A recent Her World article capture the cringe-worthy reality of Singapore’s corporate lingo culture through the lens of a former office worker turned freelancer. The article is damn hilarious and I can relate to it! 😂
“Please revert” and “Do the needful”
Reading this article, I couldn’t help but nod along. I’ve been in those meetings where buzzwords fly like confetti, and you’re left wondering if anyone knows what’s actually being said. I'm annoyed by how people in Singapore’s corporate world misuse the word “revert.” It’s a uniquely Singaporean quirk that drives me up the wall. People say, “Please revert to me by EOD,” when they mean “Please reply to me by the end of the day.” Argh! “Revert” means to return to a previous state, like reverting to an old software version, not sending an email response. This misuse is so common in Singapore’s offices that it’s practically a national pastime, but it makes me cringe every time. Just say “reply” or “get back to me”—it’s not that hard!
“Let’s leverage our existing resources”
When I hear “leverage existing resources,” it feels like a polite way of saying, “Do more with less, and don’t complain.” The expectation to “leverage” what we have—our time, skills, and tools—means working late nights and weekends to meet deadlines. The article’s call to ditch buzzwords speaks to me on a deeper level. Jargon like “leverage” obscures the need for real solutions, like hiring more staff or streamlining projects.
“Let’s leverage our existing resources”
When I hear “leverage existing resources,” it feels like a polite way of saying, “Do more with less, and don’t complain.” The expectation to “leverage” what we have—our time, skills, and tools—means working late nights and weekends to meet deadlines. The article’s call to ditch buzzwords speaks to me on a deeper level. Jargon like “leverage” obscures the need for real solutions, like hiring more staff or streamlining projects.
“Do You Have More Bandwidth?”
Then there’s “Do you have more bandwidth?”—a phrase that translates to: “Can you take on more work with the same pay, time, and mental capacity?”. This buzzword perfectly captures my current overload. Every time I hear it, it’s another task piled onto an already full plate, with no extra resources to make it manageable. It’s the same pressure the article’s author faced—constantly expected to do more.
The author recounts her time in Singapore’s high-pressure offices, where saying “can” was the only way to survive, even when swamped. She highlight how buzzwords like “synergise” or “deep dive” are used to sound professional but often muddle communication. Escaping to freelancing, she now revel in a jargon-free life, working in pajamas far from Zoom calls and “low-hanging fruit.”