Question:
I speak way too fast and become can be become faster and faster. I have always been like this since a child. I have never been a mumbler I do speak clearly. I am a confident speaker publicly and socially even since befoe high school. I was a sucessful debater. I need to do something about this professionally and socially. As much as everyone who knows me thinks this is just my fasanating notorious trait !!!!!! Ineed this to change as I am an acount manager and business wise I know this is something I need to change. I am also personally sick of being misunderstood many times not in any bad way but because my speech is so fast what I say and i what it is taken as can be 2 very different things. can what should I do and where do I start. I have tried the breathing putting my tongue against my teeth when people speak but this is not enough. It was like my brain was just born this fast !!! I am also a fluent Japanese speaker and even Japanese are fasinated how fast I speak Japanese considering it is a language which is naturally a very fast language. What should I do I live in sydney
Answer:
Although I normally edit the questions so that they are easy for everyone to read, I left yours “as sent” so everyone can experience the way your speed issue manifests even when you are writing. When we go at an excessively rapid pace we tend to make mistakes, but even more interesting is the effect on our body and brain chemistry. You need to get out of your mind and be more sensual, more in your body. To be in a speed mode is not unlike taking an amphetamine. Interestingly, whether we have a tendancy to be speeding excessively, or depressive, or anxious, or forever clowning around, we develop a sort of addiction to our familiar state of being. We grow comfortable with it and lose the ability to choose other states of being. Once we are in this mode it can be difficult to shift significantly on our own; regular, consistent work with a wise and skillful voice coach is needed. Also, since these kinds of shifts require deep psyco-spiritual shifts and create change in every relationship we have, including the way we relate to ourselves, we might also require a therapist and/or spiritual advisor to be part of our team. However we choose to address a communication/relationship pattern, I think it is wise to seek the support and guidance of experienced professionals.
On a purely technical level, you can set a metronome and try to speak in slow rhythms that match it. You can tap your foot slowly, then try to speak as slowly as your foot is tapping. You can try speaking with a big wad of gum in your mouth and see if that slows you down any.