The most overused, most meaningless word I've heard lately is "strategy." Usually used in the plural.
Example: a radio commercial against drinking and driving offers some suggestions (take a taxi) and then asks, "Which of these strategies do you use?" (How about just not getting drunk in the first place?)
Educationalists love "strategies", usually reading strategies. What strategies will Junior use to figure out the next word? Will he guess? Will he use the picture as a clue? This pretty much ignores the real problem, which is that Junior doesn't know because nobody's taught him.
The Apprentice got it right on. When I mentioned my issue with "strategies" to her, she said, "Isn't that a Dilbert kind of word?" Exactly. Nothing accomplished but it sure sounds good.
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