Acronyms are funny things. Most of ones I know fall under this category – TLA, or the three letter acronym. They have to be used with care as some of them don’t translate well across generations. For example, the simple LOL. My mother, once shown how to send text messages, would close hers off with an LOL. She meant lots of love, but my kids were never sure if she was sending love to them or laughing out loud at them!
In my earlier career I came across the occasional 4 letter acronym and even a 6 lettered one. As a sales rep we had various key deliverables to achieve. Some were up for discussion as they could be localised to our territories. But others were known as a JFDI – Just Flipping (note how polite I’m being) Do It. Such tasks were non-negotiable and non-compliance was not an option… not if you wanted a bonus and a pay rise.
When I left field sales and became a trainer, specialising in IT, I came across the RTFI, which was usually accompanied by PICNIC. Chatting with my IT help desk colleagues was always a source of amusement as invariably the cause of an IT issue reported to them was failure to Read The Flipping Instructions. The diagnosis of PICNIC was noted at the end of the ticket… Problem In Chair Not In Computer!
Now that I’m recently retired I wonder if there are retirement-related acronyms. I’m sure someone with more experience than me will let me know!
Thanks to Linda G Hill for hosting this fun weekend prompt. Click here to pay a visit and say Hi.
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