Ep#871: Stop Saying “In My Opinion” - Say THIS

Welcome to Isle of Public Speaking Podcast.

My name is Vishal Sarkar, your practical public speaking mentor.

And for the past 15 years, I've been helping over 2 lakhs leaders become powerful and world-class speakers and grow in their career and in their lives.

I've spoken at companies like Microsoft, IBM, Google, Cisco, and I only speak from experience, not from theory, because saying, in my opinion, is a habit that many people fall into.

And but, you know, it can weaken your message.

Like, I'll be very transparent with you.

I've used many many times in the past and i don't think it's a bad thing but if you constantly say in my opinion it can sound uncertain or overly polite when what you really want to sound if you really want to sound confident and assertive you have to just create some alternatives so today i'm going to share with you five alternatives that you can use whether you're giving a presentation sharing an idea at work or even having a casual conversation so let's go First alternative, you can use I firmly believe.

So when you're sharing a deeply held conviction, I firmly believe makes you sound more confident and makes your stance clear and strong.

This is especially useful in high stakes situations.

For example, in a work meeting, you can say, I firmly believe this strategy will drive our sales growth in the next quarter.

Or in personal conversation, you can say, I firmly believe that investing in quality time with family is a key to having a happy life, right? So the first one is I firmly believe.

Second one, from where I stand.

This phrase, from where I stand, communicates perspective while still showing confidence.

It's less forceful but still conveys your personal take clearly.

Example, in a public speaking scenario, you can say, from where I stand, leadership is about inspiring others, not just about giving orders.

Or maybe in a team discussion, you can say, from where I stand, guys, we should prioritize customer feedback before launching the product.

So from where I stand is the second one.

Third one, I'm convinced that.

This alternative is ideal when you have carefully thought through something and you want to show certainty.

Example, if you're presenting an idea at work, you can say, I'm convinced that this approach will streamline our operations and cut costs.

In personal development contest, you can say, I'm convinced that setting clear boundaries has made a huge difference in my well-being.

So I'm convinced about setting boundaries.

Now, remember that when you're saying I'm convinced that you are all the time sharing from your past experience.

That's the third one.

Fourth one, to me, it seems.