These are new words or phrases that have caught my eye. My definition of a new word is one which is not in the Macquarie Dictionary online.
Some words seem to have more significance than others in terms of reflecting changes in the Australian culture, so I will give each word a Zeitgeist rating (ZG) within a range of 1-10.
If you disagree with the rating that I give, please argue your case in the comment field provided.
I would love you to contact me if you have made any new word discoveries of your own.
The concept of setting up a coffice in your local coffee shop with your laptop beside you and a cup of coffee in hand has been developing over the last decade.
ZG: 8
Almost any coffee shop will be home to a number of coffice workers these days.
Read MoreModern monetary theory (also known as MMT) says that, with a monetary sovereign government, that is, one that has its own currency, the goal should be to balance the economy rather than the budget.
ZG: 7
I think that we will hear a lot more about MMT in the future as we search for economic strategies that work for people.
Read MoreThis is an order fulfilment method in which the dropshipper takes an order from a customer and then passes it on to a manufacturer who delivers the product.
ZG: 6
It is piece of business jargon it is true, but we, as customers, will probably become familiar with it as we have with other aspects of digital trade.
Read MoreThe hustle culture of today is characterised by the attitude that you must really push yourself to get anywhere. Long hours, obsessive focus, nervous strain is required if you are to reap the rewards of success.
ZG: 7
Whatever happened to work/life balance! On the one hand we are striving to reach the top of the capitalist pile, and on the other to keep our sanity.
Read MoreAir rights are the rights which a landowner has to the space above that land. There are ways in which this ownership is developing into a market in air rights.
ZG: 4
More a matter for big property developers than the individual homeowners, but interesting as a method of getting money for the conservation of buildings.
Read MoreThis is an American term, modelled on whitewashing, for public relations or marketing approaches that have a veneer of being friendly to gays, and, by extension, to everyone in the LGBTI community.
ZG: 5
Perhaps not commonly used as yet but a neat coinage.
Read MoreThis is an investment approach, a form of ethical investing, that aims to benefit women by shifting investment choices to companies that are friendly to women.
ZG: 6
Another jargon word but it could be construed as a reaction to the MeToo Movement in the finance world.
Read MoreIn the US the group called theright to repair movement have been advocating for the right for owners to be allowed to fix things themselves, be it a tractor, a dishwasher or a smartphone.
ZG: 6
Many of us have railed against the fact that we can no longer have household items repaired but are forced to go out an buy something new. This group seems to be getting some traction on this problem.
Read MoreIn agriculture the role of the bees in fertilising the flowers is so important and the logistics of hiring hives at the critical moment is so complicated that a job has emerged for the pollination broker.
ZG: 5
This is a jargon word of a niche industry, and therefore not one that most of us would encounter, and yet the pollination broker is so important to our lives.
Read MoreThis is not feminised technology but rather technology in the service of women.
ZG: 8
Ida Tin, the founder and CEO of the company CLUE, which produces a period-tracking app, is credited with coining the term femtech in 2013. It is reasonable to say that the word is here to stay.
Read MoreThe lifestyle designer is the person you ask to reshape your life.
ZG: 8
The notion of finding suitable employment in life has changed so much over the last thirty years that I really feel I would like to start over again. I think back to my first job taking the tea trolley around in an accountancy firm. Such a job and such a workplace would be inconceivable to the lifestyle designers and their protégés.
Read MoreA zombie contract or zombie agreement is effectively dead, and yet it lives on in an organisation, being automatically renewed with little thought or consideration being given to it.
ZG: 4
A colourful term but one with limited use in corporate jargon.
Read More
