Alright! We have begun a fun trend.
Yesterday, we did the business version of a game I play with my four-year-old, Tell Me Your Favorites.
Now I’d like to turn the table and discuss the things you hate.
Maybe hate is a strong word, but annoying or irritating.
But still…things that are not your favorites, if only to spare others from experiencing the same pain.
Like yesterday, I asked my team to participate and, at the end, I’ll ask you to leave your answers in the comments.
Let’s play, Tell Us Your Least Favorites!
What is the Worst Movie You’ve Ever Seen?
It’s probably not the worst movie I’ve ever seen, but we watched Logan a couple of months ago and it was VIOLENT.
Definitely the most violent movie I’ve ever seen—and I’ve seen a lot.
I had to watch it with my eyes closed for more than half.
I don’t really need to see claws ripping off someone’s head.
You can leave it to my imagination.
My team added:
- Grease 2
- Scary Movie
- Eyes Wide Shut
- The Postman
- Tarzan the Ape Man
- The Nightmare Before Christmas
What is the Worst Book You’ve Ever Read?
I did not like The Martian.
It wasn’t the story—that was great, and I loved the movie—but the writing was horrendous.
I spent the entire time rewriting it in my head.
So, it took 10 times longer than normal to read it and I was annoyed.
If you can get past that—or if you’re not as snooty as me—you will love it.
My team added:
- S
- Eat Pray Love
- Girl on the Train
- Fifty Shades of Grey (I second this…and yet, I read all three)
- Fight Club
There also are several people on my team who just stop reading if they don’t like a book.
Clearly they are smarter than me.
I spend more time with a terrible book, rewriting it in my head.
Which Productivity Tool Does Everyone Love, But You Hate?
I hate Trello and I hate Asana.
We tried Asana a couple of years ago and I just could not bring myself to use it.
And, how can I ask my team to use something if I refuse to use it?
(We switched to Basecamp.)
I also tried Trello. I really, really tried. But it does not fit the way my brain works.
(Now I use Wunderlist.)
My team added:
- Outlook
- Gmail
- Evernote (several votes on this one)
- Multi-tasking
I laughed out loud at the first two answers. I mean, really.
What is a Buzzword You Want to Die?
I was in a meeting the other day and the client said, “If I never hear the phrase ‘human capital’ again, I will be happy.”
Amen, brother. Amen.
For me, it’s c-suite.
I used to use it all the time…until a USA Today reporter asked me what it meant.
I figured if she didn’t know what it meant, there are others.
And so I stopped using it.
My team added:
- Viral marketing
- Viral anything
- Guru
- Absolutely! I am really tired of people answering everything with “Absolutely!” Stop it, people. You don’t have to respond to everything with “Absolutely!”
- “At the end of the day”
- “It is what it is”
- “Six of one, half dozen of another”
- Authentic
- Genuine
- The misuse of utilization and utilize
What is Your Biggest Pet Peeve?
I have two:
- I hate, hate, hate it when someone asks for your advice because of your expertise and then gives you every reason in the book it won’t work. Great. Don’t do it. But also don’t ask for my advice.
- I also hate the phrase “we’ve got.” It’s not “we have got”…it’s “we have.” Whenever someone says that—and it’s prevalent in everyday language, headlines, research, and education—it’s like fingernails on a chalkboard.
My team added:
- White socks with black shoes
- Me, me, me conversations
- Stupid people
- Lazy people
- Socks worn with sandals (we have something about shoes and socks around here)
- People who don’t put the dumbbells back in chronological order at the gym (bet you can guess who said that)
What is the Worst Email Automation “Trick” You’ve Seen?
For some reason, someone, somewhere has advised marketers to use this email scenario:
- Cold email someone your sales pitch.
- When they don’t answer, send them another email along the lines of, “I’m sorry you weren’t able to make our meeting. Can we reschedule?” (There was no original email.)
- When they don’t answer that, send them another email along the lines of, “If you’re not the right person in your organization, can you point me to someone else?”
- When they don’t answer that, send them the When Harry Met Sally approach: “The fact that you’re not answering leads me to believe you’re either (a) Not at home, (b) Home, but don’t want to talk to me, or (c) Home, desperately want to talk to me, but trapped under something heavy. If it’s either (a) or (c), please call me back.”
- And then the creme de la creme…when they don’t answer that, call them names or become aggressive and rude. Because that’s clearly a great sales technique.
I do not know why marketers use this approach. Maybe it does work, but I find it abhorrent.
My team added:
- HubSpot asking me to pay $3K to take advantage of their tools.
- Before you check out, here is a fantastic opportunity! Pay xxx more and get…
- The fake personalized invite, which happens a lot in politics
Several people said they just ignore them. Again, smarter than me.
Tell Us Your Least Favorites
Now it’s your turn!
We’d love to hear your least favorites in the comments here.
To make it easy, here are the questions:
- What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen?
- What is the worst book you’ve ever read?
- Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate?
- What is a buzzword you want to die?
- What is your biggest pet peeve?
- What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen?
Misery loves company…let’s hear ’em!
I’m just happy you didn’t ask “what was the biggest waste of time among your Netflix binge choices?”.
I feel silly being one of the only people who doesn’t have or use Netflix. What am I missing?
Not a lot any more they cancelled all the great shows! :/
Paula doesn’t either … and it drives me crazy.
At least she doesn’t drink boxed wine!
UMMMMM. (My lips are sealed on that one. Slips away quietly……)
Master of None is my current favorite on Netflix. It’s quirky and hilarious.
Mr. D just finished that and really liked it.
Nothing. It’s just that Gini judges those of us who don’t have it. Or, to be specific, those of us who for YEARS have said, “oh I’ll binge watch SOMETHING so I can converse about binge-watching.”
Worst movie: Biodome (although it’s a Pauly Shore movie, so we should’ve known better anyway.
Worst book: This is controversial, but One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. I know everyone loves it, but I’m not down with the magical realism. Nope.
Productivity tool: I never met a productivity tool I didn’t like. Which makes me unproductive at times.
Buzzword I want to die: Sign me up for “at the end of the day” in the firing squad, as well as “[insert noun] is king/queen/princess/duke.” Also, not a buzzword per se, but I don’t trust people who insert “candidly” into every sentence. Makes me think they’re not being honest.
Biggest pet peeve: People who don’t wring out the sponge after they use it in the kitchen sink. Also, incorrect usage of “it’s” and “its.” It’s an epidemic bigger than the plague, and I see it in print, on billboards, everywhere, all the time. Makes me NUTS.
Worst email automation “trick”: We’ve changed our company name a couple of times over the last 20 years, and I still get emails to our original name. Then I get annoyed followup emails wondering why I don’t want to work with someone who can’t be bothered to find out our actual name.
Phew, I feel better getting that all off my chest. Thanks guys!
HAHAHAHAH! We had a client who used “candidly” all the time. It became a game to sit in meetings with her and mark down how many times she said it. The record? 35 times in one hour.
Wow. I’d have to fire the client (or I’d get fired for snickering).
I finally said something to her about it. It didn’t go over very well (hence, former client).
1.What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen? Maybe not the *worst* but I didn’t see the appeal or laugh as hard as anyone else: Spy.
2.What is the worst book you’ve ever read? Again, possibly not the *worst* but it took me YEARS to get through it and I did so mainly to be able to relate to the cultural references: Pride and Prejudice
3.Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate? Like a few others, I tried Evernote and have yet to get the hang of it. I also have a *few* notes for the Basecamp 3 designers (after having to switch from BC 2)
4.What is a buzzword you want to die? There are SO many. My current least fave is “unpack” – can we not simply “explain” or “analyze” or “discuss”?
5.What is your biggest pet peeve? I know I am going to have to give this one up because it is becoming ubiquitous, but starting consecutive sentences with “so” AND ending consecutive statements with reflexive “right?” statements.
6.What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen? Some of them are just getting downright attacking: “You obviously missed my last email.” ETC. And it’s not email automation (although it can lead to automated emails) someone (so let it be me) needs to squeeze in another “no” vote for auto DMs on Twitter.
Super good add with the auto DMs on Twitter. I unfollow people who do that.
I have truly only had one good one in all these years on Twitter. It was from @sree —- and it led to a little Google doc where you talk about yourself —- and then he follows up personally! He redeemed his auto DM with that, in my eyes!
That’s a REALLY interesting idea.
Worst movie? One that sticks in my head from ages ago is a movie called ‘Friends with Money’… there was just NO story!
Worst book? Add me to the ‘Fifty Shades of Grey yet still read all three’ list!
Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate? Evernote. Just don’t get it!
What is a buzzword you want to die? Maybe not a buzzword exactly, but if someone emails saying they are “touching base”…. eugh!
What is your biggest pet peeve? Maybe not my biggest pet peeve (I can’t actually think right now) but the dumbbells one did make me laugh! HOW is it so hard for some people!
What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen? Salesy emails that haven’t been researched properly. I recently recieved one saying “as the CEO of your company…” – I’m not even close!
Brilliant post guys, quite therapeutic really!
“As the CEO of your company.” LOL!! Oh, people. I mean, really.
Movie: Reservois Dogs – it’s the violence – I’ve tried to watch it 3 times and can’t get past the ear scene.
Book: it’s a tie between Eat Pray Love and Fifty Shades of Gray – although I did keep going and managed to get through both – but refuse to watch the movies! Take THAT Hollywood!
Productivity Tool: have not fully embraced Slack yet – use it for 2 communities, but am not enamoured
Buzzword: Out of the Box – old, overused, practically meaningless in this day and age
Pet Peeve: the word (not really a word) irregardless – definitely NOT A WORD!
Email automation “trick”: definitely the “sorry you missed our meeting” ploy – I didn’t MISS it! We never actually had one scheduled!
Phew! I didn’t realize I had that much pent-up angst! I feel better now. Thanks, Gini!
Bahahahahaah! I had a colleague who used “irregardless” all the time and I wanted to punch her in the face every time she said it.
That is interesting regarding “irregardless” — I feel the same way. Yet a Ph.D. English professor (whose blog I read, writewithjean.com) has challenged me to call such words “Non-standard words”.
Isn’t that kind of like calling a bicycle a “non-standard motorcycle”?
LOL!
All of you in this thread, I recommend Words on the Move: Why English Won’t–and Can’t–Sit Still (Like, Literally) <<– sorry Laura! (by John McWhorter)
I’m too much of a snob. I appreciate that a Ph.D. English professor would like us to expand our language, but I cannot use non-existent (or non-standard) words.
What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen?
There’s a rare, low-budget version of War of the Worlds which is about 3.5 hours long and we’ve tried to watch it several times, can never get past the hour mark. It’s atrocious, but hilarious at the same time.
What is the worst book you’ve ever read?
Fifty Shades of Grey – never mind anything else the quality of the writing is poor, lacks finesse, structure, good characterisation, a soul…..
Also Revolutionary Road, why the hell is it considered a modern American classic? I am never getting that time back.
Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate?
Not sure I hate much but never really gelled with Evernote
What is a buzzword you want to die?
All of them. Seriously, ‘reaching out’, but also seriously, all of them.
What is your biggest pet peeve?
Poor shared office kitchen etiquette. We have a shared kitchen where our office is, one company has half the floor and so far I’ve lost a bag of sugar, cutlery, teabags (this one almost caused all out war) and they keep using our crockery. So. Rude.
What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen?
Not so much a trick, but feigning ignorance on who had opted in when the company knew better. Highly unprofessional.
These are so great…we could definitely live together. We hate the same things.
Worst movie – Mad Max Fury Road. How? How did that get nominated for Best Picture?
Worst book – Hearts In Atlantis, which is hard for me to admit, because I love Stephen King
Buzzword I want to see go away – It is what it is. Such a jerk thing to say. It admits that your idea or product stinks, but too bad for you.
Biggest pet peeve – Only calling me when you want something. OR Ditching plans you made with me because something better came along.
Worst email automation – When companies get a too familiar with me or send me how they want me to blog for XYZ company would fit so nicely in my blog. Go away!
OMG! YES on that movie! I hated it. HATED.
Frank made me go. That’s what happens when he picks the movie.
LEAST FAVORITE MOVIE; My least favorite movie of this century, and the only movie I’ve ever seriously contemplated walking out of in mid-showing was La La Land. It was a worn-out predictable plot, the dialogue was unimaginative and unengaging, the chemistry between the cast was non-existent. The last 20 minutes was the only part worth watching, but suffering through the 1 hour and 48 minutes prior to that was definitely not worth one good song and one good video montage.
I’ve never been to a movie that failed to live up to its hype more than La La Land and I couldn’t have been more perplexed by the accolades it received. I think La La Land is a shining example of why SPIN SUCKS. 🙂
LOL!! And La La Land is one of my most favorites. I loved it, but I know you’re not alone in hating it. I think I loved it because I saw it before all the hype. I kind of love our differences.
Worst Movie: So many to choose from… Probably The Disappointments Room with Kate Beckinsale. The room wasn’t disappointing… the entire plot was disappointing.
Worst Book: Universal Harvester… It was getting all these good reviews and the plot summary sounded fantastic and then when I read it and finished it I became Bradley Cooper in Silver Linings Playlist throwing that book out the window. It literally made me angry.
Productivity Tool: Hate is a strong word but I’m not a fan of Asana. I feel like a lot of stuff gets piled up there and just sort of sit…
Buzzword: Not even remotely work-related but I cannot stand when people say they’re “lit.” Teens use it in place of the word “crazy” now and when I was growing up…that is not what that meant… AT ALL. So, it drives me insane.
Biggest Pet Peeve: So many to choose from! I’m generally annoyed with everyone and everything like a grumpy, old lady, but today I’ll go with using #blessed in everything they ever post online.
“I got extra guac at Chipotle today! #blessed”
“My manicure has lasted way longer than expected! #blessed”
Also, slow drivers in the left hand lane… I go into a rage blackout.
Worst Email Automation Trick: The old “Just in case you didn’t see my first email, I’m checking back in” trick. Listen, I got your email and I purposely didn’t reply to it. Beat it.
(Man, this post makes me sound really mean…)
Yeah, “lit” meant something much different when we were kids. But, hey! You commented two days in a row. #blessed
What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen?
Not the worst, but the one that sticks out at the moment is…
but it was one of those period dramas on like Hallmark…I was wandering through when I was visiting my parents and the channel was one, and I started just laughing at how poorly acted it was. Not to mention historically inaccurate; the costumes were a terrible mishmash of periods (at least they stayed between 1800 and 1920), the hair was wrong (adult women running around town with their hair down?), and I’d never seen such a pristine frontier town in my life…
What is the worst book you’ve ever read?
Sorry but Charles Frazier’s _Cold Mountain_…i felt like it was so self-consciously “high art” and elevated language and dense, lyrical, poetic writing…
Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate?
N/A
What is a buzzword you want to die?
Like most…all of them…but ones that come to mind are “leverage,” “all on the same page,” “come together in a time of crisis”…
What is your biggest pet peeve?
Work related (and maybe just in real life): people that get away with being rude and nasty. Like the customer who actually is in the wrong but gets away with returning an item they ruined or gets away with getting a free drink at coffee-shop just because they pulled a fit and the manager just wanted them to go away. (I get the impulse and I even get the fear that if they complain to corporate, corporate will just take their side, but it frustrates me to watch it happen and also to be on the service side and just have to take it anyway.)
What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen?
Well, I downloaded a white paper the other day, and I’ve received at least an email a day as “follow-up”….I haven’t even had a chance to read that white paper yet. And I am hoping this is email automation and the person is not really literally sending me the follow-up email every day themselves…because that sounds even more unrewarding!
Fun post! Hope you all have a great Fourth of July Weekend.
I seriously laughed out loud at your description of the Hallmark movie and “at least they stayed between 1800 and 1920.” LOL!!
1. Worst Movie: Transformers 4. I don’t know why I watched all three hours of that.
2. The Secret Agent by Joseph Conrad. It’s dense, hard to follow, and doesn’t have nearly the same gravitas of Heart of Darkness. I had to read it for an opera I was premiering.
3. Gmail. It’s great for my personal email, but misery for my work.
4. “Circle back.” – Just say you wanted to check-in.
5. I gotta agree with Whitney below on the #blessed thing.
6. The “Thanks for signing up for our all of our emails for all eternity” when I just spent $5 on a knick knack that was cheaper at your store than everywhere else.
Did you watch the three Transformer movies before it?
1. What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen? Man of Steel 2013, I just hated the Lois character and my constant bitching during the movie spoiled it for my husband. But Sorry Lois never woud have moved on from Superman, she would have waited for him. It is a forever love.
2. What is the worst book you’ve ever read? Ugg I read all of Wicked even though I really didn’t like it but I felt like so many peopled loved it. I also had a hard time with IT. I liked the story but I never understood why it was “so scary” I did read it when I was like 13 so maybe I just didn’t get it.
3. Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate? Evernote. I just have not gotten into it.
4. What is a buzzword you want to die? Synergy and Hopptastic No, not it is not Hopptastic.
5. What is your biggest pet peeve? That women only like fruity or ‘girly’ beers. That women can’t like sours or heaven forbid a good stout. Seriously!? I once had a friend post that she was looking for unique gifts and I suggest a few beer ideas. Someone (a women) posted a reply saying well women don’t like beer and basicaly it was a crappy gift idea. Then she posted on another post about homemade cards and was like ‘tell me more” Well my sister hates cards! so *raspberry on your cards.
Thanks for that. I kinda hate people. I like a person. I just kinda hate people.
6. What is the worst email automation “trick” you’ve seen? I see you have a new website we can do xxx for you. Um thanks but no thanks. Especially when they have spelling errors and the wording is off.
OMG! During that whole movie, I kept saying things like, “She would never wear those shoes in that snow,” “No, she can’t run in those high heels.” I’m with you!
I almsot forgot about that! YES! It was ridiculous.
Worst Movie: The last half of Full Metal Jacket. They should have ended it after the first 45 minutes.
Worst Book: I’m honestly stumped!! So either I don’t read enough (highly likely), or I’m smart enough to stop reading when I realize it sucks.
Hated Productivity Tool: If I’m being totally honest – Slack. I am likely not using it “right” but I’m also not picking up ways to use it better yet and it ends up being more time consuming than helpful.
Worst Buzzword: Circle back.
Biggest Pet Peeve: Passive aggressiveness and pettiness – especially in the workplace. Maybe MOST in the workplace. Although, I would happily workout with whoever has the dumbbell pet peeve … 100%.
Worst Email Automation “Trick”: The “sorry you missed our meeting” emails … Believe me, even if there was the remote possibility that I was interested, I’m not now. And I’m definitely not sorry about “missing” anything. Get out of my inbox.
LOL! I just highlighted “circle back” in an internal document and wrote “MBA jargon.” I’m with you!
I’m afraid I don’t have answers to them all
1. What is the worst movie you’ve ever seen? – American Hustle – I walked out during it, I’ve never done that in a film before.
2.What is the worst book you’ve ever read? Probably 50 Shades. If I had to read the phrase “inner goddess” one more time I thought I’d throw up!
3.Which productivity tool does everyone love, but you hate? Does an Amazon Alexa/dot count? I don’t like Amazon. I don’t like repeating myself. It’s quicker to turn my own lights out.
5.What is your biggest pet peeve? People mixing up generally and genuinely or saying pacific instead of specific.
Happy 4th, Y’all xx
I’m afraid we can no longer be friends if you don’t like Amazon.
Noooo you don’t mean it ?
OK. I don’t mean it.