Which buzzwords peg someone as a PR toolbag?

In a meeting, or at a networking event, someone drops a term that’s so vacuous, so banal, you immediately disdain that person. Which words set your teeth on edge?

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Although you and I know the word “utilize” is just a longer version of “use,” the former sounds more, I know don’t, scientific. To someone with an MBA, the sentence “We need to utilize the data we compiled on our 18 to 34 demo,” conveys a greater sense of purpose without that simple, three-letter word “use.”

Toss the word “leverage” in there, and suddenly it’s an MBA happy hour.

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