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Learning to speak clearly
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drzaius
Guest
PostPosted: Thu Aug 17, 2006 9:45 am    Post subject: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
Hello all,

I am considering joining my local Toastmasters chapter for a very
specific reason: I struggle with verbal communication. I often speak
too fast and fail to properly enunciate. What gives me particular
pause, however, is my inability to say certain words. For example,
unless I focus and pay an undue amount of attention, I cannot say the
word "statistics" (even worse: "statistically") without getting hung-up
on the initial "sta."

I don't consider myself a stutterer, but I do notice significant
impairment in my verbal abilities when I'm under stress or feeling
unconfident. In these circumstances, my speech rate spikes and I feel
tense in the mouth, leading to spastic and ineffective speech.

My question for you all is this: do you know of any books I can read,
resources I can tap or exercises I can perform to help alleviate this
problem? Would joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe
environment with feedback be beneficial?

I appreciate any and all advice you guys can offer. Thanks in advance!
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Joy
Guest
PostPosted: Thu Aug 17, 2006 10:53 am    Post subject: Re: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
"drzaius" <sean.rumrill@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1155782736.030868.288150@75g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
Quote:
Hello all,

I am considering joining my local Toastmasters chapter for a very
specific reason: I struggle with verbal communication. I often speak
too fast and fail to properly enunciate. What gives me particular
pause, however, is my inability to say certain words. For example,
unless I focus and pay an undue amount of attention, I cannot say the
word "statistics" (even worse: "statistically") without getting hung-up
on the initial "sta."

I don't consider myself a stutterer, but I do notice significant
impairment in my verbal abilities when I'm under stress or feeling
unconfident. In these circumstances, my speech rate spikes and I feel
tense in the mouth, leading to spastic and ineffective speech.

My question for you all is this: do you know of any books I can read,
resources I can tap or exercises I can perform to help alleviate this
problem? Would joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe
environment with feedback be beneficial?

I appreciate any and all advice you guys can offer. Thanks in advance!

Joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe environment with
feedback would, indeed, be beneficial. Many people join Toastmasters either
to overcome a fear of speaking or to improve their pronunciation and
enunciation. There are many Toastmasters in the United States who are
speaking English as their second language. Feedback helps them to realize
when they could improve their pronunciation, and it is a great confidence
builder.

Toastmasters can be most helpful when the members of the club you join
understand your goals. If you explain your difficulty to them, they will be
happy to assist you in any way they can.

--
Joy Gaylord, ATM-S, CL
Simi Valley Toastmasters (Dist. 33)
Storytelling & Performing Arts Toastmasters (Dist. 52)
Southern California
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Rod Taylor
Guest
PostPosted: Thu Aug 17, 2006 2:15 pm    Post subject: Re: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
"drzaius" <sean.rumrill@gmail.com> wrote in message
news:1155782736.030868.288150@75g2000cwc.googlegroups.com...
Quote:
Hello all,

I am considering joining my local Toastmasters chapter for a very
specific reason: I struggle with verbal communication. I often speak
too fast and fail to properly enunciate. What gives me particular
pause, however, is my inability to say certain words. For example,
unless I focus and pay an undue amount of attention, I cannot say the
word "statistics" (even worse: "statistically") without getting
hung-up
on the initial "sta."

I don't consider myself a stutterer, but I do notice significant
impairment in my verbal abilities when I'm under stress or feeling
unconfident. In these circumstances, my speech rate spikes and I feel
tense in the mouth, leading to spastic and ineffective speech.

My question for you all is this: do you know of any books I can read,
resources I can tap or exercises I can perform to help alleviate this
problem? Would joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe
environment with feedback be beneficial?

I appreciate any and all advice you guys can offer. Thanks in
advance!


There are a few good books that can help. Your local librarian will be
able to guide you. A good speech therapist can also probably solve your
problem.

Toastmasters can certainly get you to where you want to be. Books can
provide specifics, such as exercises and technical information, that
Toastmasters (usually) cannot - few of us are speech experts in that
sense. Books cannot provide a safe environment for you to practice, nor
can they give you feedback. A good speech therapist can do both, but
probably at far greater cost than Toastmasters, and it will be a lot
less fun!

Any Toastmasters Club will be able to help you, and will be glad to do
so. If there are several Clubs in your locality, visit them all and
explain your needs and anxieties to the Vice President Education.
You'll probably find that you feel more at home with one Club than with
the others. If you have a choice of only one Club, then you won't
notice the difference Smile))

When compared to a good speech therapist, Toastmasters may be a slower
solution but, as you work through the programme, your confidence will
increase and your stress levels will reduce. At first this will happen
mostly within the Club environment, but in time it will expand to every
speaking situation.

Good luck. Let us know how you fare.

Rod Taylor (rodt iafrica - don't forget the @ and the dotcom)
Transformers Toastmasters Club
District 74, Southern Africa
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Colin William
Guest
PostPosted: Thu Aug 17, 2006 8:32 pm    Post subject: Re: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
"drzaius" <sean.rumrill@gmail.com> wrote
Quote:
I am considering joining my local Toastmasters chapter for a very
specific reason: I struggle with verbal communication. I often speak
too fast and fail to properly enunciate. What gives me particular
pause, however, is my inability to say certain words. For example,
unless I focus and pay an undue amount of attention, I cannot say the
word "statistics" (even worse: "statistically") without getting hung-up
on the initial "sta."

Oh, just do as I and many others do - call them "sadistics" :-)

Quote:
My question for you all is this: do you know of any books I can read,
resources I can tap or exercises I can perform to help alleviate this
problem? Would joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe
environment with feedback be beneficial?

I can't offer suggestions on the former, but as to the latter, a resounding
yes. The most important of TM is getting practice and learning to relax, so
if stress and tension are part of your challenge, then routinely practicing
and getting up to speak in front of people - both prepared and impromptu -
should be an enormous help.

Good luck!

Colin
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p c
Guest
PostPosted: Fri Aug 18, 2006 10:06 am    Post subject: Re: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
drzaius wrote:
Quote:
Hello all,

I am considering joining my local Toastmasters chapter for a very
specific reason: I struggle with verbal communication. I often speak
too fast and fail to properly enunciate. What gives me particular
pause, however, is my inability to say certain words. For example,
unless I focus and pay an undue amount of attention, I cannot say the
word "statistics" (even worse: "statistically") without getting hung-up
on the initial "sta."

I don't consider myself a stutterer, but I do notice significant
impairment in my verbal abilities when I'm under stress or feeling
unconfident. In these circumstances, my speech rate spikes and I feel
tense in the mouth, leading to spastic and ineffective speech.

My question for you all is this: do you know of any books I can read,
resources I can tap or exercises I can perform to help alleviate this
problem? Would joining Toastmasters and practicing speaking in a safe
environment with feedback be beneficial?

I appreciate any and all advice you guys can offer. Thanks in advance!

A club member had a problem with talking too fast. He just got his CTM
and started slowing down around speech #7. Now, his speech is "normal."
...PC
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Jonathan
Guest
PostPosted: Tue Aug 22, 2006 2:32 pm    Post subject: Re: Learning to speak clearly Reply with quote
Hi Drzaius,

Practicing speaking is one of the best things you can do and
Toastmasters is a great environment to learn and master the skill.

A second area you might want to consider is the mind. Your mind is like
a computer with various programs and occasionally viruses written on
it. That computer like viruses can be overwritten. Check out
http://www.uncommonforum.com/ where they have a section on public
speaking. By the way, they will encourage you to join toastmasters too.

You could check out http://www.speechmastery.com/speaking-skill.html

On one of the pages http://www.speechmastery.com/sensestress.html is an
exercise where you practice saying a phrase each time emphasizing a
different word in the same sentence.

Make a sentence and put in the words you have trouble with and practice
the same way.

This does two things.

One, it programs your brain to say it correctly when not under stress
which will make it easier when you are.

Two, it helps you master your mind or learn self control.

Best wishes,

Jonathan
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