Communicating with authority and confidence has a great advantage. It is a great way to advance your career as it gives you the opportunity to be seen and heard whether it is by clients, peers or management. The voice is our most powerful instrument of communication, and it is vital that we use it well as it accounts for 38 percent of the impression you make on other people. A good voice enhances your professional stature as well as keeps your audiences attention when you speak. If your voice lets you down when it comes to communication or portraying confidence or you simply want a better idea of what you sound like to other people, try recording your voice and listening to it. The sound we hear in our own heads is not necessarily the one other people hear. I expect we have all formed a vocal image of someone at some time or another. It might be a potential client at the other end of the telephone or a radio personality you love to listen to in the morning. When you finally meet very often the voice does not match up, which can sometimes be quite disappointing!
Are you one of those when you talk always have others asking, “What?” or ask you to repeat yourself? Nothing screams confidence (literally) like a strong, clear voice that isn’t afraid of being heard. Your voice doesn’t necessarily have to resound like Obama addressing a crowd, but you should talk in a volume that can move easily across a room, and in a clear tone that everyone can understand. It is not surprising how many people have a problem with low volume, mumbling, or being monotone and unfortunately it’s not an area people pay attention to or make an effort to fix. It doesn’t matter what you say if people can’t hear you! Weak voices can give the impression of fear or anxiety – death blows when it comes to portraying a confident image.
Some people actually have good volume, and talk in a clear voice, but speak without emotion. The key here is the pitch which should be varied as much as possible. Emphasise points as you go along and be enthusiastic - it comes through in your voice. Whether you are presenting the driest technical subject or regaling a tale to your colleagues, if your voice has no expression no one will listen to it, no matter how important the message; so it is vital that we learn to use the vocal range that we all posses to its full advantage. Make it a habit to practice speaking more clearly with friends or colleagues. By doing this, you’ll build a voice that displays a confident attitude - one that shows that everything you say is worth being heard.
