All but the most experienced of speakers inadvertently use “crutch” words and phrases, such as “um”, “er” and “you know” in their spoken language from time to time.

Although these are a part of natural speech, learning to keep them to a minimum when presenting in front of an audience will improve the flow and impact of your communications.

More often than not these words are simply a result of nerves and will diminish as you become more comfortable speaking in front of other people.

At Toastmasters, you’ll learn that persistent crutch words can often be replaced by a simple pause, which will also improve the pace of your speech and make it more powerful.

Feedback from others will let you know when you are using crutch words and phrases, and also when you are successfully starting to eliminate them.