So, This Is An Article About Public Speaking

I’m a big fan of the TWIT podcasts. I love Leo Laporte and Andy Inhatko and that grouchy John C. Dvorak. They’re such hoots and I really enjoy listening to TWIT and MacBreak Weekly and all of the people who are on those programs. Those are panel programs and I learn about a lot of new subjects and the happenings in the general tech and Mac specific spaces week in and week out.

I also listen to FLOSS Weekly, a program dedicated to exploring free and libre open source software. Even if you don’t care about the open source movement, you’ll want to check out Randal Schwartz’ and Jono Bacon’s interview with Linux creator Linus Torvalds. The guy is a real character and surprisingly funny. Its a great show and I enjoy hearing about the great strides being made in the Open Source arena.

I will, however, make an admission. People do NOT know how to speak in public any more. I will hand down props to Leo, an extremely well-spoken man and wonderful personality, Randal, who is clear, concise, and has an obvious passion for the subject matter, and Jono, with his British sensibility in speech and his tenacity and willingness to ask the hard questions. There is nothing wrong with the host base.

Where there is an issue, and I see this everywhere, not just on FLOSS, is with the guests. These are smart people, most of them with degrees (likely all of them), and they can program these ridiculously complex systems, and then they talk like imbeciles. Here’s a common exchange:

HOST: How did you first get involved with <PROJECT X>?

GUEST: So, I was at college…

Question after question from the hosts is followed almost immediately with a “SO”. Guest after frighteningly intelligent guest comes on. Over and over again, people start their sentences with the word “SO”. How could you possibly be more insulting to someone taking the time to ask YOU about what YOU do and publicize it so that others can benefit, and YOU walk in there talking like you didn’t get out of 3rd grade!

Yes. I know that this sounds very Soup Nazi of me, but this is not the way to present yourself to the world. I’m just tired of hearing it from people who should know better. So this! So that! So whatever!! You NEVER start a sentence with the word “So”. It has no place there. One could over-elegantly and over-complicate an explanation of the use of the word “So” by writing an article in a scientific magazine in an attempt to validate its use, but then, that would be functionally destroying the English language.

The use of the word “So” to start a sentence is neither “delaminating” nor revealing. It is crude, unwelcome, and abrasive use of a very powerful language for those who choose to learn how to use it properly. I’m essentially to the point where if I hear a guest start talking like that, I’m turning off the podcast.

Sorry Leo! Love you, but I can’t stand it.