As an author, I get called on to do speeches from time to time. My Writing Without Bullshit speech is now connecting pretty well, based on how audiences are reacting to it. The reason is that, like my writing, it’s tight: every slide has a purpose, and most of those purposes have a payload. It…
Unsurprisingly, Equifax canned its CEO after the recent data breach. Er, not quite . . . actually he “retired.” The company is still caught between being responsible and avoiding blaming anyone. The language in the release — and the company’s own description of itself — reveal just how little the company stands for. Here’s the…
New Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi must now deal with Transport for London’s decision to yank Uber’s license to operate in the city. He’s straddling two worlds — praising the team but asking for change and self-reflection. You can read his email to the global team either way, and that is the problem. Lets look at the…
In “The Biotech Devil’s Dictionary: Your Guide to the inanities of industry jargon,” Damian Garde of STAT News lists 16 bullshit terms that are common in biotech news and coverage. Why do they exist? To make the ordinary sound special. Here are part of his excellent list, with my own translations: 2.0 (adj.): A largely meaningless…
Just because you’re talented doesn’t mean you need to be arrogant. That’s what I learned from my remodeling contractor, and it’s my philosophy, too. I recently launched a significant remodeling job on my 100-year-old house: rip and replace everything in our two main bathrooms; replace a rotting front portico; and update a laundry room with…
Ryanair made a mistake and had to cancel 40 to 50 flights a day for the next six weeks, for a total of 2,100 flights. The legendary no-frills airline has always treated passengers like freight, and with its non-apology, has proven that accounting for customers’ feelings is a luxury that doesn’t come on Ryanair. This…
Words With Friends has just added 50,000 new pop-culture words. This is horrifying. According to the AP: WORDS WITH FRIENDS ADDS 50,000 POP CULTURE WORDS by Mark Kennedy, AP ENTERTAINMENT WRITER NEW YORK (AP) — Tell your bae or your bestie: The mobile game Words With Friends is adding thousands of pop culture words as part…
Salesforce is a great program for small business. Each of its customer sites has an administrator, many of whom are non-coders. That’s why a recent “critical update” featuring “block execution” sounded scary — but incomprehensible — to many. The salesforce email: simultaneously opaque and terrifying A correspondent working in a small financial advice firm forwarded…
We use some words so often they lose meaning. “Digital” is one of those words. When GE CEO John Flannery says the future is digital, I get confused. If I’m too dumb to understand this, how many of his other readers are similarly ignorant? A little more clarity — and a review from an editor…