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[heralady]

I got criticized at work today for saying "um" a lot, because it is unprofessional and makes you sound less assertive. To which I say, I am from Wisconsin! Just be glad I have eschewed "ya know" and "hey dere"! It's a judgement of my regional culture. I am just so offended. :)

Comments

I struggle with that too

[zombyshakespear]

I used to use a lot of "um"s. I'd like to think it's a midwestern thing, but I've seen people all over do it. I'd like to think I do it less now. I think what helped me was first seeing myself on camera / recorded as a teenager. When hearing how I sounded, it really bothered me.

I recommend recording yourself talking for a few minutes. That will show you if you really have a problem or not. Sometimes people are just overly critical. If you annoy yourself, that's when you know you have a problem.

If you do feel you need improvement, replacing the UMs with attention grabbing and qualifying words seems to work well. I'm not sure how to explain this, so I recommend listening to Tony Blair speeches. He may have helped create a huge quagmire, but the man can talk.