He told me as I was dropping to sleep last night that I'd said "um" probably more than twenty times in my introductory comments. He told me gently.
It didn't bother me much.
Embarrassing, yes. But I was thankful. No one ever tells me how I can improve in my teaching. Now here's concrete information.
But twenty "ummms" in a few minutes??? I would never have guessed. Never heard myself say them. Nervous habits make me nervous. Now I'm confronted with the fact I carry them myself. Publicly.
Makes me wonder. What else am I saying that I'm not hearing? What do others hear?
I'm taking the week to listen. To what I'm saying. Is it really what I'm aiming for?
