There is an interesting lesson we learned in our early elementary school years that has managed to cause more negative results than the positive results for which it was intended. In 2nd or 3rd grade, our teachers taught us to wait until we came to the end of the sentence before taking a breath, thereby ensuring smooth-flowing sentences.
Admittedly, many young children audibly breathe throughout their sentences resulting in choppiness when reading out loud.
While good advice for the 3rd grader, the problem for many students as they continue to grow is that that lesson becomes the norm. By the time they reach the 12th grade and their sentences have become more complex, they are under the mistaken belief that they are not allowed to breathe until there is a period or some other form of punctuation. This is wrong.
If you have any expression, any life, any color in your delivery, you can breathe almost anywhere in any sentence at any time.
Unfortunately, many people are unaware of this proviso and at the lectern or on the podium, it can have disastrous effects. If you couple that with nervousness, breathlessness in public speaking is the result.
This problem, however, is not just symptomatic of public speaking but is very common in men (more so than in women) in every day conversation. There is nothing more frustrating than listening to someone speak and not hearing the end of their sentence.
The remedy is to learn to take a breath during the sentence. Trust me, it is allowed and you are not breaking the rules! It is part of what I call ‘speaker’s license.’
Look at the following statement:
Today is not the end * of the event.
If you say this sentence out loud and pause where you see the asterisk, it works. [If you speak in a monotone, however, this does not work because you will sound like a robot. You must speak with some life, some color, some emotion in your delivery for this to be effective.]
In truth, you can take a breath or pause after any word in that sentence as long as you have some expression.
The secret to having enough air to finish your sentences is not to wait until you are out of air to take your next breath. It is called supplementing your air supply and it is the only way to stop the problem.
So the next time you find yourself running out of air, remember, you need not come to a comma, a semicolon or a period to take a breath. Keep your ‘balloon’ of air inflated and supplement throughout. Don’t wait until your balloon is totally deflated!
