GK Training

07/03/2025

One of the main reasons people say “um” or mumble is they don’t know how to tolerate silence. They've developed a habit of filling any gaps with a sound or a meaningless phrase, suppressing their lungs of air and their brains of the needed time to think of the next smart thing to say.

But not tolerating silence has another side effect: it makes it harder to be other-focused in a conversation. Guess what's hard to do when sounds and words are coming out of your mouth? Listening.

I found this particularly interesting when it happened on a sales call — just like the one I was in today.

They sent me a cold email. It grabbed my attention. I did my homework, researched the product, and booked a call with them. I was already sold when I joined the call.

When they started talking about features and all the bells and whistles of their product, I politely interrupted and said, “I’m sold. I want to test it. What are the next steps?”

Then they kept talking about features and how good the product is.

By talking too much and not listening to me, they almost lost me.

On your next meeting or call, remember: being other-focused is the best way to have an effective conversation, and learning to pause can help you do just that.

06/30/2025

The first 90 seconds of your interview matter more than you think.

Tomorrow, July 1 at 9:15AM CST, Chad Hoeppner, GK's Founder & CEO will be live on WGN TV talking about how to nail a job interview.

Here’s what he’ll be covering:

3 proven tips: prioritize delivery, use kinesthetic tools, and speak with vivid language
How to speak like you belong, even when you don’t feel that way
Why nerves aren’t the problem, and what to do with them instead
The most common speaking mistakes people make in interviews
Why “sounding professional” often makes things worse
How to slow down in a way that actually works

How to watch live:
Channel 9 in Chicago, WGN-TV+ app (Roku, Fire TV, Apple TV, Samsung), Hulu Live, YouTube TV, fuboTV, or stream from the WGN website or app.

06/26/2025

If you’ve ever been told to “just speak louder” to fix vocal fry, read this before you hurt your voice.

When working with clients, we spend a good amount of time fixing bad communication habits that they got mostly from receiving bad advice.

And, unfortunately, bad advice is everywhere. Yesterday, a well-known “communication expert” posted on LinkedIn:

“Fix vocal fry with one move: speak louder.
That scratchy, creaky tone (like ‘uhh… yeah… I guess…’) is vocal fry. It usually happens when you’re speaking too softly or from your throat.
The fix: Add volume.
A stronger voice = clearer tone = more authority.”

This is terrible advice. It’s a hack that will probably yield some improvement because when you add volume, you add air. But it’s not the real antidote, and you might also strain your voice approaching it this way.

When people just say “talk louder,” that is actually problematic because if people have vocal fry, they don’t know how to use their voices correctly. So just having them be louder can make their bad habits worse (or give them a new bad habit) and can teach them muscle tension rather than a tension-free, breath-supported sound.

Instead, they need to learn how to breathe correctly from their diaphragm to support their sound in a healthy way.

When you support your sound with proper breathing, you don’t need to turn up the volume at all. The fry will naturally go away, and your voice will become more centered in the middle of your vocal range — so you’re actually changing pitch rather than volume.

Good communication isn’t about quick tricks. It’s about learning the right mechanics.

Want more insights like this?
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02/10/2025

"Don't Say Um" is the #1 Best Selling nonfiction book for January at Porchlight! What excitement, what an honor! Grab your copy below. And head to DontSayUm.com for more info on what you'll find inside.

https://www.porchlightbooks.com/buy-books/nonfiction-bestsellers/2025/january

Porchlight Book Company's best-selling nonfiction books cover various topics, including current events, memoirs, and personal development. These are the top sellers for this month.

02/07/2025

"Vocal Fry" gets talked about a lot, but what is it actually telling us, as listeners, and what's actually happening to produce it? Michael Chad Hoeppner chats with Bob at Undercurrent Stories about the source and message of vocal fry, and more. Check out "How Building Lego Can Help You Improve Public Speaking" on your preferred music platform.

01/28/2025

We're excited to share that Michael Chad Hoeppner will be on
GMA3: What You Need To Know tomorrow (Wednesday, 1/29) talking about "Don't Say Um!" Tune in to find out why he's got
Eva Pilgrim walking on a balance beam, and what that has to do with speaking.

01/27/2025

West coasters - a reminder of Michael Chad Hoeppner's upcoming book signing event in San Fran at Book Passage Bookstore & Cafe: 5:30pm CT. Head to the Eventbrite link below for more details:

Meet Michael Hoeppner, author of the national bestseller Don’t Say Um, for a talk, book signing, and tips to transform your communication!