I thought I was done writing about this but apparently I’m not.
You can count the number of times you say “um” in your talk. You can time your speech to fit into a specific limit. You can even measure the number of hours you spend rehearsing your presentation.
These numbers will tell you 1) how many times you used a filler word, 2) how long your speech is, and 3) how much time you spent practicing.
Those numbers will not tell you whether you will be successful in actually connecting with other people in a meaningful way. Instead they give you an artificial sense that you are prepared, simply because you met some quantitative measure.
Instead of filler words, concentrate on how you want to affect your audience.
Instead of squeezing your speech into the time limit, focus on one or two ideas and how best to convey them concisely.
Instead of thinking about how long you’ve practiced, reflect on the progress you’ve made.
I get it. It’s way easier to focus on the easily measured elements of big jobs, because it makes us feel like we’re making progress. But when the measurement isn’t giving us any useful information, like how well we’re connecting with other people, it’s time to find a different way to work.
