Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies

Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies® Visit www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/voiceandspeakingskillsuk to view this book's cheat sheet Table of Contents Introduction About This Book Conventions Used in This Book What You’re Not to Read Foolish Assumptions How This Book is Organised Part I: Introducing the Human Voice Part II: Beginning with Voice Basics Part III: Playing Your Instrument Well Part IV: Beating the Voice Gremlins Part V: Engaging with a Broader Public Part VI: The Part of Tens Icons Used in This Book Where to Go from Here Part I: Introducing the Human Voice Chapter 1: Having a Great Voice Trumpeting the Voice Exploring the power of your voice Reaping the rewards of a great voice Making small changes for big impact Enjoying the Advantages of Speaking Well Being understood clearly Being a pleasure to listen to Feeling more confident Conveying authority Influencing others Inspiring others Entertaining people Connecting better Finding Out about Voice Coaching Discovering your natural voice Facing the challenge Thinking About What You Want to Develop in Your Own Voice Getting people to listen to you Working with your accent Saying what you mean and meaning what you say Developing a robust, healthy voice Becoming fluent Identifying Good Voices The alive voice The authentic voice The connecting voice The voice that has something to say Starting Out Choosing your method Finding yourself in your voice Chapter 2: Exploring the Amazing Human Voice Discovering the Power of Voices Hearing All the Sounds that Make Up Your Voice Dispelling Voice Myths Myth 1: You’re stuck with your voice Myth 2: Your voice is out of your control Myth 3: Words matter more than voice Myth 4: Only looks really count Digging Deeper into How You React to Voices Experiencing sound’s physical power Responding to sound’s vibrations Making meaning from voice sounds Chapter 3: Getting to Know Your Own Voice Hearing What You Sound Like Listening to a recording Listening from inside Getting feedback Recognising your unique sound Gathering Insights into Your Voice Picking up the traces Sounding out your life story Revealing Your Different Voices Shifting pitch Finding your natural pitch Taking Stock Evaluating your voice Assessing how your voice fits you Preparing for Your Journey Beginning with the nuts and bolts Getting in the right frame of mind Putting yourself in the driver’s seat Part II: Beginning with Voice Basics Chapter 4: Discovering How to Breathe Well Making a Sound: How Your Voice Works Demystifying your breath: It’s just hot air Amplifying the sound Getting Started with Breathing Becoming aware of your breathing Thinking low Engaging your diaphragm Taking full breaths Breathing to Communicate Producing a steady stream of air Speaking on air Turning breath into sound Play-Acting with Sound and Breathing Getting big and theatrical Surprising yourself Declaiming like an actor Pushing the boat out Remembering to breathe! Chapter 5: Rediscovering Relaxation Finding Freedom For a Fine Sound Readying Your Body to Speak Freeing up every part of your body Relaxing around your vocal cords Standing Steady and Balanced Rediscovering your balance Adopting a floating posture Going Deeper into Relaxation With Body and Mind Blending Relaxation with Readiness: Not Too Tight, Not Too Loose Involving your whole body Relishing the state of readiness Enjoying perpetual motion Chapter 6: Turning Sound into Speech Making Your Voice Clearly Understood Forming the words Warming up your facial muscles Giving your air attitude Bringing Your Words to Life with Long Sounds Stretching out the long vowels Enjoying the character of words Stretching out the long consonants Enjoying the expressive qualities of long consonants Adding Sparkle with Short Sounds Colouring your speech with short consonants Expressing emotion with short vowels and consonants Part III: Playing Your Instrument Well Chapter 7: Exploring Volume and Speed Turning Up (and Down) the Volume Projecting your voice Gaining attention Toning your voice down Creating magical effects with volume Appreciating the power of pianissimo Building the power and finding the dimmer switch Finding the Best Speed Slowing down for gravitas and clarity Taking time in your head Enjoying a sprightly tempo Chapter 8: Filling Your Speech with the Sounds of Music Making Your Point Strongly Exploring emphasis Understanding English emphasis Ending on the low note of authority Getting into Rhythm Moving to the melody Varying the rhythm Playing with pitch Reviving the Ancient Art of Rhetoric Dancing in three time Building up momentum Rhyming and chiming Enjoying the Silence Chapter 9: Expressing Yourself Fully with the Power of Resonance Beginning to Explore Resonance Expressing resonance Varying your pitch Championing Your Chest Voice Producing your chest voice Using your chest voice Getting Excited about Your Head Resonance Producing head tones Using your head voice Warming to Your Heart Voice Finding your passion Using your heart voice Going with Your Gut: Speaking with Gravitas and Authenticity Producing the voice of your gut Using the voice of your gut Understanding the Gatehouse of Your Voice: Your Throat Giving yourself permission to speak Using Your Whole Vocal Range Celebrating your own box of sounds Exploring your limits Chapter 10: Uncovering Your Unique Voice Moving Beyond Technique Working with your inner energy Finding your inner voice Grasping the power of intention Playing Roles Speaking mechanically: The personality-free role Playing the prima donna: Putting on roles Being Authentic Expressing different ‘parts’ of yourself Developing a voice that suits you Trusting in the Moment Letting it happen Enjoying uncertainty Having a Voice in the World Giving yourself the green light Becoming eloquent Part IV: eating the Voice Gremlins Chapter 11: Stopping Vocal Sabotage Examining the Impact of Emotions on Your Voice Fighting Fear through Movement Pouring Calm on Squeakiness and Shrillness Mitigating Mumbling Controlling Gabbling and Jabbering Untying Your Tongue Loosening Heavy-handed Control Letting Down the Mask of Control Avoiding Droning On Making Effort Easy Letting go of approval Dropping self-consciousness Sending Other Vocal Gremlins Packing Paying heed to your health Keeping your voice young Starting smoothly Softening a nasal voice Matching Sound and Meaning Coming out from behind your voice Acknowledging your emotions Using all your voices Chapter 12: Putting the Accent on Accents Investigating Accents – and Responding to What Really Matters Increasing understanding Toning down and tuning up your accent Fitting in It’s a class act Changing Your Accent Wanting to change Changing through osmosis Using a coach Getting the Best of All Worlds: In Praise of Accents Chapter 13: Conquering Hesitation and Stuttering Hesitating: Realising that Everyone Stumbles Thinking clearly Slowing down and using emphasis Discovering the Roots of Stuttering Getting stuck with the label of ‘stutterer’ Creating what you fear most Changing Your Focus Seeking out times when you are fluent Pretending to be someone else Singing Getting it out with bad language Being among friends Avoiding self-judgement Changing Your Thinking Challenging your feelings Choosing your emotional state Speaking with passion Expanding your frame Using neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) techniques Part V: Engaging with a Broader Public Chapter 14: Developing Your Public Voice Crossing from Private to Public Filling the space Stepping up your energy Acknowledging that you’re still you Giving That Speech Dealing with nervousness Knowing why you’re speaking Telling tales: Stories, anecdotes and metaphors Deciding How to Prepare Relying on notes Reading out loud Memorising and speaking by heart Speaking off the cuff Persuading Others with Inspiration from the Political Stage Choosing between hustings yell or fireside chat Catching the sermon Speaking in soundbites Connecting with your public Speaking to the Media Understanding the game Answering questions Chapter 15: Tuning In to Others Getting on the Same Wavelength Opening up Singing the same tune Choosing to sing a different tune Moving into the Lead Shifting subtly Influencing via your audience’s state of mind Negotiating Listening Skilfully Hearing behind the words Spotting truth and lies Dancing in Harmony Becoming aware of dancing skills you already have Leading and being led Co-creating new dances Inspiring others Chapter 16: Cultivating Your Professional Voice Finding Your Voice as a Leader Being all of a piece Speaking with presence Talking tough Talking for a Living: Your Voice in Professional Situations Building resilience Teaching and instructing others Speaking as an authority Influencing in the helping professions Part VI: The Part of Tens Chapter 17: Ten Ways to Sound More Authoritative Stand Confidently Speak Clearly Project Your Voice Give Your Voice Gravitas Emphasise Strongly Take Your Time Finish Strongly Avoid Verbal Tags and Qualifiers Employ Silence Speak Fluently Chapter 18: Ten Ways to Speak with Charisma Find Your Calm Centre Breathe with Intention Use Your Whole Instrument Use Rhythm and Rhetoric Fill the Space Mentally Connect with Your Purpose Enter the Zone Lead with Your Feelings Create Rapport with Your Voice Speak Congruently Chapter 19: Ten Ways to Take Care of Your Voice Take It Easy Support Your Voice with the Breath Start Your Voice Smoothly Speak at a Comfortable Pitch Level Raise Your Volume – Without Strain Take Your Time Look After Your General Health Enjoy Silence Sometimes Stay Well-Lubricated Get Help When You Need It Chapter 20: Ten Inspiring Voices A Voice That Stirred a Nation – Winston Churchill A Voice to Launch a Thousand Ships – Lauren Bacall A Rich Voice that Thrills Audiences – Alan Rickman A Voice to Warm People’s Hearts – Diane Sawyer A Voice that Gave Courage – Martin Luther King Jr The Voice of an Excellent Storyteller – Stephen Fry A Voice of Hope – Wangari Maathai A Voice that Connects – Bill Clinton The Voice of a National Treasure – Judi Dench The Voice of a Creative Speaker – Ken Robinson Appendix A: Resources for Further Developing Your Voice Appendix B: Audio Tracks Cheat Sheet Voice & Speaking Skills For Dummies® by Judy Apps Voice & Speaking Skills For Dummies® Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd The Atrium Southern Gate Chichester West Sussex PO19 8SQ England Email (for orders and customer service enquires): cs-books@wiley.co.uk Visit our home page on www.wiley.com Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex, England Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd, Chichester, West Sussex All Rights Reserved No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, scanning or otherwise, except under the terms of the Copyright, Designs and 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by print-on-demand Some content that appears in standard print versions of this book may not be included in e-books or in print-on-demand If this book refers to media such as a CD or DVD that is not included in the version you purchased, you may download this material at http://booksupport.wiley.com For more information about Wiley products, visit www.wiley.com Tone: Make yours rough or smooth, harsh or velvety Vowels: Elongate or shorten these sounds, use them to express feelings Consonants: Hit them sharply or caressingly; add clarity to your speech Pitch: Take your voice high or deep – or anywhere in between Volume: Speak loudly or softly; let the sound grow or diminish within a phrase or sentence Tempo: Take a sentence fast and slow; get faster or slower Emphasis: Stress a specific word or phrase; now, hear this, it’s important Resonance: Let your sound vibrate in your head, chest, heart and gut; convey excitement, confidence, warmth and deep instinct Use Rhythm and Rhetoric Great speakers vary rhythm and emphasis to influence their listeners and lead them towards significant portions of their speech Think of a fine speech as poetry, and have fun creating your own rhythms Look at Chapter for a host of ideas, or get going with the following easy and highly effective techniques: Alliteration (repeated consonants): ‘Lead the land we love’ Repeated motif: Luther King’s repeated ‘I have a dream’ or Barack Obama’s ‘Yes, we can.’ Repetition of an idea, just in different words: Think of Monty Python’s parrot: ‘He’s passed on! This parrot is no more! He has ceased to be! He’s expired and gone to meet his maker!’ Rhetorical questions that don’t require an answer: Shakespeare’s Shylock – ‘If you prick us, we not bleed, if you tickle us, we not laugh? If you poison us, we not die?’ Contrast (not this but that): JF Kennedy’s ‘Ask not what your country can for you; ask what you can for your country.’ Silence: That amazing pause after a significant phrase, or the pause before uttering your most important words Fill the Space Mentally When you have charisma, you fill your space – however large – with warmth and energy Do the following to expand your sense of self: Stand tall and breathe calmly With each steady in-breath, imagine a light inside you, getting brighter and brighter Breathe out and imagine the light expanding beyond your body and filling the room like an aura Smile to yourself inside and feel the smile in your body grow and spread right across your chest Enjoy the sensation of being fully alive and ready for anything Raise your arms and imagine that powerful beams of light are shooting out from each hand Imagine your beams of light can touch the walls of your space on each side As each arm moves, sense that you can touch the boundaries of your space Feel that you own the space Without pretending to be something you’re not, get the sense of stepping into a larger you The bigger the space, the more inner energy you need, so remember yourself at your most intensely alive, happy and relaxed – that’s the you I’m talking about! Be that person right now You’re bigger than you think Use this practice at any time to build the sense of a larger, more dynamic you Step into this larger you before you give a speech, or before any challenging encounter Chapter 14 has more helpful things to before you give a speech Connect with Your Purpose Charisma is like an iceberg; much more is going on beneath the surface than people are aware of People with charisma know underneath why they’re speaking Their sense of ease and confidence is the result of their complete confidence in their beliefs, values and attitudes inside They connect to their deeper purpose when they speak This inner confidence doesn’t have to be solemn at all – it’s certainly empowering Go inside yourself for a moment and connect with your deeper purpose Ask yourself: What is my purpose in this talk, this presentation, this discussion? Why am I speaking? What is most valuable to me in this context? What matters to me? What I want for my listeners? What is my gift to them? What is my mission? Why am I here? What I believe in? You don’t need to have answers straightaway As you ask these questions, just be aware of any words that float up to you Trust your instinct As you go deep inside yourself for answers to these questions, you begin to clarify your purpose and build your energy around your purpose When you release this purposeful energy into your words, other people connect to your energy and are moved by what you say Enter the Zone Have you ever listened to a speaker who seemed to glow with inner energy? When you possess this ‘switched-on’ energy, people become completely captivated by you You’re in a state of flow People in flow often can’t describe how they got there, but certain factors help you reach this state: Practice! You enter the zone after you’ve gained complete familiarity and competence with your material, when you’re free to focus fully on the task in hand without conscious effort You’re relaxed and energised at the same time Let go of compulsion or insistence Stop trying hard to perform well Let go of your attachment to a particular outcome Enjoy yourself Speaking to people is more like play than hard work Use your imagination Create how you’d like things to be Act as if it has already come true Have fun with it Use the whole of you Engage your mind, voice, body, heart and soul – your whole life force When you let go and allow yourself to flow, your inner creativity and outer expression become aligned and your concentration becomes focused The increase in vitality and influence is phenomenal Lead with Your Feelings Some professionals with presenting experience say that feelings have no place in business presentations or are too dangerous to reveal in public Don’t believe this Emotion is what people remember and what influences them So find your passion If your subject excites you, get excited; if you’re moved, let people hear that you’re moved Listeners notice an immediate difference in how alive you are when your feelings and passions show They see light in your eyes, they hear energy in your voice and they become entranced by you Practise speaking with passion in safe situations with friends Allow them more access than usual to what you really feel Notice the positive responses you get when you this You may feel vulnerable, but the risk you’re taking produces pure gold Create Rapport with Your Voice Charismatic speakers make you feel specially connected to them How you tune into other people and connect with them? You it by finding similarities Here’s how: Really notice your audience Take time to see them, listen to their voices and the sound of their silence, and sense their mood and energy Step metaphorically into their shoes and get the feeling of how things look from their point of view Adjust your communication to fit in empathetically with what you find If your audience’s energy is low, start by speaking quietly and slowly If you sense a general excitement, start with a bright, energetic voice When you start where your audience already is emotionally, people feel harmony with you and engage willingly with you After matching their energy, move gradually towards a different emotional energy Shift the energy towards enthusiasm or determination, for instance, and watch your audience follow your lead You become like the charismatic Pied Piper of Hamelin and your audience willingly follows you anywhere! See Chapter 15 for more about creating connection Speak Congruently Most people act a bit at times Perhaps you feel angry but put on a pleasant voice, or you speak enthusiastically when you’re actually feeling upset inside Charismatic speakers are neither self-conscious nor acting a role Their tone of voice matches their inner thoughts and emotions They’re just happy to be themselves, and this happiness communicates itself in their voice and body language and makes listeners feel comfortable too If you don’t feel confident, your first instinct when you speak may be to hide your insecurity by acting up However, if you hide away your real self too much, you haven’t anything of you to give your listeners Instead, permit yourself to feel a bit vulnerable, and as far as possible act naturally You may think that’s letting yourself down; but other people will feel more able to connect with you, and find you more engaging – they’ll catch your charisma Chapter 19 Ten Ways to Take Care of Your Voice In This Chapter Breathing with ease Relaxing – to find your power Taking breaks Most people I ask confess that they spend more time and money on hair lotions, skin potions or shaving accessories than they spend on their voices Is it the same for you? Only when something goes wrong with your voice you realise just how much you value it Imagine life without your voice! Looking after your voice is truly worthwhile Not just because you don’t want to lose it, but because a healthy voice is your amazing gift for communicating, influencing and connecting with others Following are ten top strategies to point you in the right direction Take It Easy When your body is relaxed, your voice can happily vibrate and work well So chill out! If you use your voice a lot or frequently speak in public, the following: Scan your body every now and then for physical tension Check your neck, shoulders, jaw and tongue, and your spine and knees Allow any tension to melt away See Chapter for more on relaxation Do a bit of gentle physical stretching to warm up your muscles Ease out your shoulders, move your neck, stretch and bend your spine, and loosen your knees Warm up your voice easily Glide gently from low to high sounds on different vowels and trill with your lips or tongue See Chapter for more vocal warm-up activities Your mind and body work together, so all the preceding activities are more effective when your mind is at ease as well If you’re feeling stressed, that is the very time to check for tension and ease out your body Be kind to your voice if you’re feeling a bit stiff after a night out or a strenuous sporting session, or if you’re feeling under par Allow yourself an easier day (see the later section ‘Enjoy Silence Sometimes’) and avoid putting your voice under too much pressure Support Your Voice with the Breath Breath is a crucial element in looking after your voice As I discuss in Chapter 4, use your breath to power your voice instead of pushing from your throat This approach allows your voice to sound great and stay strong Breathing well means taking the time to fill your lungs before you say something and then using the energy of that breath to make sound You may find that you don’t normally pay any attention to your breath when you speak, and if so you may take in scarcely any air Start remedying this situation now: for a while each day, think about taking a breath before you say something and using the air as you speak Your vocal folds benefit, you sound much more definite and your voice becomes fuller Don’t forget how to fill your lungs with air: breathe out strongly as far as you possibly can and keep breathing out until you absolutely have to take in air Then release any tension in your body and notice how the air rushes in You feel the rush of air low in your body That’s a good breath! Start Your Voice Smoothly One vocal habit is worse for your voice than anything – and that’s banging against the vocal folds You sometimes hear the hard glottal sound of someone attacking words in this way Poor folds! Your vocal folds are tiny, and yet they serve you to make robust sounds and to keep going all day, every day If your breath is lazy and you persist in speaking loudly, all the muscles around you throat and jaw push the sound out with too much pressure instead of your strong lower body muscles providing support – a sure-fire way to give your vocal folds a hard time Take a good breath and imagine that you launch into sound without your breath really stopping, like a ski jumper using the downwards slope to launch into the air Think of how you launch into sound when you sing – you generally use a smoother and easier onset than when you speak Use the feeling of that onset when you speak Your vocal cords will love you! Speak at a Comfortable Pitch Level Everyone wants a rich low voice, like Sean Connery or Lauren Bacall Lower voices sound more authoritative and confident and are favoured in the media The deepness of your voice depends mainly on the length and thickness of your vocal cords, and you can’t easily anything about that If you force your voice from the lower part of your throat, you may feel authoritative and powerful to you, but producing low sounds this way has no power, and frequently people can’t understand you Moreover, speaking this way inflicts serious strain on your vocal cords and can damage your voice Instead, if you want gravitas in your voice: Find the pitch that is comfortable for you When you agree with someone with the sound ‘mmm’ or ‘aha,’ you’re usually using your natural pitch The next time you use such sounds to agree with someone, follow up with words spoken at the same pitch Imagine that your voice sounds low Breathe low and allow your voice to resonate in your body where it sounds strong and confident Chapter has all the details on resonance Vary your pitch so that people hear the contrasts in your voice Don’t stick relentlessly to the same low pitch Gravitas doesn’t have to be dull! Look for ways to vary your voice in Chapter Follow these guidelines and you’ll sound authoritative – plus you’ll protect your voice Raise Your Volume – Without Strain When in doubt, don’t shout Yelling at the top of your voice on the football pitch, shouting in a noisy nightclub, screaming at a live concert – these things just aren’t good for your voice You realise this fact when you wake up next morning hoarse or with a sore throat! Yes, these things happen occasionally, but when they do, give your voice a good rest the next day When you want to raise your volume, think about all the following so you protect your voice in the process: Take a big energetic breath low down when you raise your voice, so that you don’t have to push from your throat Relax! The more you release your neck, shoulders, jaw and tongue, the freer and fuller your sound Realise that being heard is largely about being understood, so articulate your words clearly (see Chapter 6) Use strong mental energy to communicate; your desire to be heard is the power behind your physical sound (see Chapter 10) Vary the pitch of your voice You strain your voice by producing the sound from the same place the whole time Take Your Time Something that really tires out your voice is pounding out the words without pause, especially if you talk with the same pitch and tone all the time, which puts strain on the same part of your voice The most tiring kind of speaking is continuous, like the report of a horse racing radio commentator during the race or the calling of an auctioneer during a long bidding period Give your voice a break! Even a pause of a second or two allows vocal cords to return to rest position and can make all the difference Think of a physical pursuit such as tennis; you have periods of high activity followed by pauses between shots and between sets and games Most sports work in this way When you give a presentation, take time to breathe between each statement Give your audience the odd pause for them to reflect on what you said Move to a different spot on the platform in silence between sections of your presentation in order to allow yourself (and your audience) to rest for a moment As well as keeping your voice fresh, you make the presentation easier to listen to You also feel calmer and more relaxed Look After Your General Health Your voice is affected by your health When you feel good, your voice generally feels good too Look out for signs that all isn’t well with your voice, including hoarseness, a raw throat, feelings of strain and effort when you talk, loss of higher sounds and people asking whether you have a cold You can easily look after the health of your voice by following these basic ‘do’s’ and ‘don’ts’: Don’t talk too much if you have a cough, a cold or a sore throat; and give yourself time to get well again before you use your voice to any extent Don’t push your voice when you’re tired or unwell, or feeling emotionally stressed Do make allowances for changes in your life, such as changing your diet, losing weight, changing house or job or any personal trauma Recognise that your voice is as affected as the rest of you Do try talking gently through any discomfort, instead of coughing or clearing your throat, when you want to get rid of mucous You may want to avoid milky foods that create mucus too Enjoy Silence Sometimes If you love your voice, beware of noise! Keeping up a conversation when background sounds are really loud is hard on your voice Yes, this does include various venues that may be your favourites! But you don’t need to avoid them entirely, just think a bit about your voice when you’re there: If you speak in an over-large venue or noisy environment, insist on a microphone If you must speak in noisy situations or for prolonged periods, make sure that you know how to produce your voice efficiently (see Chapters and 5) Find somewhere quieter to converse one-to-one; if you must talk in a noisy space, face each other, articulate well and watch his or her lips Find times for silence – even a few hours or a whole day occasionally Everyone enjoys a rest from time to time – and so does your voice If your job involves a lot of talking, make sure that you receive professional training and support for your voice See the Appendix for more on finding a voice coach Stay Well-Lubricated Your voice needs good lubrication to avoid irritation or real damage and modern life contains many hazards that dry out your voice Staying properly hydrated, however, is about more than drinking lots of water Look at the following list and see what factors you can mitigate All the following can dry out your throat: Medicines: Penicillin as well as most allergy, anti-anxiety and cholesterol medications; medications for coughs and colds that contain menthol or eucalyptus designed to dry up mucus; some vitamin supplements that include vitamin C Atmosphere: The drying effects of central heating or air conditioning, in your home or your car; recirculated air during air travel Environments: Spaces polluted by dust, smoke or fumes or even deodorants and strong household cleaners Caffeinated beverages: Speed up mucous production and give you too much phlegm Smoking, alcohol and drugs: Dry and damage the quality of your voice, and also irritate and damage the linings of your nose and throat Chronic tension: Releases adrenalin, which further dries your throat! The best response to these drying conditions is to drink water at room temperature When your voice feels dry and your first instinct is to cough or to push your voice more, stop! Take a drink Get Help When You Need It Your voice is pretty tough, and you can recover from most over-use by acting sensibly to look after your voice as I highlight in this chapter Sometimes, however, the best course of action is to consult a doctor or a laryngologist or an ear, nose and throat consultant Following are the crucial times to seek further help: If you lose your voice, especially if it happens regularly If your voice becomes hoarse or croaky, especially over several days If your voice sounds weak and you’re unable to project it If your voice is getting tired more quickly than before If your voice or throat feels constantly painful, if you’ve a lump in your throat, or if you find speaking or swallowing painful If you constantly and regularly need to clear your throat If your voice becomes unreliable – changing pitch, swooping unexpectedly or getting stuck in one tone Getting help in time is often the way to save your voice and is well worth it! Chapter 20 Ten Inspiring Voices In This Chapter Discovering the vocal qualities that listeners prefer Looking at what makes a great speaker Appreciating key moments that capture attention Whose voices are the best loved? Surveys investigating preferred voices in different parts of the English-speaking world arrived at certain common factors They agree that the best voices all share characteristics associated with confidence and trust, including: A fairly low pitch for both men and women A melodious and full quality; in other words, a rich sound An absence of high frequency noise such as screechy sounds A measured pace with brief pauses now and then Sentences that fall at the end, rather than rise, which make the speaker sound confident This list is a good start but isn’t sufficient A melodious low voice on its own doesn’t make the hairs on the back of your neck stand up For that, you need a voice that communicates to every cell of your body – by its energy and the power of its feeling, imagination or intellect Then a voice becomes truly exciting A Voice That Stirred a Nation – Winston Churchill Winston Churchill’s voice emerged at a critical time in world history He encouraged his generation and has gone on to inspire people ever since What is it about Churchill’s voice that just sends shivers down your spine? In some ways, he’s an unusual choice because he didn’t love public speaking But he understood the secrets of powerful delivery: His sense of solemnity and grandeur gave depth and pace to his voice His low endings (see Chapter 16) are so low, so final, that you know he’s going to get his nation through the worst that can be thrown at it His pace is slow, but he carries the sense through each long sentence with the intensity of his tone He crafted his speeches beautifully He was the master of language and rhetoric, and you hear fine music in his words No one quite matched Churchill for the heroic cadence He wrote his speeches with passion and read them with passion too Many leaders have had fine words, but Churchill brought his language to life Listen to his speech to Parliament in June 1940 His phrasing and passion at the end – ‘If the British Empire and its Commonwealth last for a thousand years, men will still say, This was their finest hour’ – are a perfect match of words and voice A Voice to Launch a Thousand Ships – Lauren Bacall Every so often, a particular woman’s voice has that certain something that thrills listeners to the core Often such a voice is inextricably linked with a beautiful image, but sometimes the voice on its own is enough Rather than sweet or cute, this voice is typically low, with just a suggestion of huskiness and a beautiful sense of timing Some of the best actors have had this ‘X factor’: Kathleen Turner, Whoopi Goldberg and Barbra Streisand for example; Julia Roberts and Helen Mirren have it too My choice is Lauren Bacall, whose voice has depth and huskiness, and a commanding intensity even when she speaks softly Her voice is there from the beginning of her career; listen to its riveting quality in her very first film, To Have and Have Not A Rich Voice that Thrills Audiences – Alan Rickman When you ask people to think of a great voice, they often describe the mature voice of a male actor People said of Richard Burton that he had a ‘rich brown voice’ Everyone has their favourite, be it Sean Connery as James Bond, the wonderful gravelly tones of Jeremy Irons or the distinctive bass of James Earl Jones These actors all share depth of tone, a slightly rough quality and a measured pace that makes them sound manly and trustworthy Alan Rickman possesses all these qualities in abundance and has one of the most admired voices in the profession Whether he is playing a villain or a hero, his voice mesmerises you with its beautiful deep tone and the suspense of his timing Most people recognise his voice as the complex character Snape in the Harry Potter films, but look out for a recording of him reading Shakespeare for a different kind of magic As he speaks, you step into his private world, where he speaks the words with deep intensity as if for himself alone A Voice to Warm People’s Hearts – Diane Sawyer Some voices seem as comfortable as a warm sofa and a glass of red wine by a blazing fire; you hear a wonderful warmth in such a voice that draws you in It’s not just a matter of the depth and quality of the voice; the tone speaks of experience and sensibility and makes you trust the speaker like a personal friend, even when addressing an audience of millions I selected American broadcaster Diane Sawyer of ABC to exemplify these qualities, though I could have chosen Katie Couric, also of ABC, or Sue McGregor of the BBC Diane Sawyer has a rounded mature voice She speaks with genuine feeling, which connects powerfully with listeners In this age of the soundbite and clever repartee, her voice attracts you into her world and promotes trust and friendship A Voice that Gave Courage – Martin Luther King Jr Martin Luther King Jr had an oratorical style that owed much to the church preaching tradition When King spoke on issues that mattered to him, he dug deep into himself and out came a voice of pure heart and soul His manner of speaking was nearer to music than anyone I can think of No one had longer vowels or smoother phrases Indeed, when he spoke, singing and speaking became one Listen again to his most famous speech, ‘I have a dream’ from August 1963 Hear how long he stretches out that signature phrase in its various repetitions His audience catches his fervour and cannot resist joining in with its own musical affirmations His sense of timing is impeccable too He chooses a slow pace, but builds up to an exhilarating climax To hear his passion at its strongest, listen to his last speech in April 1968 in which he prophetically talks about death The Voice of an Excellent Storyteller – Stephen Fry Stephen Fry’s English accent is well known far beyond the shores of the United Kingdom He appears as himself on wordy quiz shows such as QI, but his voice is equally well known by children listening to his array of characters in audio books He clearly loves words and loves language and is eager for you to share his enthusiasm for both Fry’s voice with its educated English accent is rich and deep, and his timing exquisite His vocabulary is enormous, his choice of words precise When Stephen says a word like ‘preposterous’, it sounds utterly preposterous, and you can tell that he adores the very sound of the word Fry can create similar experiences with a seemingly unlimited palette of words and phrases Moreover, his ability to take on any voice he wishes is seemingly inexhaustible Critics have sometimes called him facile and too ‘urbane’, but I also hear a subtlety in his expression and language that belongs to the best British speaking tradition of Alistair Cooke, David Attenborough and other intelligent raconteurs A Voice of Hope – Wangari Maathai In 2004, the Kenyan environmental and political activist Wangari Maathai won the Nobel Peace Prize for her contribution to sustainable development, democracy and peace It is always tempting for a woman in a position of responsibility to assume male attributes in the way she communicates Wangari Maathai didn’t that; she was a woman who found her own authentic way to communicate, and her voice is a mix of powerful intelligence, strong belief and fun She has a voice that connects All her commitment and depth of feeling, her passion, determination, joy and lightness are in her voice – and give it a great range She experienced the ups and downs of life and wasn’t afraid to be herself Hers is an wonderful example of a transparent voice – one that faithfully portrays who she is as she speaks her truth without being afraid to show strong emotion A generation of women are finding their own individual ways to show their strength as speakers on the world stage Listen to Christine Lagarde, the managing director of the IMF, Noeleen Heyzer, Executive Secretary of the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP) and Arundhati Roy, author and campaigning activist, to hear other women who have found styles both powerful and empathetic A Voice that Connects – Bill Clinton Many politicians have fine voices and speak with power and authority Bill Clinton has something more than that Clinton’s power isn’t the quality of tone – his voice gets rougher by the year What Clinton has that many other politicians lack is the ability to connect with people in a surprisingly personal way When he speaks, you don’t have the impression of someone giving a speech; you get the sense that he is talking directly to you, simply and powerfully in normal colloquial language with the strong emphasis of everyday speech You feel that he is there in the present moment and that he is thinking about what he is saying there and then – his words never sound scripted His speeches to thousands feel like one-to-one conversation Listen to his 1992 presidential debate against George Bush to hear the difference in approach between the two men An audience is never any old audience; you’re always engaging with a group of people with whom you can, like Clinton, have a relationship Audiences feel that Bill Clinton cares, and this feeling is an important part of his charisma (see Chapter 18 for more on charisma) The Voice of a National Treasure – Judi Dench Unlike Meryl Streep, with her amazing ability to speak in different tones and accents, whatever role Dame Judi Dench plays, audiences recognise her voice But that voice! Her ability to express in sound the most difficult emotions and move you to the deepest level is shared by few actors Her secret is sensibility (see Chapter 15) She feels her way into each character and then the character’s emotions are like a light shining within her, utterly genuine and convincing The emotions are transparent in her voice, and as a result audiences feel them directly Dench is a magnificent example of how a great voice is always much more than a beautiful sound Her voice is quite husky (her biography is called With a Crack in Her Voice), yet capable of the most subtle nuances of expression The actor Leonardo Di Caprio, working with her, said, ‘You hear that voice, it’s powerful She has a way of commanding a scene in a room, and it’s just astounding.’ Other actors love her – and so does her public The Voice of a Creative Speaker – Ken Robinson Certain speakers from every profession have the power to rivet listeners in different ways I’ve taken Ken Robinson as an example of the many speakers who have freshness, originality and authenticity and combine these qualities with humour, surprise and variety Sir Ken Robinson is a university professor of education who has won international recognition for his work in education and creativity He works with governments, international agencies and the world’s largest companies and organisations, speaking to worldwide audiences about today’s creative challenges The all-important quality in Ken Robinson’s voice is its freshness How he feels and thinks is how he sounds You forget the voice and hear the person Listen, for example, to Ken’s talk on creativity in schools at www.ted.com His delivery varies constantly, from solemn statement of belief to humorous aside to surprise revelation His voice isn’t the deepest, most sexy or most authoritative, but it is wonderfully transparent – it expresses the person he is Just as your voice can be fresh and authentic – and be you! Appendix A Resources for Further Developing Your Voice Here are some suggestions of additional areas and ideas for voice development The list is far from exhaustive, but I hope it gives you useful avenues of exploration for more information on voice coaching, looking after your voice and other topics Contacting the Author Judy Apps: Voice of Influence, www.voiceofinfluence.co.uk My website has current information and booking details for my regular voice, presentation, and neuro-linguistic programming (NLP) workshops in London; plus a host of goodies to freely download including my newsletter, articles and e-courses on voice, dealing with performance anxiety, raising your profile and related topics Contact me by email at info@voiceofinfluence.co.uk for one-to-one coaching with me in person or via Skype or phone Voice Coaching Voice coaching includes a broad spectrum of activities, and practitioners come with a variety of qualifications and skills A good coach with an acting background has many skills to help you develop your voice well and create an impact with an audience If you want an influential voice, make sure that you’re also discovering how to be authentic and connect strongly with people, not just how to articulate clearly and project your voice A good voice coach with a singing background is skilful in voice control, knows healthy ways to expand the use of your voice and has good techniques for caring for your voice Make sure that your coach understands the spoken voice as well because not everything translates from singing to speech An elocution teacher or elocution coach can help you with speech clarity and expressiveness and reducing a regional accent if required Pronunciation is often the main focus An experienced NLP professional can help you to deal with vocal blocks through identifying and working through the psychological or root causes of voice difficulties In the UK, a good place to start is the Association of NLP (www.anlp.org) If you can, find an NLP Practitioner with voice experience as well An NLP professional with experience of working with stuttering can help you become more fluent in your speech Contact Bob Bodenhamer at www.masteringstuttering.com You can find other help with stuttering from: • British Stammering Association (BSA): www.stammering.org • Minnesota State University, The Stuttering Home Page: www.mnsu.edu/comdis/kuster • National Stuttering Association (NSA): www.nsastutter.org The best way to find a voice coach or speaking coach is through personal recommendation Think about what exactly you need and how you prefer being coached – face-to-face, Skype or phone, regular sessions or a one-off meeting to prepare for a particular speech or presentation Then test the waters with your coach candidates What experience they bring? Do they walk their talk? Schedule an initial face-to-face session with a coach before going ahead with a series of sessions You can find lists of coaches here: Natural Voice Practitioners Network: www.naturalvoice.net/index.asp Voice and Speech Trainers Association (VASTA): www.vasta.org Voicesource: www.voicesource.co.uk/teachers Books and Audio Here are a few of my favourite books on voice, public speaking and presentations, selected for readability and the authors’ practical approach Voice The Actor Speaks: Voice and the Performer by Patsy Rodenburg (Methuen) Freeing the Natural Voice by Kristin Linklater (Drama) The Human Voice: The Story of a Remarkable Talent by Anne Karpf (Bloomsbury) I Have a Voice: How to Stop Stuttering by Bobby G Bodenhamer (Crown House) Voice of Influence: How to Get People to Love to Listen to You by Judy Apps (Crown House) Public speaking and presentations Butterflies and Sweaty Palms: 25 Sure-fire Ways to Speak and Present with Confidence by Judy Apps (Crown House) Going Public: Practical Guide to Developing Personal Charisma by Hal Milton (HCI) My Lessons With Kumi: How I Learned to Perform with Confidence in Life and Work by Michael Colgrass (Grinder DeLozier Associates) Peak Performance Presentations: How to Present with Passion and Purpose by Richard Olivier and Nicholas Janni (Articulate Press) Public Speaking and Presentations For Dummies by Rob Yeung and Malcolm Kushner (Wiley) Voice-related subjects The following list includes subjects I touch upon in the book: Alexander Technique: Use Of The Self by F M Alexander (Orion) Feldenkrais: Awareness through Movement: Easy-to-Do Health Exercises to Improve Your Posture, Vision, Imagination, and Personal Awareness by Moshe Feldenkrais (Harper Collins) Body Language: Body Language For Dummies by Elizabeth Kuhnke (Wiley) Self-Confidence: Confidence For Dummies by Kate Burton and Brinley Platts (Wiley) Presence: The Power of Now: A Guide to Spiritual Enlightenment by Eckhart Tolle (Hodder & Stoughton) Relaxation: Relaxation For Dummies by Shamash Alidina (Wiley) Audio YouTube is an excellent source for hearing speakers and particular speeches that I mention in this book (www.youtube.com) Accents and dialects British Library Sounds (sounds.bl.uk) offers a huge range of short audio clips of different accents from across the UK The Speech Accent Archive (http://accent.gmu.edu) offers audio clips of different accents from across North America Historical recordings American Rhetoric (www.americanrhetoric.com/speechbank.htm) offers audio clips and transcripts of speeches by 100 top American politicians and public figures Michigan University (www.lib.msu.edu/cs/branches/vvl/presidents) archives sound recordings of more than 20 US presidents Miller Centre (millercenter.org) includes a large collection of American historical recordings Useful Mind-Body Activities for Speakers Your voice is affected by what’s going on in your mind and by the balance and freedom of your body For this reason, many people who work on their voices also take part in activities that stretch and relax their bodies and minds I mention these activities in this book: Alexander Technique: www.alexandertechnique.com The Alexander Technique helps you discover your natural body balance and poise that you may have lost through habits of tension and excessive effort Feldenkrais: www.feldenkrais.com Through the Feldenkrais Method, you increase awareness of your body and rediscover comfort in your body movements Aikido: www.aikidoyuishinkai.com The martial art of Aikido, ‘the way of harmony with nature’, uses balance and relaxed alertness to redirect an aggressor’s force with well-timed, flowing, circular movements The practice offers you balance, confidence and flow as a speaker Voice Care Here’s a short list of professional voice bodies and voice associations whose websites are good sources of information on voice I also include a list of resources for getting medical and therapeutic help for your voice – after you’ve first consulted your doctor British Voice Association: www.british-voice-association.com/archive.htm Voice Care Network UK: www.voicecare.org.uk The Voice Foundation: www.voicefoundation.org Voice Care for Teachers: www.education.vic.gov.au/hr/ohs/hazards/voice.htm The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association: www.asha.org The Association of Speech and Language Therapists in Independent Practice: www.helpwithtalking.com The Royal College of Speech and Language Therapists: www.rcslt.org The British Voice Association lists voice clinics in the UK: www.british- voice-association.com/voice_clinics.htm Appendix B Audio Tracks Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies comes with plenty of helpful audio tracks – indicated in the chapters by the ‘Play This’ icon In this appendix, I provide a complete track listing Discovering What’s On the Audio Tracks Table B-1 lists all the tracks along with a description, so you can quickly look up any exercise Table B-1 Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies Audio Tracks Track Description Introduction Meeting people in different ways (Chapter 3) Breathing naturally (Chapter 4) Breathing using your diaphragm (Chapter 4) Whispering (Chapter 4) Turning breath into sounds and words (Chapter 4) Long, flowing phrases (Chapter 4) The floating upwards exercise (Chapter 5) Moving and speaking (Chapter 5) 10 Consonant workout (Chapter 6) 11 Speaking on the flow of air (Chapter 6) 12 Demonstrating vowel sounds (Chapter 6) 13 Descriptive vowel sounds (Chapter 6) 14 Long consonants (Chapter 6) 15 Expressive word games with consonants (Chapter 6) 16 Short consonants (Chapter 6) 17 Projecting your voice (Chapter 7) 18 Changing your meaning with volume (Chapter 7) 19 Crescendo and decrescendo (Chapter 7) 20 Speaking slowly (Chapter 7) 21 Emphasis exercise (Chapter 8) 22 Emphasis and meaning (Chapter 8) 23 Rhythm and impact (Chapter 8) 24 Varying the rhythm (Chapter 8) 25 Pitch variations (Chapter 8) 26 The rhetorical rule of three (Chapter 8) 27 Alliteration (Chapter 8) 28 Finding your high voice and your low voice (Chapter 9) 29 Chest voice (Chapter 9) 30 Head voice (Chapter 9) 31 Heart voice (Chapter 9) 32 Gut voice (Chapter 9) 33 Demonstrating different resonances (Chapter 9) 34 Speaking mechanically (Chapter 10) 35 Prima donna voices (Chapter 10) 36 Creating rapport in questions (Chapter 14) 37 The effect of different tones (Chapter 15) 38 Catching the attention of a group (Chapter 16) 39 Stepping in and out of the moment (Chapter 16) To access the cheat sheet specifically for this book, go to www.dummies.com/cheatsheet/voiceandspeakingskillsuk Find out "HOW" at Dummies.com [...]... Introducing the Human Voice In this part I lay the foundations for exploring voice and speaking skills You find out about voice coaching, explore the characteristics of successful voices and discover what to listen out for in your own voice and others’ voices You get the opportunity to really listen to your own voice and decide how you want to develop Part II: Beginning with Voice Basics Here you embark... speak loudly and strongly and even have people admire your voice after your efforts, but that is not what gives your voice a powerful impact on people The way to an influential voice is through discovering and developing your natural voice – the voice you were born to have before you developed the habits of constricting and contorting your voice in various ways through life’s ups and downs Your voice is... use italic text for titles of films and books and for when I get excited and want to emphasise something for your attention The key concepts in a list and the headings for numbered steps are in bold Web and email addresses are in monofont And that’s about it! What You’re Not to Read The great thing about For Dummies books is that you don’t have to wade through loads of uninteresting information to get... how to tune in to other people subtly with your voice Finding Out about Voice Coaching The most obvious way to develop your voice is through voice coaching, and I am your personal voice coach throughout this book A voice coach may also be called a voice trainer or teacher, and all three terms are sometimes used for singing coaching The old word for spoken voice coaching was ‘elocution’, which focused... Trainers’ and Consultants’ Network Her popular Voice of Influence’ open programmes in London include workshops on coaching, voice and influence, leadership and communication, and NLP Judy is the author of two books: Voice of Influence – How to get people to love to listen to you, a fascinating mind-body approach to finding your authentic voice and expressing yourself with integrity, presence and passion; and. .. pronounce words clearly and ‘correctly’ by reciting poetry with ‘correct’ pronunciation Voice coaching today is different Instead of spending most effort on accent and articulation, a voice coach today focuses on liberating your natural voice (see the following section) in order to give you power and fluency Politicians and those in public life have used voice coaches for this purpose for many decades The... Human Voice In this part You find out what a huge difference your voice makes to your impact when you speak to people, and you realise why so many prominent figures have decided to work on their voice You explore the many different exciting possibilities of voice, and discover what voice coaching can do for you I lay the groundwork for developing your voice to become an excellent speaker, and you... you successful strategies for attaining fluency Identifying Good Voices Developing your voice involves technique, but technique alone doesn’t give a voice its impact and magic What does a great voice consist of? I give you ten examples of great voices in Chapter 20, and they all have special qualities that go well beyond technique In my view, a great voice is vibrant and alive and sounds genuine It connects... your voice be honest, open and true In Chapter 15, I explain how to tune in to your listeners and create strong connections Making connection is the key to successful personal conversations and intimate relationships, and your voice plays a big part When you can express empathy, caring and love in your voice, connecting with others becomes natural and easy The voice that has something to say A voice. .. their own voice Voices don’t change – or can they? Before I get down to the practical nuts and bolts of speaking, I need to clear up some all-too-common misconceptions about voices Myth 1: You’re stuck with your voice Most people still think that the voice they have currently is the voice they were born with and that they can’t do much about it Perhaps you think this too Whether you hate your voice, .. .Voice and Speaking Skills For Dummies Visit www .dummies. com/cheatsheet/voiceandspeakingskillsuk to view this book's cheat sheet Table of Contents... The Voice of a Creative Speaker – Ken Robinson Appendix A: Resources for Further Developing Your Voice Appendix B: Audio Tracks Cheat Sheet Voice & Speaking Skills For Dummies by Judy Apps Voice. .. text for titles of films and books and for when I get excited and want to emphasise something for your attention The key concepts in a list and the headings for numbered steps are in bold Web and