Nidhi Mukherjee, 2/26 Week 12 - Power of "Um" and "Like"
“Um, so like–”
Stop, stop, stop. Stop.
Let’s try that again.
“You know, like the, uh–”
Ugh, I’m hopeless.
In the span of a few words, that used to be what my conversations sounded like. Every time. Whether it be in the middle of a class, at recess, or at home with a friend. Every. Single. Time.
It was quite frustrating to have more filler words in my sentences rather than the ones that carried actual essence in my speech. Now, I’ve always been more reserved and drawn back—unless I’m with friends, of course. But that doesn’t even nearly begin to justify my almost stuttered speech with a heavy reliance on filler words.
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| "Filler words kind of, like, kill your credibility." - Courtesy of WordPress.com |
While I do remain grateful for the cultural connections that form as a result, I can’t help but hold my multilingual past liable for my wavering speech. When I freshly moved here at the age of nine from India, I thought that the English spoken here could sometimes be a bit rapid to understand and even harder to mimic the pace of, which made sense considering that I grew up in a household that spoke languages other than English. Somewhere along the way, in an attempt to right a few (what I considered to be) wrongs, I started pushing in filler words to give the illusion of the rapid pace of talking I knew and heard well.
For me, filler words proved to be something of an invisible layer of comfort and reassurance to blanket me from the stark changes I faced upon switching countries. And—even though I’m not exactly fond of them—filler words helped me adapt to the society and people around me. With time, I slowly relinquished my hold on them (although not entirely) to move seamlessly in conversation.
Well, maybe not seamlessly. But that only makes me more unique. More human.
Hi Nidhi, I often get told by my friends that I use way too many filler words, like literally every other word. After having that realization, I have subconsciously tried to stop myself from using filler words, only to continue to catch myself saying them out of habit. As your friend, I can verify that you definitely do say filler words every other word. Although everyone always comments that saying filler words make you sound less professional, I believe that it’s more awkward to be awkwardly paused mid-thought as you decide how to phrase the next part of your sentence, as that is when I often catch myself using filler words. Especially when I take a trip back to China, I feel like my stuttering and lack of proper word use increases, and it’s always a lot easier to lose my grip on English than to gain it back; my use of filler words only increases as a result. I agree that using filler words make you sound more human, and although they are not exactly mistakes, they are imperfections; that’s what makes me different from other people. I hope soon I’ll also be able to eliminate or decrease my use of filler words.
ReplyDeleteHi Nidhi! Your blog this week was relatable in so many aspects! I am also a big filler word user and it worsens especially when I am talking in front of a large audience. I have always considered this speaking style as my insecurity, but it was eye-opening and thought-provoking to read that you found “comfort and reassurance in them.” The way you described how using filler words gave you “an invisible layer of comfort and reassurance to blanket [you] from the stark changes [you] faced upon switching countries” was so creative! I think I reread that sentence at least like 5 times. It was also cool to see that filler words helped you adapt to the society and the people around you. Your blog has definitely shifted my view on filler words—that they are “unique” aspects in speaking that make you “more human.” Thank you for this blog!
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