Slay the Um, Er, and Uh From Your Next Presentation

Breathe

just breathe

Yes, simply breathe.

You likely take the life force of breathing for granted. I know that I do.

When you bring your thoughts back to your breathing it forces you to be present.

Ums, ers, and uhs stem from our losing our train of thought and/or lack of confidence in our content.

Get back on track and resuscitate your confidence by using your full breath.

 

 

Next time you are practicing for an upcoming presentation try this when you feel a verbal distraction looming.

Stop. Yes, it is okay to stop. It is a normal part of relaxed conversation.

Take a deep breath right down to the core of your belly.

Exhale the breath slowly.

Now notice how you feel. In control, right? Ready to begin again without the verbal baggage.

Did it seem like it took forever? It didn’t – probably fifteen seconds max!

When you go live with your presentation and you feel the um, er, or uh bubbling think back to your practice – breathe a deep one and carry on. You’ve slayed it.

To your voice,

Janice

Is a Glass of Rosé Appropriate?

Or maybe rose coloured glasses?

A colleague told me, “Janice you always see the positive in everything”. She admitted she didn’t. But she did admit that I make her laugh. She also told me that optimists like us live longer. Bonus!

This led me to think – is my modos operandi to make naysayers relax and see the humour in life? Perhaps cajole them into thinking about a different point of view? Where does this rosy outlook have its place in public speaking or presentations?

“Once you replace negative thoughts with positive ones, you’ll start having positive results.” ~Willie Nelson

Unless the presentation is conveying tragic events that can only be alleviated with the passage of time the pink tinged slant is the way to go. This includes bringing humour into your presentation, smiling with appropriate timing, and creating a comfortable atmosphere for your audience.

To pull your presentation together, strategically outline the negative aspects and then challenge and out-shout them with positive persuasive techniques like “Agitate and Solve” or “Addressing Objections.” Brian Clark at Copyblogger explains these (and other persuasive) techniques in depth.

Audiences will sing your accolades when you leave them smiling and inspired.

Put on those pink glasses! Share your glass of rosé. And join me in raising a glass…

Image Attribution: Anonymous


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