WOW Word of the Week: Persiflage

Summary:  Meander through my musings to learn a holiday word about, well, words...

This week is like a personal springtime. I'm feeling myself slowly coming back to life like a seedling unfurling into a flower.

Last week, after trekking around the Midwest the week before to spend the Thanksgiving holiday with family, I found myself with some unwelcome symptoms: a fever (most dreaded), aches, chills, congestion and worst of all a sore throat—something no communications coach ever wants, especially going into a full week of coaching sessions. I tried to offer phone sessions to my clients to keep the germs to myself and the communication rolling, but it was murder on my voice and throat. I scrapped that short-lived solution and went to the doctor. Diagnosis: strep throat.

My holiday vacation was suddenly extended by way of infection. And my intent to blog was prolonged as I spent most days rescheduling clients from the couch.

Does all this sickness talk seem like persiflage to you? If so, I made my point: Traveling the day before Thanksgiving, my husband and I listened to old recordings of Jean Shepherd's radio show—Shepherd of "A Christmas Story" fame. What a writer! Of the many vocabulary words to choose from in his rhetorical radio ramblings, the one that caught my attention the most was the word about words ... specifically about filler words that mean little and say lots, persiflage.

It's defined as frivolous banter. Shepherd's usage was "little brother persiflage" to describe his brother's dinner conversation; not as important as his own childhood dialogue on what he wanted for Christmas.
 
Look up persiflage here. And pardon mine, please. Let's blame it on the lingering infection.

© KiKi Productions, Inc. 2012

Just for Fun: Halloween Word Games

Halloween may be over, but that freshly rumpled costume & the bags of unopened candy are still begging for your attention. With the holiday falling mid-week this year, some people are even choosing to extend the spooky activities into this weekend.

Just for fun, check out this list of other lists, tallying a great number of Halloween-related vocabulary. Although many of the links below are geared toward elementary school teachers, you can use the games to move beyond the usual cliches like "ghoul," "goblin" and "witch." Try more grown-up goodies like "dragoon," "despotize" and "horripilation." (Look them up here.)

And then visit the sites below to make your own crossword puzzles, word find games and more:

Grammar.yourdictionary.com/games-puzzles-and-worksheets/halloween-word-games.html

Puzzles.about.com/od/holidaypuzzlesforkids/a/HalloweenKids_5.htm

Primarygames.com/holidays/halloween/games/word_search/

POW: Mind Maps & Vision Boards

Summary: It's third quarter time. How have you met your goals for the year? Check out today's post on two POW Phrases of the Week, mind maps and vision boards, to learn not just new terms, but new tools to help you succeed.

It's POW Phrase of the Week time again. And the two POWs I'd like to share are also excellent tools: mind maps and vision boards. I've been tweeting a lot lately about vision boards (not to mention doling them out as assignments to my coaching clients). I've even started a new vision board for some of my own personal goals.

Not familiar with a vision board? Check out this article with a great explanation, DIY how-tos, sample images, plus some great inspirational quotes by my fave guru Tony Robbins. 

As the article explains, vision boards are great ways to creatively envision your goals and bring them top of mind. The more attention you give your goals, the more likely you are to focus on them—consciously or sub-consciously—and bring them into your life. And when it comes to goal-setting, you can't get more pragmatic than use of a mind map.

So, what's a mind map? Click here to read a basic overview that also lists some of the many uses, then check out my favorite template to share with clients below.

For non-linear thinkers and planners, especially those with ADHD or any ADD-like thinking, mind maps are excellent ways to capture ideas as they occur and (most importantly) act on them. You can write a speech, article or other presentation using a mind map, too. From the linked article above, here's a beautiful and creatively hand-drawn version:

© KiKi Productions, Inc. 2012