I am back after a refreshing break so now it is time for the home stretch of 2008.  I have to start with something light from JustSell.com – sales words: uh, verbal tics can be annoying, so…  The article is a provides a great insight into a common problem (my editing):

Verbal tics are words and phrases we use habitually, and sometimes, unconsciously. They’re the clutter in our speech that makes us sound less attentive, prepared, and intelligent than we want to sound.

JustSell’s top 7 most aggravating verbal tics…

  • uh
  • um
  • like
  • you know
  • I mean
  • so (especially when used at the end of an unfinished sentence)
  • well

We want to use words and phrases that communicate how prepared, confident and capable we are.

Amen to that last sentence.  Unfortunately, these habits can be hard to break since many of them are induced by pressure.

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