31 Weird Phrases We Use in Our Business
I was so surprised by the cool introduction that Elisa helped to make for our 100th podcast episode. She combined a bunch of funny outtakes from our past episodes. Listening to the intro made me realize we’ve developed our own lingo over the last few years.
In this post I’ll outline some terms that are often used in our business and immediate group of entrepreneurial contacts, including members of the DC, listeners to the podcast, and folks we hang with here in Asia.
I enjoy finding fresh ways to say stuff, even when they often don’t work out as planned. I’m sure I stole most of these terms from other people. If you like any of these, I invite you to do the same. Some are unique, some, not so much.
If you have any cool words or phrases that you love to use in your business, I’d love to hear them.
Bench pressing – building every single functional area of a a new revenue stream in a short amount of time– by yourself.
Cambodia cash – a more precise definition of “passive income,” residual income from web properties that doesn’t require phone support or synchronous customer service.
“There’s no margin in it” – Used more broadly in personal situations, means “it’s not worth it.”
“GTDin it” – A reference to Getting Things Done, the most important productivity book I’ve read so far.
Delegate or delete – an aggressive approach to GTD principles where a creative entrepreneur either forwards inbox tasks onto a team member, or deletes the email altogether.
Exit velocity – The collective sum of resources, cash, experience, and traction that an entrepreneur has when they quit their job. A single guy who has never had a job who moves to Thailand to build Adsense sites has a low exit velocity, whereas former executives with industry experience bootstrapping a software business would have a high exit velocity.
Legal drug money – profits created from mundane high-margin products that are relatively easy to source, produce, or create. Software tools, ebooks, financial products, etc.
Balla – n. one who displays extraordinary entrepreneurial prowess. adj. Very cool, admirable.
“Entrepreneur” – anyone with a website.
Boss socks – awesome or great.
Baselining – Reducing your expenses as low as possible to increase your runway.
Runway – How long you can afford to live without having to get a job.
Chops index – how talented of an entrepreneur others perceive you to be.
Kids – employees who are younger than you.
The silent majority – The 99% of the consumers of your content or products who never present themselves to you via Facebook, Twitter, email, telephone, or the comments section of your blog.
Biznass – business.
Gas (also: “gasin’ it) – “give a shit.” To “gas it” is apply yourself with extreme focus on a task. (Also: grind, jam, bang).
DCer – An active member of the Dynamite Circle forum.
“Noted with thanks!” – A uniquely Chinese (and often parodied) way to express that you’ve received an email.
Bustin’ a shin – Not fully committing to an action or a decision. “I busted a shin on that last sales letter, I should have made it longer.”
Yeah buddy – A way to agree with gusto.
Half stack – A mediocre employee with no vision or proactive attitude.
The 1000 day principle – The business theory that suggests it will take 1000 days from when you issue your first invoice to when your bootstrapped start-up will replace a professional level salary.
Geeks on the beach – codename for any entrepreneurial meet-up in Puerto Galera, Philippines.
A retail blog vs. a wholesale blog – This distinction can apply to podcasts, bands, authors, and a lot more. “Wholesale” indicates that advanced level consumers, industry insiders, or other serious practitioners follow the content/personality etc. “Retail” content generally has more mass appeal. The Lifestyle Business Podcast, as an example, was always intended to be a “wholesale” blog. We wanted to speak to our peers, not “teach people the way!” The Pixies are a famous wholesale band (other band leaders listened to them for ideas), whereas Nirvana was a more retail effort.
Derps – hapless entrepreneurs, contractors, or employees.
The Internet marketing vortex – the trap many marketers get into, making money by teaching people how to make money. Few survive.
EOM – end of message. Used in the subject line of emails that have no body text.
“Thanks in advance” – a universally douchey and presumptuous tactic used in email by people with boring corporate jobs.
Got any other fun ones?
Happy hustlin’,
Dan