
The Power of a Common Language 61
slipped it into my conversation, mentioning it a couple of times. No
one asked me what it was. I guess no one wanted to admit to not being
an “insider.” But during the next break, someone walked up to me and
inquired sheepishly about the acronym. He was sure he had heard it
before, but just couldn’t remember it!
While acronyms can be amusing—and sometimes downright funny—
they also serve a (possibly unintended) purpose. Organizations often
develop a sense of “proprietary ownership” of their acronyms, and this
helps create a unied sense of community. Pretty much the same way
that every generation develops its ...