Monday 26 August 2013

A world full of Jargon

Out of the many things that fascinate me about the world of business, usage of Jargon is one thing that takes a toll on me. It's not about the very existence of it, but my concern lies in the misuse of it. 

3 reasons why I strongly believe Jargon are a total no-no. 



1) The Vision and Mission statement mania: I do not know if it is just me, but I somehow land up not understanding the vision and mission statements of most companies. I'd rather skip it than try and understand something that totally makes me feel like a foreigner there! If mission and vision are things so vital for a company, why is it deliberately sentenced so against normal understanding? 

2) The Unwanted abbreviations: "The best way to get our customers to talk in this situation is by using the FGD mechanism", said my fellow student. FGD!? Oh a focus group discussion. right! Sorry that didn't strike me soon and certainly disrupted my flow of concentration. Now my question is,  how much time and energy did we actually save up by making an abbreviation of an otherwise easy to understand term? How much do I approve of the very "Focus Group Discussion" term will be a story I will save for another day.

3) If you can't convince, confuse : Sometimes people play around with jargon when they clearly cannot prove themselves. I once happened to read an undergrad college's educational brochure that says "We offer contemporary globally acceptable and holistic curriculum" There was another college that said, "We offer World class holistic global education" Ok! Now I don't really know or want to know how they differ from one one another. This is what I personally call a forceful usage of Jargon! 

Scientists say we practically use only 1% of our brain. I opine that it's not because we don't attempt to use the rest of it, but because half the things that interest us in the world are covered up under the necessity to understand the veil over them- the Jargon. Our interest soon dissolves much before we reach anywhere close to it. 

People say "It's easy, it's not Rocket Science" If not for the horrifying jargon around us, may be someday many of us will attempt to even understand Rocket science too!

Tuesday 20 August 2013

ShyCart.com - for all the products you shy away from


Despite all the open-minded talks and broad minded thinking, we ought to confess that there are many products even today that we shy away from buying/asking for. We either have representatives sent to ask for them or have the medical store guy deliver it straight to us. Well, this will no more be a hassle because there is a new startup out there addressing this gap. It is called "ShyCart.com"



ShyCart is an online store for both men and women (though it is majorly inclined towards the female needs) selling products which are often embarrassing to purchase in person. They cater to the needs of women of various age groups. Also, ShyCart mainly focuses on products that are not readily available in general stores near us. Through this site, all you have to do  is Order and pay for your stuff online and they will deliver your products to you in discrete packing.

Apart from the basic shopping facility, they have also provided some interesting additional services. like "Ask the Doctor" and the "Tips" section- which is structured more like an FAQ section, answering some essential questions pertaining to both men and women. 

In my opinion,  this is an excellent initiative because this site addresses a gap that was existent for a very long time in our society. It eases our job, making our secret purchases even more convenient and easily-accessible from anywhere and everywhere. 

Here's the link to its site: http://shycart.com/

Thursday 15 August 2013

Email = Google or Yahoo ?

If that's your notion as of today, you're so not aware of all the awesome features other mail service providers out there are offering. All the mail servers you must have heard thus far may have included Gmail (which has more or less become synonymous with the very term e-mail), Yahoo mail, Hotmail, Rediff mail and a few others that offer closely similar services. But let me tell you about a very interesting e-mail provider called BigString.

 Big String: 





How many times does it happen that we badly regret having sent a mail in anger and disgust and just wish we could take it back? Often right? How cool would it be to have an email that you can edit, delete or even cooler; self-destruct itself after sending ? It not just happens with James Bond. Now, it's even possible with you. Bigstring let's you do that!

Some cool features of BigString include:

1) It lets you recall, edit or delete the email sent by you even after the mail has been opened by the receiver

2) You can track the number of times your email had been opened by the recipient

3) You can make arrangements for your mail to be self-destructed after a certain time limit

4) You can send password protected emails ; a password that only you and your recipient   can share

5) You can also send in mails that cannot be forwarded or printed

Interesting huh? Well, though Bigstring has its own pitfalls the services it offers are truly remarkable and it is an info worth sharing around!

P.S: Currently the site has gone offline but it's worth a shot once the site is up! 

Thursday 1 August 2013

How Popcorn joined the movie business


How often does it happen that we go to the movies and not buy popcorn? not very often right? Have you ever wondered how pop corn had become an inevitable part of the theatres?  I too did not until one of my professors mentioned it in class. So, i decided this would turn out to be a pretty interesting story to both know and tell. So, here it goes...

Even before pop corn was seen as a snack, it was used in making small garlands that women wore around their head when dancing during the 16th century. Eventually, it was introduced as a snack that was sold in carnivals and public fairs. The world's first portable popcorn machine was invented in 1885. Ever since, people began setting up popcorn shops of their own and since it was as cheap as 5 cents a bag, sales began to sore high. 

One great coincidence that happened was the inception of Nickelodeon's theatres that attracted huge crowds, so much so that the popcorn vendors found this place a lucrative one to sell their popcorn (of course outside the theatre) However, the theatre owners were annoyed by the smell that these vending machines left behind after use.

Then, there came the Great Depression and movie sales began to plummet. But, popcorn sales remained untouched. So, owners of movie theaters had no choice but to invite the smell inside the theatre that once seemed so annoying to them. That's when the theatre owners decided to setup their own popcorn vending machines inside the theatres so as to attract people. This worked well for them and that's precisely how popcorn entered the movie theatres.  




Two interesting events took place during this time. One being the advent of Television that massively hit the big guys' business, i..e. the Movie Theatres. Secondly, due to the prevailing conditions during the World War II, sugar distribution began to drop. So, availability of candy had become scarce. This further boosted the sales of popcorn giving it the everlasting position in the theatres that it still enjoys till date. 

Info source: Internet