Do you lack enthusiasm when you talk? Maybe you talk too fast? Do you mumble? If so, your communication style may be hurting your popularity with friends, coworkers, and loved ones.
If you can relate to any (or all!) of these examples, you (and your speech) might be in trouble – but it doesn’t have to be! Take a look through these common speech styles that turn people off so you can do your best to avoid them.
Talking softly with an “indoor voice” is one thing. But mumbling your words? Forget it. Your lips might be moving, but not much is coming out – or at least it’s too muffled for anyone to fully understand. If your friends are constantly asking you to speak up or beg you to slow down when you’re telling a story, mussitation might be taking over your speech.
It’s normal for topics to change in the middle of a conversation. For example, you might be talking about your latest project with a coworker and then lunch pops into your chat. No big deal. But if you’re a constant rambler that can never stay on point in any conversation? Well, that means you’re discursive, and the topics you’re bringing up are thrown around as quickly as a hot potato.
If your speaking style is described as ponderous, that’s just a fancier word to say it’s, well, booooooooring. Whether you’re lacking enthusiasm or your story is downright dull, those who are chatting with you might need a cup of coffee to pay attention.
Poetic speech isn’t always a bad thing. In fact, it can be nice to listen to the occasional fancy word or skillful sentence. However, when it’s over-the-top it can be exhausting. Flowery speech is when you over-complicate your sentences to sound smarter or more interesting. Our advice? Just say what you mean – your ideas should speak for themselves.
Long, drawn-out speeches make just about everyone zone out. So, if you are guilty of wordy sentences that go on and on for what seems like forever, you may be described as prolix. It’s time to get to the point already!
Bigger doesn’t always mean better, especially when it comes to words. If you have a tendency to be sesquipedalian, this means you’re all about throwing in long words (with an abundance of different syllables) into your everyday sentences. Words like these should be used sparingly, and with care.
Some have the gift of gab, making for easy conversation. But, when a person is overly chatty, the gabfest can shift from engaging to dreadful. A loquacious person is one who babbles about anything and everything, making them a hard person to say goodbye to, no matter how hard you try.
YOU MIGHT ALSO LIKE
