Webinar Wire

When You Talk - Say Something!

Posted by Ken Molay April 14 2009 11:53 AM EDT

2 comments

I wrote a post about cleaning filler sounds out of your vocal delivery style. It seemed to hit a nerve, as I received quite a few comments and emails on the subject.

I thought I would point you to some great content from another presentation specialist on the same topic. Peter Cohan trains business people on how to deliver compelling and effective software demos - both online and in person. He wrote two documents with tips for speakers on the most overused and annoying filler noises encountered in American presentations.

First we have The Content-Free Buzzword-Compliant Vocabulary List. This is designed for marketers (especially in the tech space) and those who love to hate their output. If you create marketing and lead gen webinars, use this document to help you scale back the meaningless hype words all too common in the industry. (Honestly, if I hear one more marketer say that their software is "robust" I'm going to scream!)

For everyone else, check out The Meaningless-Filler Gratuitous-Phrases Vocabulary List. You will certainly recognize vocal patterns that have bothered you when listening to other people's presentations. The problem is that you won't recognize these habits in your own speech. You can't... Your brain won't let you.

Tracking down and eliminating these detrimental vocalizations requires the assistance of another person. You'll need a trusted friend, business associate, or professional coach. The initial process of recognizing your habits is painful and getting rid of them takes time and practice. But the result is wonderful - for you and your audiences!