November 8th, 2007 in Lifehack

How to Cut Crutch Words When Giving a Speech

“…um…” “…you know…” “…like…” “…ah…”

You’ve all seen it before. What would otherwise be a great presentation becomes one interrupted jumble of syllables. Instead of taking those key pauses to let the audience digest, every moment of hesitation is filled with a crutch word. Maybe it happens to you.

Eliminating crutch words is one of the fastest ways to improve yourself as a speaker. Not only does it display confidence to your audience, but you become easier to understand as your message gets across. It isn’t easy to do, but if you can nuke those um’s and ah’s you are one step closer to winning over the crowd.

Don’t Fear the Silence

Um’s and ah’s come because as a speaker you naturally want to avoid silence. You’ve been conditioned for two-way conversations. When you pause, you get feedback from the other person and the conversation continues. On the stage, it is only you talking and the silence can be terrifying.

The first way to combat crutch words is to realize silence is a good thing. Few speakers talk too slowly with too many pauses. Pauses help emphasize points and give listeners time to understand what you are talking about. Remember, although you may be an international expert and have a memorized speech, the audience needs more time to interpret what you plan to say.

How to Combat the Crutch

Here are some suggestions for becoming a pause artist and eliminating crutch words from your presentations:

Practice, practice, practice! - You should know your presentation backwards and forwards before giving it. If you spend all your time thinking of what to say next, you can’t put emphasis on avoiding crutch words. Once you eliminate crutch words you can deliver unprepared speeches more effectively, but it is hard to cut the um’s if you aren’t prepared.
Breathe In, Not Out - When you feel the temptation to ummm your way through a point, breathe in. This may add a pause to your presentation, but it will be far better than an ugly crutch word which blurs sentences together.
Avoid them in Conversation - You speak all the time. Watch your crutch words when chatting with friends and family. If it helps on stage it will help in a conversation. Plus you`ll get far more practice.
Get a Counter - If your giving an important speech, get a friend to count the amount of times you utter an um or ah. Keeping numbers makes you highly aware of when your using these speech-killers.
Comma = 1 pause - Make a note whenever you are doing a presentation that every comma you encounter should have a pause attached. You might want to run through a list of ten items as if they were one thought. But force yourself to give a short count in between each item. Your audience will thank you for the added emphasis and clarity.
Period = 2 pauses - The end of a sentence requires twice as much pause. There is a time-delay between hearing your words and registering their meaning. Don`t cut over this step by blurring together your sentences.
Double Underline - Underline key words and phrases and double underline especially important ones. This is a technique I learned from a former radio broadcaster. It helps you understand where to slow down and emphasize an individual word. When you slow down to emphasize words, this reduces the temptation to inject crutch words in between.
If Your Lost, Don`t Panic! - Um`s come in when you don`t have your next sentence ready. Your mind is still constructing what you want to say next, so you feel throwing a few um`s will fill the space until your ready. Don`t do this! Instead take a quick pause before moving on. The audience won`t notice and it will make your presentation smooth.
Enthusiasm Cuts Crunch - Imagine the presentation you have to give was the most critical information the audience needed to hear. When you engage emotionally with your speech topic, it becomes easier to emphasize points and avoid crutch words. If you aren`t engaged, you might feel the urge to preface statements with crutch words to downplay their importance.
Plan Tricky Parts - Know your conclusions and introductions word for word. Also plan out any tricky parts of a presentation you might have difficulty explaining. If you are preparing a business proposal and want to cover a sticky issue delicately, know that section word for word.
Quality over Quantity - Speaking is a fairly inefficient medium for delivering large volumes of information. Emphasize only a few points in a speech, but emphasize them well and with repetition. A good way to have a presentation filled with um`s and ah`s is to cram a five minute speech with twenty minutes of information.

Bonus Tip - Join Toastmasters

I strongly suggest joining Toastmasters to anyone wanting to improve their speaking and get rid of nasty crutch words. I was able to go from a fountain of um`s and ah`s to near elimination with just a few months of weekly meetings.

Toastmasters can also do more than just cut crutch words. They can also work with you on the finer points of presenting, such as gestures, tone of voice, body language and content. By working on these points you can master your craft and have the confidence to speak in front of any audience.

WRITER'S BIOGRAPHY

Scott H Young

Scott Young is a university student who writes about productivity, habits and self-improvement. Scott has been featured on the Be Happy Dammit! Show.

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Gavin says on November 8th, 2007 at 11:23 am

One useful tip when trying to slow down your public speaking is to remember the audience aren’t going anywhere, they are there to listen to you and are interested in what you have to say.

So take your time, they won’t walk out if you pause, and make sure they actually can hear what your are saying by speaking steadily and clearly.
Gadfly says on November 8th, 2007 at 2:23 pm

Personally I don’t take language advice from someone who doesn’t understand the difference between “your” and “you’re.”
Simon says on November 8th, 2007 at 4:02 pm

Quoting Gadfly:
‘Personally I don’t take language advice from someone who doesn’t understand the difference between “your” and “you’re.”’

I too noted this, BUT just because someone gets this wrong doesn’t mean they get everything else wrong too.

After reading these replies they may get it right in future.
mdebusk says on November 8th, 2007 at 4:39 pm

Here’s something that worked well for me: start doing it on purpose.

Make a conscious effort to include “um” and “uh” and so on in your everyday speech. Think about where such “nonverbal speech” might be useful and effective. (Believe it or not, sometimes –OK, rarely — it makes sense to put it in.)

Once you’ve given yourself permission to do it and have brought its use into conscious awareness, it becomes a behavior you can choose intentionally to do or to not do.

Oh, and @Gadfly: it didn’t look to me like he misunderstood “you’re” and “your”. It looked to me like a typing error. (Notice the “are” after “you’re”.) And it’s a huge mistake to confuse the gift with the wrapping paper; his advice is sound.
Michael Vanderdonk says on November 8th, 2007 at 4:44 pm

I’ve talked about similar things before. The main thing I train people to use is to slow down. I mean to almost … William Shatner … Speech … speed… choosing … each … word … with … care and … attention.

Hell, just listen to Tony Blair and Bill Clinton during interviews or onstage.

Enjoy.
Michael Vanderdonk says on November 8th, 2007 at 4:46 pm

I’ve talked about similar things before, and coach people how to overcome these. The main thing I train people to use is to slow down. I mean to almost … William Shatner … Speech … speed… choosing … each … word … with … care and … attention.

Hell, just listen to Tony Blair and Bill Clinton during interviews or onstage. They take their time, with plenty of pauses.

Enjoy.

P.S. You might get some more ideas from http://www.toach.net/blog/2006.....in-speech/
Bill says on November 8th, 2007 at 7:26 pm

Excellent advice indeed! I’ll use this personally and in my coaching of others.

I was coaching a lady recently on how to give an impromptu speech, which was a requirement for a job interview. This advice would have been excellent for her.

If your interested (I know it’s you’re, I was just annoying that unimaginative pedant, Gadfly) you can see the result of my advice at:
http://cathday.com.au/wordpres.....tu-speech/

BTW Gadfly, please look up Fowler’s re the correct use of “personally” which is “apt to be used redundantly with the personal pronoun”
Bill

“Pedants act on knowledge without imagination”.
GreatManagement says on November 9th, 2007 at 7:39 am

One think I always do with individuals I coach on presenting is to video them. You not only see/hear the ‘erms’ but also the posture and body language. Once the individual has ‘improved’ you can re-video and see the improvement which is a confidence boost, as well.

Andrew
Dustin Wax says on November 9th, 2007 at 9:58 am

This is good advice — “umming” is one of my personal demons. As a teacher, I am rarely able to stick to a written lecture, but instead work from notes and often have to respond to questions and comments “on the fly”. It’s when I’m constructing my response that the “ums” start coming. “That’s a good question. Ummm, a lot of researchers have asked the same question, and ummm…” Most of this advice seems to apply to reading from a presentation; I wonder what advice you or the commenter above has for getting rid of filler words in impromptu public speaking?
rhhfla says on November 9th, 2007 at 11:12 am

Another good technique to avoid filler words is to repeat a key point for emphasis. Let’s the audience know that it is important and gives you time to collect your thoughts for your next theme
Bart says on November 9th, 2007 at 1:36 pm

I like the tip to “breath in, not out” combined with the idea of not fearing silence.
We need to feel comfortable with silence. It can be tough to just sit there while a hundred people are staring at you, while you mentally prepare what to say next.

Just because the audience doesn’t talk back doesn’t mean you need to talk non stop talking. Pausing is an important part of communication, it give emphasis and added meaning.

Some of the most powerful moments in presentations I’ve seen is when the speaker boldly and succinctly says his point and then stands calm and silent for three seconds before moving on.

Remember, just like conversation, there is talking and listening - in presentation there is presenting and pausing.
Your You're says on November 10th, 2007 at 8:02 pm

I also noticed the “your.”

This article made me think of the women in Chicago. Most of them say “like, like” most of the time. I call these girls “like-likes.” There were two like-likes on the bus last Wednesday, sitting behind me. I must have heard one hundred “like”s in their conversation. I moved to the front of the bus after two minutes of hell.

Most people are getting worse, and are contributing to the lowering of standards in our society. Only a few people don’t use crutch words; they say “May I…” and use well-constructed sentences. Most people do many things poorly. Our college kids are horrible. Imagine their kids, and their kids’ kids. The bar will go lower and lower.

Remember “Planet of the Apes”? :-D
bob says on November 10th, 2007 at 8:40 pm

… and you’ll be the last shining beacon of hope in this illiterate place we call planet earth.

Anonymity + Audience = well, you should know the equation by now.

Nice article though. The point about watching what you say even when talking with friends is especially true.
Caatnap says on November 10th, 2007 at 9:36 pm

And all this from someone who doesn’t know the difference between “your” and “you’re”!!!
Danni says on November 11th, 2007 at 11:54 pm

A neat article indeed.When I present, I ask a friend to count the um’s and ah’s for me. That has greatly helped. Now I have managed to come down to 1-2 crutch words each time I present.

P.S. Get over the your and you’re plz. Don’t be immature idiots.
Stan Devorak says on November 12th, 2007 at 12:48 pm

I don’t think we should get over the your-vs.-you’re issue. If we allow it, then we allow other things, just like we allow saying “ass” on television nowadays, which was unheard of in the 1980s.

Proof reading is important. It is not immature to be detail-oriented. The best/finest things in our world are detailed: luxury sports cars, architecture, custom-tailored clothing. Excellence requires detail.

Also, the author used back ticks in his suggestions instead of single quotes. However, he used single quotes in the paragraphs before the suggestions.
still says on November 13th, 2007 at 4:47 am

hy! who is http://www.spymac.com/details?2298228 ???
Annie says on November 17th, 2007 at 10:50 am

# Gadfly says on:
November 8th, 2007 at 2:23 pm

Personally I don’t take language advice from someone who doesn’t understand the difference between “your” and “you’re.”

I couldn’t agree more.
mubarak says on November 18th, 2007 at 1:51 am

please send more mails
bill says on November 30th, 2007 at 12:01 am

Hey guys,

Someone made a mistake! That doesn’t mean everything is wrong!

This is a great article and I have used its/it’s (choose one) principles/principals recently in several presentations.

If people didn’t make mistakes, we wouldn’t need erasers, tippex, back space or delete keys.

As much as I hate to admit it, even though I can articulate the difference between a zeugma and a syllepsis, I still make the odd mistake.

The old cliche applies - don’t throw the baby out with the bath water.

Get over the your/you’re/yore/yawn business.
Bill
Steve says on February 7th, 2008 at 10:06 pm

Several people have commented on the your/you’re mistake. It bothered me too, and it clearly wasn’t a typing error, as he made the mistake twice within a short space. However, no one has commented about “um’s” apostrophes don’t make words plural. Please pay attention to your grammar.
Jason Peck says on February 28th, 2008 at 11:31 am

Hi Scott,

This is a really interesting post. The use of periods as pauses are also good when it comes to delivering comedy.

Cheers,
Jason
Terry Gault says on May 16th, 2008 at 3:23 pm

Thanks for the post!

You are right: one of the best ways to improve upon presentations is to shed verbal filler. I refer to words and sounds such as uh, um, so, like, you know, basically, etc. These sorts of fillers make the presenter seem less articulate and less sure of themselves and their message.

Here are some techniques that you can use to shed the use of verbal filler.

1. Record yourself practicing a presentation, watch it, and count your verbal fillers. It’s painful but can fuel your determination to shed the fillers.
2. Enlist the help of those around you – your partner / spouse, friends, co-workers, family, etc. Empower them to repeat your fillers whenever they hear you using it. That can also be painful and embarrassing – even more fuel for your determination.
3. Listen for your use of verbal filler at ALL times – presenting, in conversation, on the phone, with friends, etc.
4. Don’t beat yourself up about it. Just make a mental note and remind yourself that you want to change your speech pattern.
5. Use pause instead. Focus on the behavior you want. Grow comfortable with silence. Learn to enjoy it.
6. Be willing to pause even in the middle of sentences as you struggle to think of the word that you want.
7. It’s said that you can change any behavior if you focus on it for 21 days. Put “I will use pause not filler” on your to-do list for 21 consecutive days.
8. Don’t give up! As American writer and philosopher Ralph Waldo Emerson observed, “Once you make a decision, the universe conspires to make it happen.”