Just started watching this. May not watch it for long.

Smart TV

By smart TV I meant interesting content and not the latest tech in TV that's frankly making us more numb. Though I stopped watch national TV many years ago, there is a certain kind of content I am attracted to that just got me all hooked up. Here's a list of some shows I watched in the last 4 years-

Curb your Enthusiasm - Brilliant piece of work here. Though its been 14 years since it aired, Larry David is still funny; born for improvisational comedy. He also co-created Seinfeld.

Breaking Bad - Best thing that ever happened to TV. Followed it till the end- talk about addiction (unintended).

Big Bang Theory - All 7 seasons were consumed in a span of two months. Give me a Sheldon any time.

Hung- Now don't raise your eyebrows without fully understanding the context. It is what it sounds like, but has a few interesting dimensions to it.

Californication - Same genre as 'Hung'; and I haven't laughed so much watching anything ever. Watched all 6 seasons.

Lie to me- Started out well in the first two seasons, when all facial twitches were explained. Then it got boring.

Mad Men- Though the art direction is well done, it didn't have the stickiness the other shows had. Couldn't get past the second season.

Community- Just started watching this. May not watch it for long.

Destined to do, and eat.

One thing I aspired to do in my free time was to read the auto-biographies of both Adolf Hitler and Mahatma Gandhi. Both men stand on either ends of the spectrum when it comes to their contribution to humanity; and I was curious about how both functioned as leaders in their time.

When looking up the introductions, there’s a startling find- both came into this world in unusual circumstances. Adolf Hitler was the fourth of six babies born to his parents. All older siblings died as toddlers, succumbing to measles or diphtheria. The one that survived becomes the Hitler we know. In Gandhi’s case, his father married 4 times, and Gandhi was the youngest of four children from the fourth wife. Despite the challenges, they both went ahead to do what both had to do.

So here’s the point- if you have a reasonably good life and upbringing, notwithstanding challenges, you should be able to do whatever you aspire to do- but be nice. We know the legacy both have left behind.

 --------------------------------------------------------------------

For the weekend eat-out my wife and I decided to try out something new. We were at the Select City Walk mall in Saket and happened to walk past a place called Mamagoto. This place is positioned as 'fun Asian eating'. The restaurant is colorful and the food looked good on the menu. The attendants outside tried explain to us what we found interesting on the menu. Since we understood very little, I turned to my wife and said, ‘Whatever, let's try it out.'

Certificates from various eat-out guides decorating their entrance. Inside, the decor is set with Japanese Manga-style graphics. Attendants here wore headgear to prevent hair falling into the food. Now this is something we have been noticing in most restaurants these days. If it’s a new thing on the checklist from various health inspectors, it’s a good one. The attendants were patient with us despite the place being full up. We browsed through their colorful menu which looked like a scrapbook and photo album put together. After much deliberation, we decided to try out two things- first up was Hunan grilled fish which came with sticky rice. This I thoroughly relished and could have easily ploughed through another serving. Next came the Soggy Thai basil fried rice. Since it came in a large bowl, I had to help my wife finish it.

This place is totally recommended on various counts - great food, well-mannered staff and friendly décor; more so if you happened to be non-vegetarian, particularly fish-loving, maybe Manga-comics-adoring graphic designer. Ok, just kidding go on and try it!

Destined to do, and eat.

One thing I aspired to do in my free time was to read the auto-biographies of both Adolf Hitler and Mahatma Gandhi. Both men stand on either ends of the spectrum when it comes to their contribution to humanity; and I was curious about how both functioned as leaders in their time.

When looking up the introductions, there’s a startling find- both came into this world in unusual circumstances. Adolf Hitler was the fourth of six babies born to his parents. All older siblings died as toddlers, succumbing to measles or diphtheria. The one that survived becomes the Hitler we know. In Gandhi’s case, his father married 4 times, and Gandhi was the youngest of four children from the fourth wife. Despite the challenges, they both went ahead to do what both had to do.

So here’s the point- if you have a reasonably good life and upbringing, notwithstanding challenges, you should be able to do whatever you aspire to do- but be nice. We know the legacy both have left behind.

 --------------------------------------------------------------------

For the weekend eat-out my wife and I decided to try out something new. We were at the Select City Walk mall in Saket and happened to walk past a place called Mamagoto. This place is positioned as 'fun Asian eating'. The restaurant is colorful and the food looked good on the menu. The attendants outside tried explain to us what we found interesting on the menu. Since we understood very little, I turned to my wife and said, ‘Whatever, let's try it out.'

Certificates from various eat-out guides decorating their entrance. Inside, the decor is set with Japanese Manga-style graphics. Attendants here wore headgear to prevent hair falling into the food. Now this is something we have been noticing in most restaurants these days. If it’s a new thing on the checklist from various health inspectors, it’s a good one. The attendants were patient with us despite the place being full up. We browsed through their colorful menu which looked like a scrapbook and photo album put together. After much deliberation, we decided to try out two things- first up was Hunan grilled fish which came with sticky rice. This I thoroughly relished and could have easily ploughed through another serving. Next came the Soggy Thai basil fried rice. Since it came in a large bowl, I had to help my wife finish it.

This place is totally recommended on various counts - great food, well-mannered staff and friendly décor; more so if you happened to be non-vegetarian, particularly fish-loving, maybe Manga-comics-adoring graphic designer. Ok, just kidding go on and try it!