Practice in front of family and friends. Have confidence and know your topic throughly.
I have found that if I talk louder the ums and uhs seem to go away. When you say um and uh it's usually done in a softer voice. Plus, I get more confidence when I speak louder and that helps too.
Video or audio recordings of your practice presentation allows you to identify the areas you are most likely to insert your fillers. I had a speach class in college and all it took was to hear me saying 24 fillers in a 7 minute speach to realize this was a problem that needed to be addressed. I can honestly say I have my fillers under control but I constantly keep it in the back of mind so I do not slip back into bad habits. Preparation is absolutely the best way to minimize the use of these fillers.
Patrick,
yes, preparation is a great way to avoid the vocal clutter.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
You should have your presentation prepared. Also, so and so on it a flaw too.
Matt,
yes, the preparation also builds confidence which helps us to reduce those filler words.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
Agreed! Having my plan rock solid always reduces those filler "words". I suppose we'll all slip and do it from time to time especially during the short notice presentations but again, preperation is key here...
Tu,
the first step is to be aware & consciously try to reduce them. Also, having your thoughts really organized & ready to go is a great way to avoid these fillers.
Ryan Meers, Ph.D.
