Most of us are unaware of our own speech habits. We hear the quirky
things others do, but we seldom have a chance to hear our own
unrehearsed speech. It's quite possible that someone who inserts an
"uhhh" every third word could categorically deny doing so because
they're not aware that do do this.

I was watching "Meet the Press" Sunday when Chuck Todd interviewed
Brett Giroir. Admiral Giroir is the Assistant Secretary of Health in
the current administration.

Giroir started every statement with the word "So". Fabricating an
exchange as an example:

Todd: Are you in favor of a mandate requiring everyone to wear a face
mask"

Giroir: So, I think ...."

I would imagine that people like Giroir who are frequently the subject
of interviews that are televised watch tapes of those interviews. Not
so much out of vanity, but to make sure they said what they think they
said.

How could Giroir watch his own interview and not be aware of his use
of "So" and note how distracting it is?

Back when I was giving a lot of presentations to groups I had someone
video a couple of them. I'm not an "uhh" or "So" emitter, but I
noticed that I tended to sway side-to-side when speaking. I made a
conscious effort to stop that, and later videos showed that I did
quell that habit.


--
Tony Cooper - Orlando, Florida