"I'm reaching out to you," he explained before hinting around about the deal.

"We plan on deep diving that issue," she said.  "Let's tee all those things up for discussion."  But later in the conversation, I swear she offered to "tease" something up.

I've written about worthless business jargon on this site more frequently than perhaps any other topic except shoe shining.  I often wonder about the origins of the jargon.  Who first offered to "top spin" an issue back in to another's "court"?  Who first heard a sales objection and decided to "flip that burger over and look at the other side"?  What microbiologist walked into a sales meeting and decided that the reports would have better granularity?  That the database would be more robust?  Who decided that a human being would have the occupation of "work stream leader" or "task master"?  Sadly, I am not exaggerating.

But someone started and then it was copied.  It was copied and copied and then became overused.  And then became bastardized.  The novel metaphor became the overused and devalued throwaway line.

Like the cargo cults of the post World War II Pacific region.  During the war, these Pacific island tribes watched supplies ship in on makeshift airstrips built by developed countries.  They watched the wealthy countries deliver food, clothing and ammunition to troops.  And when the troops left and the tribes wanted stuff delivered, they built landing strips and towers because that was what brought the supplies before.  Only the goods never came.

Business jargon can be clever and even entertaining but it rarely communicates; instead it too often skirts the real issues.  It mimics the landing strips and towers instead of producing real commerce.

The really good sales people speak clearly.  They explain, they inform, they sell and they ask for the business.  The good managers are . . .managers.  They demonstrate and motivate and talk to people.  In English.  They don't "reach out", they ask or tell.  They don't mimic, they innovate.  Try it.