Lisa Braithwaite is a public speaking coach from California, interviewed by the Los Angeles Times and Chicago Tribune as an expert in her craft. Braithwaite’s blog “Speak Schmeak” covers all aspects of the public speaking process.

Here are the steps:

1. Read the entry “What’s Your Crutch Phrase?” Links to an external site.

2. Please answer the following questions in a 1-2 page:

What did you learn from reading “What’s Your Crutch Phrase?”
Monitor your conversations for one to two days and try to catch any “crutch phrases” that you use. Ask others to help you as you speak with them. What do you say repetitively?
Why do you believe you use the “crutch phrase” that you do? Do you perceive your “crutch phrase” impacting your ability to communicate clearly? How does using this phrase impact the level of power in your language?
Devise up to two strategies that you can use, as Braithwaite puts it, to “eradicate your crutch phrase.” How might these strategies help your language become more powerful?
3. Your 1-2 page should be double spaced, 12-point Tines New Roman.