In message , at 14:10:09 on
Wed, 6 Jun 2018, Scott remarked:
So why do people insist on starting sentences with the word 'so'?

The give themselves another two seconds to think about what they are
going to say.

MIlliseconds surely?

It's generally separated from the rest of the answer by a significant
pause.

It's a shorter version of "I'm glad you asked me that question".

But not as good as, 'What the audience really wants to know is ...'.

--
Roland Perry