3 ways to axe the filler words in your vocabulary once and for all

3 ways to axe the filler words in your vocabulary once and for all3 ways to axe the filler words in your vocabulary once and for allYou know when youre talking to your manager, and you notice that your speech is littered with a whole bunch of ums and likes, but its already far too late to correct yourself?Here are three ways to stop using filler words like these once and for all.Start tracking these words in your speechLisa B. Marshall, host and creator of The Public Speaker podcast, writes in a blog post that to become a better speaker, you should first become aware of your distracting speech habits by asking a friend or recording yourself.Once youve got some sample recordings, the next step is play back your recordings several times. Listen specifically for your disfluences - go ahead and make of game of it. First just list them and then start counting them. If you are counting past three or four, youll know you have a problem, she writes.Dont freak yourself outWhitson Gordon, cur rently a freelance writer,wrote in Lifehacker that the first thing you should do is relax.Lets start by saying dont fret over this too much. The more stressed you get by it, the more anxious and nervous youre going to sound, which is really what were trying to get away from in the first place, he writes. Its okay to let a few filler words slip out. After all, its a natural part of speaking. No ones going to think less of you if you say um once in awhile. The goal is to avoid saying it every three words. Take your hands out of your pockets, untense your shoulders, and let yourself relax a bit.Dont talk too fastSteven D. Cohen teaches at the the Harvard Division of Continuing Education is an assistant professor at the Johns Hopkins Carey Business School and president of Summit Presentations, LLC. He wrote in a Harvard Extension School blog post about why its important to slow down if you want to stop saying um.The next time you are asked a question, take a couple seconds to think abou t what you want to say. This pause serves two important purposes it will help you begin powerfully, and it will help you avoid using a filler word. Pause, think, answer, he writes. The same public speaking technique applies when you are transitioning from one idea to another. While you may be tempted to fill the silence between ideas with a filler word, remember to pause and give yourself a moment to think about what you want to say next. It is important that you dont begin speaking until you are ready.Remember Pause, think, answer.