purt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, th

Do you know what pause fillers are in a presentation? They are the uh”, “urm”, “you know”, “hmm” or “now” littered in your speech when you are making the presentation.

When we forget a word or a point in our presentation, we tend let out these strange sounds as we try to remember what to say next. At times, they also “help” to fill the sudden silence that occurs in the middle of our presentations. I even notice presenters using pause fillers as crutches when they get all nervous and scared.

Are pause fillers necessary? My answer is a firm no unless you want to portray to the audience your lack of confidence and preparation. Pause fillers also reduce the impact of your presentations significantly. But here’s the problem. Very often, these pause fillers manifest themselves without warning. How then can we eliminate them if we do not know when they will pop up? Let us discuss three ways to eliminate pause fillers once and for all!

Firstly, be conscious of what you say. Listen to yourself as you make your presentation. Each time you are about to spurt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, thi

e try to remember what to say next. At times, they also “help” to fill the sudden silence that occurs in the middle of our presentations. I even notice presenters using pause fillers as crutches when they get all nervous and scared.

Are pause fillers necessary? My answer is a firm no unless you want to portray to the audience your lack of confidence and preparation. Pause fillers also reduce the impact of your presentations significantly. But here’s the problem. Very often, these pause fillers manifest themselves without warning. How then can we eliminate them if we do not know when they will pop up? Let us discuss three ways to eliminate pause fillers once and for all!

Firstly, be conscious of what you say. Listen to yourself as you make your presentation. Each time you are about to spurt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, th

y answer is a firm no unless you want to portray to the audience your lack of confidence and preparation. Pause fillers also reduce the impact of your presentations significantly. But here’s the problem. Very often, these pause fillers manifest themselves without warning. How then can we eliminate them if we do not know when they will pop up? Let us discuss three ways to eliminate pause fillers once and for all!

Firstly, be conscious of what you say. Listen to yourself as you make your presentation. Each time you are about to spurt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, th

g. How then can we eliminate them if we do not know when they will pop up? Let us discuss three ways to eliminate pause fillers once and for all!

Firstly, be conscious of what you say. Listen to yourself as you make your presentation. Each time you are about to spurt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, th

purt out a pause filler, catch it (figuratively of course). Something like this:

“As you can see, to be able to obtain a high score you must..(potential ‘urm’ unleashing - stop it and then proceed)…first know how you are being assessed.

During the start, this may sound a bit awkward. It not only feels so fake but it seems to be slowing you down as well. However after a while, the recovery time will get faster and faster. After a while you will notice that you don’t even have the urge to fill your pause with “urms” and “uhs” anymore.

Secondly, get someone to count your pause fillers when you are practicing your presentations. Remember before making your presentations, you must practice practice practice. It is impossible to notice all your pause fillers. But with a third party, he or she would be able to objectively identify them. From there you know which parts or sections in your presentations you are using pause fillers. Hence you can then work on eliminating them.

Thirdly, get used to the silence when you are making your presentations! Not only does it create suspense, it also allows your audience to digest and process your message. In fact, pauses are also the fundamental mechanics of humor (a warning though, too long a silence will come across that you have forgotten the points you want to present