You Don’t Need Confidence to Start Speaking (You Need This Instead)
The Fluent-Dude
The UHM-Dude
About V3
Speaking Better? Better Than What?
ABOUT Version 2
This is the companion voice-clip for the blog post: https://openairtalk.com/2026/09/28/you-dont-need-confidence-to-start-speaking-you-need-this-instead/
The poor UHM-Dude. He didn’t get any applause after that seemingly sad excuse for a speech. “He can’t speak.” That’s the feedback I get when people first listen to the clip. But, actually, he can speak. He isn’t fluent. Articulation isn’t his best suit. You have experienced many flavours of that kind of speech. At weddings and conferences, I have often listened to ad-hoc speakers stumble and labour through every single word after they’ve been called to the stage. But not the Fluent-Dude. No. After his speech, Fluent-Dude received a thunderous ovation. He was patted on the back. “On point, Sir, well said!” Meaning breaks in many ways. It can even break within the fluent speech, or after it. Those same people who raised a glass to Fluent-Dude’s winged words would not admit that he really said very little. Bullshit Corporate Jargon. Those empty phrases remind me of a massive all-purpose kitchen appliance that’s chock-full of features, but isn’t plugged in. There’s no meaning. No connection. The UHM-Dude didn’t need applause. He got something better: smiles of relief, quiet acknowledgement and appreciation. He had fought for his team and with them. Shared meaning doesn’t rely on fluent articulation. Hell yeah, what a bonus if you develop confidence and presence. And even when you know what to say, it matters that you know not only how to say it well, but what you are actually trying to mean.
The poor UHM-Dude. He didn’t get any applause after that seemingly sad excuse for a speech. “He can’t speak.” That’s the feedback I get when people first listen to the clip. But, actually, he can speak. He isn’t fluent. Articulation isn’t his best suit. You have experienced many flavours of that kind of speech. At weddings and conferences, I have often listened to ad-hoc speakers stumble and labour through every single word after they’ve been called to the stage. But not the Fluent-Dude. No. After his speech, Fluent-Dude received a thunderous ovation. He was patted on the back. “On point, Sir, well said!” Meaning breaks in many ways. It can even break within the fluent speech, or after it. Those same people who raised a glass to Fluent-Dude’s winged words would not admit that he really said very little. Bullshit Corporate Jargon. Those empty phrases remind me of a massive all-purpose kitchen appliance that’s chock-full of features, but isn’t plugged in. There’s no meaning. No connection. The UHM-Dude didn’t need applause. He got something better: smiles of relief, quiet acknowledgement and appreciation. He had fought for his team and with them. Shared meaning doesn’t rely on fluent articulation. Hell yeah, what a bonus if you develop confidence and presence. And even when you know what to say, it matters that you know not only how to say it well, but what you are actually trying to mean.
Iteration 3
I can't imagine anybody waking up one morning and exclaiming, “I need to learn to speak better.” Better than what? You get invited to an interview. It's not that you want to speak better. You want to find the language that will enable you to secure the job. When I was still teaching, a thin, weedy-looking boy approached me because he wanted to join the Speech and Drama Guild. I asked him the question I always asked. Why? And he said he'd met a girl, and he felt stupid when he talked to her. He wanted to speak better...
You Don't Need an About Page version 2 There are ways to find out who someone "is." You can visit their website. You can find the About page. Or you can listen to them. Really listen. Because sometimes the person speaking, tells you considerably more about themselves through the questions they ask than through anything they have written about themselves. For this Audio-About Page, I start with an unlikely place: The Matrix Reloaded. Seraph doesn't look Neo up. He doesn't check his credentials. He doesn't search for an About page. He fights him.
You Don't Need an About Page There are ways to find out who someone "is." You can visit their website. You can find the About page. Or you can listen to them. Really listen. Because sometimes the person speaking, tells you considerably more about themselves through the questions they ask than through anything they have written about themselves. For this Audio-About Page, I start with an unlikely place: The Matrix Reloaded. Seraph doesn't look Neo up. He doesn't check his credentials. He doesn't search for an About page. He fights him.