"Like" and other speech deficiencies

Submitted by Max Power
in
General Questions and Comments

 Hi All,

I manage an inside sales team.  Some individuals are plagued with nasty linguistic habits that seem to be a sign of the times.  I'm referring to the constant upspeaking (ie. high rising terminals) and incessant, unnecessary use of the word "like" to string together simple sentences.

Does anyone know of an audio course designed to develop assertive, confident speech?  I've done quite a few searches on Amazon but really couldn't find anything valuable.

Thanks!

-Max

Submitted by Gwen Pearson on Thursday May 5th, 2011 9:39 am

Record them. Make them listen/watch themselves.
This is the fastest way to make them want to change--and they have to want to change for it to happen.

Submitted by Max Power on Thursday May 5th, 2011 9:59 am

 Thanks for the reply.  I do this already.  I'm not a trainer so I'm looking for quality materials to help them be more effective.  Something self-guided.. audio tapes, for example.  Short of setting up a formal in-class training and spending a whack of money (that I have no budget for) I want them to be thinking of how they speak.  

Submitted by Stephen Ibanez on Saturday May 7th, 2011 6:04 am

I found The Dale Carnegie course to be very helpful.
Steve Ibanez
DiSC 7114

Submitted by Tim Rutter on Monday May 9th, 2011 9:31 pm

I can add weight to Bugs' suggestion. I was 'made' to do it as a subaltern and I could have crawled in a hole. I thought I knew what I was doing and suddenly I'm faced with a whole raft of bad habits that I was never aware of.
As for the AQI, I'm afraid that it is a function of modern English. Having emigrated to Australia it still confuses the heck out of me. Are they asking a question or don't they have the confidence to tell me?
Tim

Submitted by Mike Baker on Saturday May 14th, 2011 5:49 am

Toastmasters would be my suggestion as well.  If there isn't the time or inclination to join a local club, you can borrow an effective toastmasters technique.  At meetings, there is a person designated to count the number of "ah's", "um's", "likes", and "you knows" that each speaker uses and then report out at the end of the meeting the frequency of use.   If you or someone else is observing this salesperson, you could do the same thing and set a goal of reducing the number/minute over a period of time.   
Mike