15 Pieces Of Business Jargon Your Boss Always Says And Their Real Translations

In the world of business, the higher ups have invented their own way of speaking. These clichéd phrases are meant to make harsh or demanding statements seem more pleasant. Let's take a look at what your boss is REALLY saying to you.

“Please Advise” = “WTF”

“Please advise” is a common way to end emails at many businesses. It’s meant to ask for help or advice on a certain issue, but what the sender is really saying is that they don’t know what the f**k to do.

“Lots Of Moving Parts” = “I Have No Idea What’s Going On”

When asked specifics about a project, many bosses will just say that there are a lot of moving parts making it work instead of actually answering the question. In actuality, the boss has no idea about the specifics.

“Corporate Values” = “My Values”

Some projects or ideas might be terminated or passed up on for not aligning with the “corporate values” of the business. Well, here’s a newsflash: Corporations don’t have values, people do. Your boss is really saying that the idea goes against his personal values.

“Best Practices” = “Strict Rules”

Best practices are basically guidelines that have been found to work well for specific situations. While being told to adhere to the best practices doesn’t sound like a demand, your boss is really telling you to strictly follow them to the letter.

“Think Outside The Box” = “Your Ideas Suck”

After pitching a few ideas, your boss might tell you to “think outside the box.” Basically, he or she thinks that all your ideas are boring or vanilla.

“Synergy” = “I’m Pretending I Care About Morale”

One of the most used, and ridiculed, buzzwords in business is synergy. It’s one of those nebulous words that executives like to throw around. They’ll often say they want to promote synergy, which makes them sound like they care about their employees working together and getting along.

“Put A Pin In It” = “We’re Never Going To Talk About This”

You’ve probably heard someone say that you should put a pin in it in response to an issue that they don’t want to or don’t have time to address at the time. The phrase is supposed to mean that you two can talk about the issue in depth later, but it really just means that the person never wants to discuss it.

“Keep Me In The Loop” = “Tell Me When This Is Done”

When assigning a project, some bosses will add that they want to be kept in the loop as the work moves forward. But if you try to actually keep them posted on every minor update, they’ll be annoyed. All they really want to know is when it’s done.

“Pivot” = “We Messed Up”

Pivoting is a term used in business to describe a fundamental shift in the focus of a project. Basically, it’s a euphemism bosses will use instead of admitting that their plans failed.

“Hit The Ground Running” = “Drop Whatever Else You’re Doing”

If your boss tells you that you should hit the ground running on a project, it basically means that you should be focusing only on that project.

“Don’t Reinvent The Wheel” = “Just Do It Fast”

You’ve probably heard this phrase from your boss after listing numerous ideas or details about a project. Basically, this clichéd response really means that your boss wants the job done fast, and doesn’t care too much about the logistics.

“Be A Team Player” = “Stop Complaining”

You’ve definitely heard the phrase “be a team player” before. Your boss might have used it on you after telling you to do something you don’t want to do.

“Look At The Big Picture” = “Stop Criticizing The Details”

Bosses love to talk about the big picture, especially when employees bring up complications in the details. It’s basically another way of turning the conversation back to comfortable ideas instead of the nitty-gritty hard work.

“Let’s Touch Base On This” = “You Messed Something Up”

Supervisors don’t just meet up or talk to you, instead they like to touch base. You know if you’re hearing this that you did something wrong, and you’re about to hear about it. Either that or you’re about to get additional work.

“What’s On Your Plate?” = “I’m Giving You More Work”

You know when your boss asks you what you have on your plate, that he or she is about to fill it up even more, no matter how full it already is. At the corporate buffet, your plate is never full enough.