What you'll be hearing in meetings by Q3, whether you want to or not.
Each year, we survey over 5,000 executives, operators, and "individual contributors" across a range of industries to identify the language trends shaping how businesses talk about themselves.
This year, we surveyed two people. One was a client. The other was someone we overheard at an airport Chili's.
The methodology was less rigorous, but the findings were consistent.
What follows is a field guide to the phrases emerging in conference rooms, Slack channels, and offsite agendas. Some are new. Some are mutations of things we've been saying for decades. All of them are inevitable.
"The definition of insanity..."
Evolved from: Misattributed Einstein quote (1980s–forever)
The phrase about doing the same thing and expecting different results has been repeated in meetings for over two decades. By its own logic, continuing to say it is insane. It has no verified origin, has never changed anyone's behavior, and is often delivered as if the speaker just thought of it. We expect it to be said at least three more times this quarter.
"Drag and drop to the trash"
Evolved from: "Double-click on that" (2010s)
"Double-click" meant go deeper. This means we're done. Used to kill an idea politely and permanently, without the pretense of tabling it. Often accompanied by a hand gesture. Replaces "let's put a pin in it" for people who've accepted the pin was never coming out.
"Re-box it"
Evolved from: "Think outside the box" (1990s)
The box was abandoned. We wandered. It didn't help. "Re-box it" is the permission to return to the obvious solution after the innovative approach failed. Used most often by people who were outside the box for three quarters and have nothing to show for it.
"Pre-align"
Evolved from: "Alignment" (2010s)
Alignment required meetings. Meetings required agendas. Agendas required prep. Now we meet before the meeting to align on what alignment means. Some companies are already pre-aligning the pre-align. No one has yet reached alignment.
"I propose we skip to the end by executing a reverse pivot."
"Reverse pivot"
Evolved from: "Pivot" (2010s startup era)
Two uses are emerging. The first: when the pivot didn't work, and the company quietly returns to its original strategy, framed as forward progress. Often accompanied by "the market has matured" or "we were early."
The second, more advanced use: skipping the pivot entirely. Why go through the pain of changing direction, failing, and returning — when you could just stay where you are and call it a reverse pivot? Saves six months. Same outcome.
"Disruptive disruption"
Evolved from: "Disruption" (2000s)
Disruption has been disrupted. The companies that broke things now need to break the way they broke things. It sounds meaningless, and it mostly is, but that won't stop it from appearing in keynotes. Someone will say it with complete sincerity before Q2.
"Microwave the leftovers"
Evolved from: "Low-hanging fruit" (1990s)
The fruit was always a lie. It was never that low, and someone still had to climb. Microwaving the leftovers is the honest version — just reheat something that already worked. The old campaign. The 2019 deck. The landing page no one remembered we had. No innovation. No strategy. Just 90 seconds on high and you're done.
"Look at the pool"
Evolved from: "Deep dive" (2000s)
We're not diving. We're not dipping. We're just acknowledging the pool exists. Used when someone asks for a deep dive but there's no time, budget, or interest. "We took a look at the pool" is technically true and commits to nothing. Can be delivered in a single sentence during a standup. Often satisfies the request entirely.
"Vibe audit"
Evolved from: "Pulse check"
"Temperature check" - Assessing team morale without directly asking anyone how they're doing. Often conducted via emoji reaction in Slack. A vibe audit can be passed with three or more non-sarcastic thumbs-up.
"Reframe the win"
Evolved from: "Move the needle" (1990s)
The needle didn't move. The win is being reframed. Used when results were bad but someone found a metric that looks okay. Common in board prep, quarterly reviews, and any meeting where the original goal has been quietly forgotten.
Methodology
Respondents were not compensated, though one was given a coffee. Margin of error is unknowable. All findings should be taken seriously, but not literally.
