Leveraging the Power of Um

The first thing Toastmasters tries to ingrain in its members is to remove “um” and other crutch words out of their speech. Their reasoning is sound – use pauses instead of crutch words to portray confidence in the material and in standing in front of an audience. However, I can think of a few scenarios where I believe that the use of “um” in speech that can be used sparingly as a powerful leadership technique.

Q&A Sessions

At the end of a presentation, many will ask thought-provoking questions that the audience will expect to take…thought. If you immediately respond to a question, it instinctively tells the audience that either the question was easy or that you aren’t considering how to word your reply. It makes sense to reply quickly and without pause to a question during a technical presentation, but for a leadership Q&A session, the audience expects more care to be given to the answer.

Perspective Discussions

When in a discussion of any size, people proposing an alternative suggestion or questioning why something isn’t done a different way is common. If you immediately respond without taking any pause or hesitation, it will most likely come off as dismissive. While you may be trying to convey confidence in your approach or solution, you run the risk of coming off as arrogant – even if you did previously consider the exact alternative they are suggesting.

Team Collaborations

During team collaborations, communication can be hit or miss depending on the synergy of the team. Once people believe that they aren’t being listened to or that their perspectives aren’t being considered, they will close down their communication and collaboration comes to an abrupt halt. Ensure that they feel valued by using pauses and a conversational “um” in your response to make sure their confidence in their contribution to the team discussion is untarnished.

Using “um” and “uh” can be an effective tool for leadership to ensure people feel heard and to keep the response conversational rather than authoritative. The point is not to be obnoxious with the hesitation or filler words, but to use it as a way to connect with the audience or the person you are responding to. It can make one seem more personable, especially during a casual conversation. Do you agree that using the technique in these scenarios can help?