How do I get rid of my “ums” and “uhs?”
The following comes from TJ Walker’s upcoming book “The Wisdom of Your Audience”. Consistently, the worst advice speakers and presenters get, comes from everyone who is NOT your audience. The following gives examples of some of the WORST advice people are often given. It is followed by the advice of your audience. Listen to them. They are your true judge and jury.
How do I get rid of my “ums” and “uhs?”
Your Volunteer Speech Group: “Have someone ring a bell every time you say um and uh during a speech. You will stop eventually.”
Your Presentation Coach: “Videotape yourself and then stop the tape every time you say uh or um. Count to “three Mississippi” silently in your head and pause instead of filling the sound with uh or um.”
You: “God! I hate myself for saying so many uhs and ums. This is my number one problem. If I don’t figure out a way to say fewer uhs and ums, I’m going to cancel my next 10 presentations.”
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Your Audience: “Um, I guess it’s slightly annoying to hear a whole lot of uhs and ums, but do you know what is even more boring? Listening to a speaker give us a boring data dump. Do you know who says uh and um a lot? Martha Stewart, Bill O’Reilly, Ed Koch, and Geraldo Rivera. They all say uh and um a lot and they’re all multi-millionaires. So maybe saying uh and um aren’t your biggest problems?”