Boardroom Maverick Gifts

'We have to go back to thinking 'inside' the box.'

'Does anyone have a question?'

'If I had to use one word to describe our strategy.'

"I was hoping this presentation would be more interesting upside down."

'It's a chart of office morale. This is where you went on vacation.'

"In recognition of last month's little upward blip, I suggest we allow ourselves a spontaneous victory fist bump."

"How's everybody doing? I'm not boring you, am I?"

"If I might be serious for a moment..."

"Now that I have everyone's attention..."

Bo're'droom

'And I'm happy to say, that since the merger...'

"My report to the board was perfect. They did not understand a word of it and now think I'm smarter than them."

"Mr. Johnson, Bob is kicking me under the table!"

'Now that we've defined 'happy deficits' let's try it out on the stockholders.'

'I went into that meeting with a hidden agenda and then forgot where I put it.'

"Tell the vice presidents they've downsized enough."

'I've given a lot of thought to giving some thought to your latest proposal.'

'To close the deal, I had to make some minor concessions.'

'All those in doubt, raise your eyebrows.'

"That's unanimous then - we don't know what to do."

"At least we are consistently inconsistent."

'By the time I climbed up to this job, I was too tired to do it.'

'I want ideas so bold, so wildly innovative, so undeniably brilliant that they retain a shred of originality after everyone picks them to pieces.'

"That's a very difficult problem to address, Ted, could you restate it as a solution?"

'You can't put him out to pasture - he owns the pasture!'

Although not felt by everone, Wanda's powrful jargon sent seismic shock waves through some of the more geologically unstable department in the organization.

Business cartoon showing sales declining so much that they bounce off the floor.

Stand-up comic/ceo: 'A funny thing happened on the way to the board meeting...'

'Maybe you should reconsider those place cards, Ms Harris?' (Negotiation talks/Good Guys/Bad Guys)

"Sorry, I'm preaching again. Why don't we pause for a moment while I pass around the collection plate."

'I started out as a yes man, but I've evolved into a plucky devil's advocate who always sides with the boss in the end.'

'Who wants the talking stick?'

"That's more like it Perkins..!!"

'Mr. Hickey really knows how to keep our stockholders meetings short and sweet!'

'This is why we can't have nice things... '