I just read in the Chicago Sun Times that 'a proposal will be considered at a London education conference to ban the word 'fail' as demoralizing to students and replace it with 'deferred success.''
This phrase is tailor made for the corporate world, where problems become 'challenges' and colossal failures are labeled 'opportunities.'
I can already see the headlines in many an employee publication, after the company hemorrhages money and comes nowhere close to the predicted quarterly earnings:
'XYZ reports deferred success for Q3!'
Or after a product rollout flops miserably in the marketplace:
'Lame-o Product Line a huge deferred success with customers!'
I'm even going to start using it in my personal life. I'm not a failure. I'm just deferring success to a later date.
Comments (11)
Whoever came up with that one should have their departure accelerated.
Posted by Robert J Holland, ABC | July 29, 2005 12:15 PM
Posted on July 29, 2005 12:15
It's not even a terribly accurate term. 'Deferred' implies that success is only postponed and will be achieved later. What if they continue to flunk?
Posted by Shari S | July 29, 2005 12:36 PM
Posted on July 29, 2005 12:36
>>I’m not a failure. I’m just deferring success to a later date.,,
Or is that "perpetual deferred success?" <VBG>
Posted by Craig Jolley | July 29, 2005 12:44 PM
Posted on July 29, 2005 12:44
The kids who are failing are going to throw it back in their face.
Dude, I am not high, I am just deferring my conscious state of being.
or Dude, I am not late, I am just deferring my arrival.
also to be used in corporate world, same wording.
Posted by Cathy | August 1, 2005 12:34 PM
Posted on August 1, 2005 12:34
One of my favourite cartoons shows a teacher in a classroom with two worried-looking parents. The teacher is calmly explaining, "Sir, Ma'am, the reason little Johnny hasn't learned to read is that he's stupid."
Of course, in real life - as in Lake Wobegon - all the children are above average.
Posted by Tim Hicks | August 3, 2005 11:31 AM
Posted on August 3, 2005 11:31
DATE: 07/29/2005 18:31:7P PM
>>What if they continue to flunk?<<
It's simply an extended deferment. :X Surely that has to be at least partially tongue-in-cheek ...
Posted by DeAnna | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31
DATE: 07/30/2005 79:10:5A PM
Judging from some of the people I've seen get promoted out of the smoldering embers of disasters they've wrought in Corporate America, I'm thinkin' "deferred success" is an eerily accurate description.
Posted by Meredith | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31
DATE: 08/01/2005 12:34:7P PM
We talked about something similar at length in a comm. class freshmen year. Half of the class were "normal aged" college kids (18-22), the other half were older adults coming back to take classes they wanted to or getting a degree. The college kids almost refused to use PC terms, attempting to tell it like it is, while the older generation sought to use the PC-friendly terms.
Maybe it's something that comes with age and the being jaded by the corporate/real world. But if so, it's a little scary that these kind of things are creeping into school and reaching children as they are younger and younger. Granted, it's been happening more and more lately, but now it's back in the forefront.
Posted by Mike C. | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31
DATE: 08/02/2005 83:01:2A PM
Has anybody read the book "On Bullshit"? I haven't but want to. This is one of those perplexing mysteries of our culture. Why, if everyone knows bullshit when they see it and most people seem to hate PC obfuscations like "deferred success," do we insist on continuing to use them? Based on my experience, corporate leaders know when they're being ridiculously PC at the expense of being clear.
Where does the madness end???
Posted by Robert J Holland, ABC | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31
DATE: 08/03/2005 12:95:9P PM
Ah, the old "Politically Correct" saw. Everyone seems to know this is completely ridiculous, yet we are all guilty of it on occasion, no? And usually when it is something close to us (especially emotionally). Who among us would call a "handicapped" person "crippled" (a perfectly fine and descriptive word) ? And I guess if the nuts are to be believed, its no longer handicapped, but rather handi-capable!
(Some direct and colorful language ahead)
Some of you know from prior rambles that I am a fan of Penn and Teller (teetotalling libertarian atheists - what's not to love?). Their emmy winning Showtime series "Bullshit!" serves to debunk all manner of claptrap and flummery. In that show, they regularly refer to these crooks as losers, assholes, and much, much worse. When asked why, Penn noted that calling someone a con artist or a liar or a thief leaves them open to lawsuits. Using the much more colorful terms they use offers a certain amount of protection under the law. I mean really, how do you go to court and argue that you are not, in fact, an "asshole" ?
George Carlin has an excellent piece about this general topic ("shellshock became battle fatigue become post traumatic stress disorder") - it might be in his book "Brain Droppings" if memory serves.
Steve
Posted by Steve | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31
DATE: 08/05/2005 02:10:6P PM
I heard the author of this proposal on the radio - it is primarily meant to stimulate discussion among educators and is not expected to be adopted. The author has been teaching for over 30 years and has found that a small portion of children are destroyed by "failing", and that we shouldn't destroy children with words. And it's precisely meant to communicate to these children that they are not failures but that their success will come at a later date. The teacher - an expert in this field - is pleased that so many people are discussing this topic. However, it seems like that context is often forgotten.
Posted by Micky | October 16, 2006 4:31 PM
Posted on October 16, 2006 16:31