Don’t C.R.A.P. in someone’s house

When it comes to balancing work and life, you’d do better to stick to the work

In past columns, we here at C.R.A.P. (Corporate Rhetoric Awards Program) Central have discussed what we call “The Dr. Phil Syndrome,” or DPS. DPS is when unqualified, obnoxious people suddenly feel like it’s their mission on earth to dispense “life advice” to perfect strangers.

It is also known as “That Big Fat Gasbag Syndrome,” or TBFGS.

Unfortunately, some corporate editors have developed serious cases of DPS. They tell people what to eat; they tell people how to deal with stress, how to raise their children, all kinds of things they have no business telling them.

This month, we are giving our C.R.A.P. Award to the editor of a financial company’s newsletter, for a story with this headline: “Helpful Tips for Balancing Work & Family Life.”

Now these work/life stories are a dime a dozen in the corporate press, and some of them are quite good. They are good when they focus on real people, and logical advice. They are C.R.A.P. when they spew clichés and offer patronizing “tips.”

The story starts with a clichéd lead straight out of “Wellness Leads-R-Us.”