Talking too fast

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My supervisors are constantly complaining to me that I speak too quickly to the clients we have. I am not doing it intentionally. I am not speaking quickly to appear intelligent, nor am I training to be an auctioneer(though I feel like I'd make a fair to decent auctioneer) I am simply speaking at the same rate I think at. And when I "slow down" I feel like I am talking down to the clients. What's your speaking rate?

I usually do a lot of filtering between what I'm thinking and what actually comes out of my mouth (thank goodness). I usually pause while thinking of a response and then talk rather quickly. Sometimes with people I'm not as worried about saying something dumb to I'll think of a response while I'm talking, and then I'll talk a lot slower.

Most of the cases, you will find you are able to speak much slower without appearing condescending. My point-in-case? People suffering from stuttering. The solution to this problem is to speak much more slower. So there must be a way to do it without sounding condescending.

Kind of like in the movie The King's Speech.

I've followed as part of my formation a few classes on public speaking, most of the time, people are afraid of speaking too slow. Most the time, if not always, theses people speak way too fast. Don't be afraid to slow down a bit, even if your train of thought goes faster. You can consider this as extra time to formulate your next though, once you acquire enough experience to do so without the extra attention you would ordinarily give to do so, of course.

I’m always rambling off too fast, which just makes me trip over my words and stutter.

Yeah, I speak fast and I've had problems of speaking too loudley...both of which happen w/out my noticing until someone brings it to my attention.

I've never had that problem, because I don't speak much.

A lot of the time I speak too fast. It is even worse when I am having a manic episode. There are other times where I speak incredibly slow and actually sound like a robot. So I do both extremes.

I... speak... slowly...

My speaking rate is "too fast" because my thinking rate is too fast. I can't slow down my thoughts and thus can't slow down my speaking rate. It's much easier typing, though I type quickly as well.

This right here. It's like my mouth is trying to keep up with my brain.

This. Though I can speak slower, depending on my mood, of which I'm not always aware.

One problem is that sometimes I speak so much at a time that the other person just can't follow my thoughts, or what I say could be told more concisely and appropriately in a lot fewer words. It's like I speak in assembler, while people would prefer to hear visual basic or java. Different levels of language, as if my computer that translates my thoughts into words would be pretty much outdated by now...

I know how you feel! I've always spoken way too quickly (when I do speak at all because I'm usually quite reticent) and when I do make the effort to slow down it makes me feel anxious so it isn't long before I'm talking a mile-a-minute again. Everyone's criticized me on this one: my dad, my best friend, school teachers, professors - you name it. I know they're just trying to be helpful, though, but I don't do it on purpose. I've also been told that I speak too softly, too.

I know how you feel , because I often speak so fast my father has a hard time trying to figure out what i am saying.

I speak too quickly, to the point where my words can sometimes become garbled. People are constantly asking me to repeat what I said. I've had to learn to slow down and enunciate my words carefully and clearly. It's not easy, though, and you can throw all hope of understanding me out the window if I get excited about something.

For me, I think talking fast is related to ADHD.

I’ve often compared my poor communication skills to speaking to someone in a foreign language. I’ve studied a foreign language, and I know what it’s like to struggle with putting every word that you want to get out through a “filter” of sorts. Even though I speak English and everyone around me speaks English, I still often feel like I’m struggling to “translate” between my brain and my mouth. Hope that makes sense.

Last edited by Jory on 11 Aug 2011, 2:41 pm, edited 1 time in total.

I can only say that I've often been told I'm talking too fast
Or too loud
Or too quiet (rare)
Or too high pitched

I never notice my volume even after it's pointed out to me.

But I have learned to notice my fast speaking when I read out loud (for whatever reason) because my mother spent half my life interrupting me and telling me to slow down in such situations (I often read out my poetry).

I still don't notice my speech rate at other times and have often been told "you're tripping over yourself... slow down and speak clearly". To which I always think: "But.. I wasn't reading anything, I was just talking!"

Oh well.