Yyyy, ammm and no

Many suffer from “yyyy” when speaking.

To unlearn it, the technique used at Toastmasters International (clubs for practising public speaking) is to use a bell sound to let a speaker know that they are doing “yyyy”.

Yesterday, I listened to this Polish podcast by Przemek Górczyk, and there’s a curio:

When you say “yyyy” it feels like you do not know what to say. However, when you say “ammm” it feels like you’re thinking about something smart to say.

I wonder if exchanging “yyyy” with silence or with "ammm" is easier.

And there is one more thing about adding “no” (polish: “nie”) at the end of sentences during conference talks. From one perspective, it makes the audience think “oh, true, the speaker is right” and engages the audience… on the other hand, it sounds like a speaker saying “it is obvious and you should know it, right?”. I prefer the conference talks without “no”.

---