Headwinds
HED-windznoun
What it means
External conditions blamed for internal failure, cited in the same deck that claims personal credit for everything that went right.
What it actually means
It is the economy's fault, never ours.
How it is used in a sentence
"We delivered solid results despite significant macro headwinds."
Filed under
Business Bafflegab — Language engineered so that nothing is ever anyone’s fault and no decision is ever final.
Euphemism — The phrase hides something specific. We decode it.
Related entries
Learnings
Business BafflegabLUR-ningznounEuphemism
The plural of mistakes, used by people who are not permitted to say mistakes.
Real meaningWe failed and have prepared a slide.
Optics
Business BafflegabOP-tiksnounEuphemism
The branch of corporate philosophy concerned not with whether a decision is wrong, but with how it will read in a screenshot.
Real meaningWe are not asking whether it is right. We are asking how it will look.