Are You Still 'Pivoting'? Really?

Lift Your Language

Pivot! It’s another overused ‘go-to’ buzzword among fans of ‘corporate-speak’. It’s boring and predictable but, even worse, it’s used in a way that muddles meaning. 

There is an application of the word that makes sense in the business world and works perfectly well. More on that shortly.

The problem is the way the word has been taken up by the ‘follow the flock’ types, who grasp every possible opportunity to slip the word into a sentence. 

Successful communication involves shared meaning. In approximately 70% of cases where I’ve observed the use of ‘pivot’, the meaning is totally unclear.

When to ‘pivot’ means to go meaninglessly around and around… 

I have in front of me seven examples of where the word was used. I’ll keep the clippings to myself, to protect the guilty, but none had much to do with the real meaning of ‘pivot’.