Uhhhhh … How to Avoid “Filler” Sounds
Uhhhhh … How to Avoid “Filler” Sounds
Many of us want to eliminate the little sounds that we utter unintentionally when we talk. The “you know” language that just comes out sometimes. Can you train yourself not to do it? The answer is “yes”! In my experience, the best way to do that is the following:
– Work on your breath first. It’s much harder if you are holding your breath. Make sure you are inhaling and exhaling continuously as you speak.
– Close your mouth. Many people talk “fast” without pausing because they never really close their mouths. They also utter “filler” sounds for the same reason. To change this, it takes a little self control. Start by standing up as if you are going to introduce yourself publicly, and then say a few words. As you speak, remember to inhale before you start, speak while exhaling, and then proactively close your mouth and inhale. Proactively means you plan to do this. You don’t just breathe when you are completely out of air. You do it earlier.
– Keep a “cushion” of air at all times. When you inhale and then speak, make sure you aren’t “out of air” or what we sometimes call “below respiratory.” That means, you want to keep a “life vest” of breath so you are in a sense “floating” as you speak. You’ll then have time plenty of time to pause, close your mouth intentionally and breathe, and then open and exhale with speech without running out of air.
– Practice while speaking impromptu. More and more, people are called on to speak up without preparing first. If this happens to you, you want to have good breathing and pausing habits so you have one less thing to worry about and can truly focus on your content.
Source URL : http://englishbythehour.com/uhhhhh-how-to-avoid-filler-sounds/
Challenge Sounds
The biggest mistake many Asian speakers make (Chinese, Filipino, Korean, Japanese, Thai or Vietnamese, for example) is often focusing too much (overdoing it) on the /r/ and the /l/ sound. Of course, it’s a good thing to work on those sounds, especially if you say them incorrectly. However, if you get a “general grasp” on them (you will know because people will understand you when you say words like “relevant”), then move on to working on other issues. Are you grouping words and holding the last one longer? If you are primarily focusing on individual sounds, you could be making yourself harder to understand. Instead, focus on clustering words in groups and increasing the time between word groups. Spend more time on challenge words (say them more deliberately with focus), but give the entire “chunk” of data … the content of your speech … the primary focus. Don’t try to be a perfectionist… take what you have, and work on being the best you can be by focusing on the “bigger picture.”
Breath on Air Flow Sounds
Most Asians don’t use enough breath on “air flow” sounds in English. Which sounds are these? They are the sounds that sound “breathy” a bit when native speakers talk. Have you ever noticed which sound lasts longer?
The voiceless ones like:
Ffffeeling ffffanssssy (feeling fancy)- Fffffirsssst
thththththingssssss ffffirsssst (first things first) - Fffffocusssss on the
pozzzzzitivvvve (focus on the positive) - Ssssomeththththing
sssspeshshshshial (something special)
Notice which sounds are longer in conversation, and practice deliberately releasing air specifically on those sounds. You will notice your speech increases in voice time and sounds more pleasurable to listeners. This will make your speech sounds more measured (less rushed) and the timing will be better. The intonation will be easier to control with breath.
Source URL : http://englishbythehour.com/breath-air-flow-sounds/
Breath on Air Flow Sounds
Most Asians don’t use enough breath on “air flow” sounds in English. Which sounds are these? They are the sounds that sound “breathy” a bit when native speakers talk. Have you ever noticed which sound lasts longer?
The voiceless ones like:
Ffffeeling ffffanssssy (feeling fancy)- Fffffirsssst
thththththingssssss ffffirsssst (first things first) - Fffffocusssss on the
pozzzzzitivvvve (focus on the positive) - Ssssomeththththing
sssspeshshshshial (something special)
Notice which sounds are longer in conversation, and practice deliberately releasing air specifically on those sounds. You will notice your speech increases in voice time and sounds more pleasurable to listeners. This will make your speech sounds more measured (less rushed) and the timing will be better. The intonation will be easier to control with breath.
Source URL : http://englishbythehour.com/breath-air-flow-sounds/
Exaggeration is the New Normal - English by the Hour - Tips for Asians
Exaggeration is the New Normal - English by the Hour - Tips for Asians
When I ask clients to “exaggerate” or “elongate” sounds, they often tell me it sounds exaggerated, and they don’t want to do it. Recording will help because often it’s not as exaggerated as you think. But in addition to that, what feels exaggerated is really just “strong” so you might ask yourself what makes you want to say things quickly and softly. Often it’s a fear we’re not saying things correctly. Start noticing when you rush and make notes about what you were saying. Then, look at the key words and write them phonetically. Then during your “practice time”, say them and record them (slowly and clearly, a syllable at a time). Once you “have it”, notice if the next time you can emphasize those words without feeling that you are exaggerating.
One sound Asians tend to feel is exaggerated is the /r/ after a consonant, like “creature” or the /l/ after a consonant like “clear”. The reason it feels so exaggerated is the tongue engagement behind the upper teeth is too light for many Asian speakers (such as Thai or Japanese speakers). So hold the tongue there longer, and you will get a more native-like sound.
Emphasizing words is important … it may sound like exaggerating to you until you hear how you sound in public, and you may be surprised how great you actually do sound!
Source URL: http://englishbythehour.com/exaggeration-new-normal/
Sounding Out Words English by the Hour
Sounding Out Words English by the Hour
Most Asian speakers pronounce words as “units”. This means you say words one-at-a-time with all the sounds at once. So if you are mispronouncing a word, you probably won’t notice. If instead you sound out the word and pay attention to each sound (consonants, vowels, and syllables) and say the word deliberately making all the sounds before you speed it up, you’ll get a much better result!
Engage with a professional speech and American accent coach to improve how you sound and how you are perceived by others with help from professional coaching.
Source URL: http://englishbythehour.com/sounding-out-words/
It’s All About the Breath - English by the Hour
It’s All About the Breath - English by the Hour
If you are a past client, you already know how important breath is for speech. The thing most people don’t realize is it’s too late to change if you try to “breathe differently” as you speak. You have to change your deep underlying habits through good practice ahead of time. This is especially true of Asian languages, which have shorter, faster articulation patterns. Some languages are monosyllabic, like Vietnamese, for example, or tonal like Chinese or Thai. Even Korean and Japanese, flat and equal-length sounds, will not require the same breathing as English.
Telling yourself to “breathe deep” is, in general, a bad cue. Why? Because most of us take a huge inhale when we hear the word “deep”, but natural breathing is not forced. It’s gentler, so if you practice taking forced, deep breaths, you are probably making your speech tenser, not less.
Instead, tell yourself to “breathe fully” using the whole body: the chest, the clavicles, the sides “floating ribs”, the stomach and the back. Then breathe in and swell like a balloon at your own pace, and exhale as you speak.
This will help your speech tremendously!
Source URL: http://englishbythehour.com/its-all-about-the-breath/
