Working Hard with Grace Beverley How to speak clearly and get rid of filler words for good with Susie Ashfield
50 snips
Mar 2, 2026 Susie Ashfield, a communications and public speaking coach and author who helps people cut filler words and speak with confidence. She discusses how pauses replace ums, simple blueprints for clear messages and storytelling techniques to make data relatable. Practical prep tips, posture and voice tricks, and why authenticity and holding silence boost impact.
AI Snips
Chapters
Books
Transcript
Episode notes
Borrow Extreme Examples To Hook Technical Talks
- Susie helped a cybersecurity client who claimed 'there is nothing' by finding extreme real-world examples online.
- She used the Welsh USB/Bitcoin landfill story as a borrowed case to open and hook a technical talk.
Adopt The Pint And A Half Effect
- Use the 'pint and a half' mental model to access a relaxed confident version of yourself.
- Susie suggests imagining the slightly tipsy, relaxed persona to care less about others' opinions and present more naturally.
Use Body Language To Project Confidence
- Improve perceived competence with posture and small behaviours even if nerves remain.
- Susie advises straightening posture, rolling shoulders back, nodding, and using breath and space to appear and then become confident.
