Three Letter Acronyms

And more

ABC
Accuracy. Brevity. Clarity. A technique for writing in Plain English.

AFI
Areas for improvement. A tool used when presenting feedback and often combined with WWW (what went well).

BYU
Bob’s Your Uncle.

CANEI
A concept for developing a growth mindset popularised by Tony Robbins and frequently used by Ged King.

CMYK
The four basic colours used for printing colour images. Unlike RGB, which is used for creating images on your computer screen, CMYK colours are "subtractive." This means the colours get darker as you blend them together.

CTA and CTT
Two techniques used by Andrew Thorp when telling valuable stories. Call To Action and Call To Thought.

DBE
Dame Commander of the Order of British Empire (DBE) is awarded to someone for their pre-eminent contribution to a field of activity. In Module 2 we interview Sarah Storey DBE.

DOER
A proactive person.

DORA
A proactive mindset that helps us makes sense of a VUCA world. Determined, Obsessive, Relentless, Ambitious.
#BeMoreDora

EGSP
The Excellence Framework is a tool developed by TS to define and measure continuous improvement.

ERRC
A tool for generating ideas. Widely used to differentiate products and services.

F.A.I.L.
A useful acronym to remember when learning to step outside your comfort zone.

F.E.A.R.
Another useful acronym to remember when learning to step outside your comfort zone.

FOMO
A popular acronym, mentioned by Elliott Norcliffe and Lizzie Kelly-Dyson in their interviews.

Gestalt
A design philosophy and branch of psychology whereby the whole is perceived as more than the sum of its parts.

GETMO
Good enough to move on (a big thanks to Susan Banister for introducing this one!)

Grade II*
A classification of buildings in England and Wales. Particularly important buildings of more than special interest. Jen Wiggins and Tom Bloxham MBE.

GTD
A methodology and productivity book written by David Allen.

HOPE
The four values at Hope for Justice: Honouring, Open, Professional and Empowerment.

Ikigai
Pronounced ee-key-guy, Ikigai is a wonderful Japanese concept that essentially means ‘a reason for being’.

KPIs
A quantifiable measure used to evaluate the success of an organisation or employee.

LBD
Our specialist subject is Leadership Behaviour Design.
(not just a Little Black Dress)

MBE
Awarded to someone for making a positive impact in their line of work. TS has already interviewed Jennie Johnson MBE, Paula Dunn MBE and Tom Bloxham MBE.

MECE
A technique for communicating effectively.

MOSCOW
An agile method for prioritisation.

MOSI
The Science and Industry Museum. One of the most important industrial heritage sites in Europe. Also the location of the world’s first passenger railway station. 

OBE
Officer of the Order of British Empire (OBE) is awarded to someone for making a significant impact in their line of work. In Module 2 we interview Lou Cordwell OBE.

OKRs
An advanced version of KPIs, generally attributed to Andy Grove and written about extensively in Measure What Matters—a book written by John Doerr and currently on Bob Buckley’s reading list.

Otaku
A Japanese word used to describe someone who is passionate beyond reason (or obsessed). A term popularised by Seth Godin in his book Purple Cow. 

PEGS
The four values we hold dear at Twelve Scholars. Pollinate ideas, Encourage growth, Gestalt by design, and Scholarly by nature.

PHD
A Doctorate in Philosophy (PhD) is awarded by a university to someone for making a significant contribution to research. In Module 2 we interview Mostafa Nabawy PhD.

Pink Elephant
A negative word used by reactive people in a sentence, for example, “don’t walk on the grass”. Proactive people remove ‘pink elephants’ from their vocabulary, for example, “walk on the footpath”.

PSF
A term heavily used by Tom Peters in his Excellent book, Re-imagine! Professional Service Firm. 

QII thinking
Popularised by Stephen R. Covey, and also called the Eisenhower Matrix. Quadrant II thinking is when you combine URGENT with IMPORTANT.

RADA
The Royal Academy for Dramatic Art. This was where Anthony Banks studied to be a Theatre Director.

RADIO
A bigger tool for managing risk. ‘RADIO 5 Live’ isn’t what you’d expect. It’s a one page document that helps communicate risks and assumptions to stakeholders.

RCP
The Royal College of Physicians. Robert Hopkins is the architect behind The Spine, a new headquarters for the RCP in Liverpool. 

Scholar
A person with a growth mindset.

Scholarship
Our online community and learning platform. An opportunity to step up a gear, test your ideas and accelerate your learning. 

SEND
Special Education Needs and Disability. The Birtenshaw Group is one of the leading providers of SEND in the UK. David Reid is CEO at Birtenshaw Group.

SINALOA
A sales concept developed by Jim Rohn (mentioned by Geoff Liberman). If you do something often enough a ratio appears. Safety In Number And Law Of Averages. 

SUMO
A straight-talking book written by Paul McGee.

SWIM
A 5-step process for troubleshooting and innovation.

TEAM
The first initials of Tim Rawlinson’s family: Tim, Eileen, Alice and Mary.
Also: Together Everyone Achieves More

TED
An organisation that distributes talks under the slogan “ideas worth spreading”. TEDx is an independently run TED event. Ged King, Alice Sparks, Andrew Thorp and Mostafa Nabawy have all presented at TEDx events. 

TS
Twelve Scholars

UCCI
A coaching tool developed by TS.

UX 
Notoriously hard to define! Just ask Lizzie Kelly-Dyson.

Voronoi
The Voronoi diagram is a system that divides the space into sub-spaces in an organic way. It’s also a pattern that Robert Hopkins has used in his architectural drawings.

VUCA
A term devised by the US Military to explain the unusual times we live in.

WWW
A tool used when presenting feedback and often combined with AFI.

ZOT
A place just outside your comfort zone (see Nigel Bennett).