Shorthand systems have always struggled to reach those verbatim speeds of 160 or more, but there were thousands of court reporters that used to record by hand the utterings of even the fastest of orators. Gregg Shorthand has records of up to 280wpm although the average person would get around half that speed after some years of study.

Thank you very much

It can be frustrating and difficult when one’s mind runs “a mile a minute” but you have to control the speech for others to digest it.

Think of it from the other side. It is hard for some of us to deal with. And, when trying to slow the speech the mind is so far ahead that the mouth actually looses it’s place and some thoughts are left unfinished.

It’s not a matter of how quickly one wants to expel a thought from one’s mouth, but often a matter of the speed of the mind that is cultivating the thought.

This was enlightening. I enjoyed the little speech (wpm) test.

I also think Michael makes some excellent points.

James
blog.jvf.com

Every Saturday, we survey the best public speaking articles from throughout the public speaking blogosphere. Topics featured this week include:

writing commencement speeches;
fear of public speaking;
handling adversarial audience members;
Toastmaster…

While it is unprofessional and should never play a role, this is an issue that often plays a role in applying for an academic position. And it largely depends on who is making the decisions. It would be great if everyone were understanding and professional regarding pregnancy, this is too often not the case.

First off, I would suggest that you make sure that the committee making the decision knows of your situation. If you show up obviously pregnant, and they were unaware, they may feel like you misled them by omitting the detail. It probably suffices to mention it casually and matter-of-factly to whoever extended the talk invitation. You should never have to mention it, but often, decision-makers can be misguided as to what is relevant and what is not. And you want them to see you as honest and forthright, rather than looking like you are hiding something.

Second, when you get there and are giving the talk, you might want to introduce the obvious before starting, to get it out of the way. I like Lisa’s suggestions; just think of something that sounds natural.

Third, remember to take care of yourself up there. Talks are stressful enough without the extra stresses involved. Make sure you’re especially well-rested, hydrated, etc. That will reduce the degree to which your pregnancy is distracting to others (if they notice how it affects you) and make you look all the more on top of your game, instead of a little more sluggish than you want to appear.

Hope this helps. And good luck!

Now I have an answer.

Thanks so much.

Perhaps what I should have said was,”Don’t alter your data…period”. Some alterations are made with a “good intention” of making the images clearer or more readable–particularly when it comes to gels. My point was it wasn’t worth the risk to alter an image, it is better to do over again, photograph again, or simply submit the unclear gel as is.

The woman who was caught was quoted as saying she did it because she “…was trying to present it even better.” Maybe you could tell your young audience, “don’t lie, learn to do excellent work and learn to present it with excellence.”

It’s not always easy to make your case based on the truth, but it’s the way to go… you have evidence and you’re drawing conclusions. They should stand or fall, or simply contribute to the conversation, on their merits.

Mike

Thanks for the post.

Controlling your speech rate is a definitely a good thing to keep track of.

Nonetheless, I want to turn this post on its head: I feel that presenters often try to rush through their material as quickly as possible and in doing so alienate their audience.

Silence is powerful in presentations!

Silence is a common occurrence in genuine dialogue. One of our strongest allies in being mentally present is to hold our silence longer than is comfortable.

Our natural discomfort with silence sometimes causes us to interrupt a silence in the conversation too soon. Frequently, before someone embraces a new perspective we are urging, they will go silent. They are doing the deep thinking required before they open to new perspectives. To interrupt this important exploration undercuts our ability to influence.

I always suggest:

1. Practice holding silence longer. Allow your “inner-observer” to
monitor your nervousness, “Shouldn’t I be saying something?”
2. Develop deeper silences within yourself so that you can hear
through the noise to find the signal of what others really mean.
3. See the silence of your conversation not as dead silence, not as paralyzed silence, but as silence teeming with possibility.

Thanks again

If anyone reading has ideas- I sure would love to hear them!