Speak Without Ahs and Ums

We often fill silence with Ahs, Uhms and Errs when we speak to people, so they don't interrupt us. However, when we speak to larger crowds, the audience seldom interrupts, and our filler sounds just make us sound unsure and unprepared.

To get rid of your crutch words, try the following:

1. Breath in, through your nose. Most filler sounds comes when we breath out. Can you say Ah while breathing in through your nose?
2. Practise pausing – the pause gets you attention and time to think.
3. Rehearse more to avoid unplanned thinking pauses.
4. Replace your filler sounds with gestures that signals you have more to say.

You can practice whenever your speak, not just in public speaking. If you remove filler sounds from normal conversations, you will use fewer fillers on the stage.