Um Doesn’t Matter, Until it Does
Welcome to the 25th issue of the Knockout Your Sunday Scaries Newsletter, an every-other-week newsletter by me, Kristy Olinger, with a focus on workplace communication and self-development. I’m glad you’re here. Was this forwarded to you? Get yours: Subscribe here
Sunday, May 3, 2024
Hi there,
Amy Cuddy has one of the most popular TED talks with over 74 million views. In it, she uses 3 filler words within the first 10 seconds and many more throughout. I’ve yet to meet someone who has watched it that noticed.
Filler words are a normal part of human speech. If you never used another filler word in any interaction you would sound like a 🤖 robot. So unrelatable! There are also times you might choose to insert filler words to soften a message to be less assertive. It’s ok to say ‘um’.
Yet… we’ve all known people who use filler words in a way that it makes their message unclear and causes us to suspect they lack conviction about what they are saying.
The operative question is:
How can you know if you’re using the ‘right’ amount of fillers that make you sound less robotic without damaging the impact of your message?
The answer is easy, though you might not like it. 🎥 Record yourself speaking. You cannot effectively observe your speaking while you’re doing it. From there you will be able to evaluate our fillers, identify the causes and impacts, then make adjustments. I have a three step process to help with this, learn about in The Um Episode of The Opposite of Small Talk: Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Podcasts
📚 What I’m Reading: Darling Girls, Sally Hepworth
This suspense fiction novel had me guessing to the end. It was a page-turner that I finished over a weekend and kept me from mindless scrolling on social media. Need more books like this in my life.
Content Round Up - In Case You Missed It
In this section I link to all of the content that has launched in the last 2 weeks because even if you’re following me on social media, the algorithm may or may not put my post in your feed. Here is what has launched over the last 2 weeks:
Podcast: The Um Episode | Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Podcasts
On trend with the topic of this newsletter - this episode covers how to identify and reduce filler words. It comes with a companion worksheet that walks you through a simple 3 step process ro reduce fillers: The Um Worksheet
VIDEO: Easy Tip for Visibility
Your career success at work depends on your visibility. In this video I give you an easy way to improve your visibility that doesn’t require you to be the first one in the office or the last one to leave.
VIDEO: What to Say When You Didn’t Do the Work
It’s easier to speak at work when you already have the words today. In the “What to Say” series I share phrases you can use in common work situations. In this one… what do you say if you are in a status meeting and you didn’t do the thing you said you’d do.
You made it to the end! Congrats & thanks. ❤️ Have a great two weeks.
Stay Curious,
Kristy
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