By Tim Conway
At age 63.5, my observations are blunt and biased. I’m okay with that reality.
A conclusion — after being an Adjunct Faculty of “Public Speaking” along with Entrepreneurship judge, startup mentor and career coach — is that young professionals often sound Stupid (cap ‘S’).
The reason: twenty-somethings over rely on filler terms when speaking. Fillers are words/phrases that are repeated due to sloppy vocabulary, bad habits and cluelessness of the implications (see Stupid). Plus, these words/phrases are popular because of informal communication, such as: hang out/club culture, texting, TikTok and rambling email/voicemail messages. Another cause is that collegians and alumni strive to fit in with peers and groups.
Excess Fillers Damage ‘Rep-You-Tation’
Examples according to the imaginary Stupid-o-meter:
uuuuum
like
you know
aaaaanyways
so
I think
literally
very, very
____________, right?
to be honest
really
yeah
basically
sort of
just
actually
Hey (try “Hello, First Name”)
cool
Got it
Gotcha
The New Normal
sucks (demonstrates immaturity)
F-bomb (never acceptable in workplace or at public events)
N-word (casual greeting between African-American men that ignores DEI)
To reduce fillers, admit the behavior; start to catch repetitive fillers. “Relax by smiling and looking others in the eye,” says John Znidarsic who directs performers in off-Broadway shows. Ron Culp suggests strategic and intentional pauses.
As a MarCom specialist, clients will request that you critique a speech, media Q&A and sales offer; afterwards, you can delicately point out the negative effect of fillers.
After struggling at 8th grade ceremony five decades ago, my recommendation is to never memorize a presentation. Use brief note cards or slides with Agenda and trigger words/visuals. Also, record yourself delivering a five-minute theme; count the fillers (prediction: you’ll be shocked by the amount).
To further cut Stupid factor, don’t text while crossing the street and in a lobby/conference room before a job interview or pitch.
Fact: you will never eliminate stupid terms. But you can be Smarter (cap ‘S’).
BONUS: for written copy, beware of “I, yie, yie Syndrome” because too many “I” pronouns are perceived as arrogant. Anecdote: a collegian submitted a faux cover letter for employment to me with 26 “I’s” (yes, instructors and hiring managers can count); and every paragraph began with “I” (ugh). Alternatives: my, mine, we, us, our, they, them.
Tim Conway, a self-proclaimed Job Detective, assists others to juggle career options: