Raise your hand if your speech is sometimes sprinkled with more “umms” + “ahhs” than a pizza with extra toppings!
Well, fear not, my word-warrior! Today, we’re taking a journey into the bizarre universe of filler words. Buckle up + let’s uncover why these sneaky little devils invade our conversations, why they may actually serve a purpose, + how you can eliminate filler words if you’d like!
This might be an unpopular opinion, but I honestly don’t think filler words are as bad as they seem.
Filler sounds, words, + even phrases, such as: “umm”, “ahh”, “err” or “like”, “sooo”, “ya know” don’t really bother me so much.
I believe they actually serve an important purpose sometimes!
Ready to be impressed with some of the surprising benefits of these little words…
They can help you show your interest in a person or a topic
They can help you appear more polite
They can give your brain time to process info
They can signal to people that you have more to say
They can help you break into a conversation
How about that!?
Fear not the filler words! They may seem like stumbling blocks, but they can serve a purpose.
Plus, almost every single human I know uses them + that doesn’t make them unprofessional, or an ineffective communicator, or a dumb-dumb!
Now, if you absolutely abhor fillers – let’s chat about how you can start to eliminate them! Here are my top tips to eliminate filler words:
- Figure out what yours are. Everybody has a filler word or two, + if you think you don’t – record yourself, you do. We all do + they can change.
- Once you become aware of what it/they are, you can catch yourself when you throw one out in conversation. Don’t be hard on yourself, just observe it + make note of it, so you can begin to stop yourself from using them.
- If you’re going to give a presentation, record yourself. You’ll see real quick what yours are + you can start to remove them from your speech!
- Remember that it’s okay to be quiet. Dead air does not mean you’re dead in the water. You don’t have to fill every silence with sound. You can close your mouth + collect your thoughts before speaking again!
- And again, if you’re going to be giving an actual presentation, write out your point-form notes + build in places to pause, so that you know that it’s okay to stop. Take a breath or a drink of water if you need, instead of filling those spaces with a filler, if you’re really struggling or really hell-bent on eliminating them!
Honestly, I don’t think it’s the end of the world if you drop a filler word or phrase in here or there – I think that that’s just natural conversation. I don’t think that’s anything weird or horrible. But if they do bother you, try one of the tips listed above to eliminate filler words + let me know how it goes!
Just please promise me that you’ll be gentle on yourself, my friend.
And if there’s something you’ve been struggling with or anything you want to know, email your questions to me at kahla@heykahla.com!
–Kahla