If you’re looking for tips on how to improve your public speaking voice, then you’ve come to the right place! As a professional speech coach, I’ve helped hundreds of people overcome their fear of public speaking and master their tone and delivery.
Here are ten ways you can improve your own voice:
Pay attention to your breathing.
Breathing is an essential part of public speaking. If you are breathing correctly, you will be able to speak for longer periods of time without getting tired.
How do you breathe correctly? The key is to breathe from your diaphragm instead of taking shallow breaths from the chest.
This helps keep your lungs full and reduces the amount of air you need to speak loudly and clearly.
You should also take deep breaths as often as possible during a speech or presentation so that there’s more oxygen in your body and less carbon dioxide which makes it easier for others to hear what it taking place in front of them
It’s important not only how much air you take into your lungs but also when you take that breath: don’t hold back until the end then gasp; start early enough so there’s no uncomfortable silence while everyone waits for someone else to start speaking; don’t breathe like Darth Vader (unless he’s one character who would have benefited by this advice).
Practice with an expert.
Speaking with a confident and powerful voice can be hard to master.
Practicing in front of a mirror or recording device may help you identify when your voice is lacking in confidence and power.
Once you have identified the problem, try to correct it during practice sessions so that when you step up to the podium, no one will ever be able to tell that you are nervous or unsure about yourself.
Warm up your voice before speaking.
The first thing you should do is to warm up your voice before speaking.
There are several ways you can do this:
- Practice your speech in front of a mirror.
- Practice with a friend or colleague, who listens and gives feedback on how well you are doing.
- Record yourself talking and listen back to the recording to check for any problems with pronunciation, diction, intonation or volume level that may need addressing. You can also use an app like Dragon Dictation that will transcribe what you say into text so that you can review it later for mistakes in grammar or spelling as well as to help determine if there are places where the flow of ideas could be improved upon based on how easy it was for them (the listener) follow along with what was being said versus how difficult it might have been at times due to poor enunciation (said slowly).
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Speak slowly.
Speaking slowly and clearly is one of the most common tips to improve your public speaking voice.
When you speak too fast, it’s often difficult for people to take in everything you say.
They may miss important points or make assumptions about what you mean, which can be harmful in a business setting.
To avoid this problem, practice speaking at a pace that allows listeners to fully understand each idea before moving onto the next one. If necessary, use pauses between words or phrases so that listeners have time to process what’s been said before continuing on with your message.
Don’t be afraid of a little volume.
Don’t be afraid of a little volume.
Don’t worry about being too loud.
Don’t worry about being too soft. Don’t worry about being too quiet, either, because public speaking is more about the message than it is your voice itself—and your audience will be more interested in what you have to say than how loudly or softly you speak (as long as they can hear and understand you).
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Know your pauses.
It’s important to know when to pause and how long those pauses should be.
Pauses can be used to give the audience a chance to process what you have said, but they also can build suspense and help in creating a more profound impact on your audience when delivered correctly.
Don’t overuse pauses though—it’s easy for the audience to get distracted if they feel they are waiting too long for you to continue speaking.
Use variety in your vocal tone and volume.
- Vary the tone of your voice from high to low: speak in a high-pitched, soft voice when you need to emphasize something that is important; then change your voice to a lower, more forceful tone when you want to make an assertion or command.
- Use varying volumes: speak loudly for important statements, but drop back down for less significant ones. It’s also good practice to pause before making a point that requires emphasis—a dramatic pause can be an effective way of drawing attention to it!
Listen to yourself as well as others.
The most important thing you can do to improve your voice is to listen. Not just to the audience, but also to yourself. You’re the only one who knows what it sounds like when you’re speaking and if something feels off, so be sure to listen closely.
- Listen to yourself on recordings: Recordings are a great way of getting a sense of how you sound, especially when doing vocal exercises or trying out new techniques. If you record yourself regularly and listen back, it will be easier for us at practice speaking confidently in front of people without being self-conscious about how we are coming across in our speech.
- Listen closely to others: It’s not enough simply to hear other speakers when they’re delivering their talks—you have got learn from them too! The way that other people express themselves can help us find out more about different ways we can approach things like tone and volume
Practice, practice, practice!
Practice makes perfect—and there is no better way to improve your public speaking voice than to practice.
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Practice in front of a mirror and watch for any cracks or breaks in your voice, such as “um”s or “uh”s. Practice with a speech coach so that they can guide you through exercises that will strengthen your delivery.
And finally, take the plunge and practice out loud in front of other people who are willing to listen!
A quick tip: when practicing out loud, try saying these phrases before each sentence: “I am grateful,” “I am lucky,” & “I am happy.” The more positive statements you make about yourself and the world around you before starting a sentence, the more likely it is that these emotions will come through in your tone of voice as well!
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Takeaway:
In a nutshell, your public speaking voice can be improved with practice.
Whether you’re giving a speech to a group of people or just chatting with friends, it’s important to remember that the more you practice, the better you’ll do.
- Find an audience—even if that audience is just one person. You can use your mirror, a friend or family member (or even yourself) as an audience for practicing your public speaking voice in front of others and getting feedback on how well you did.
- Don’t let perfection get in the way of improvement. If it takes five tries before you nail down something like holding eye contact or using clear pronunciation—great! Just keep at it until it feels natural for you and sounds good to everyone else who listens too (whether they’re there physically or not).
Conclusion
The key is to practice. The more you practice your voice, the better it will become.
You can improve your public speaking skills by joining a speech club or taking a class in public speaking.
You can also work on speaking techniques with a professional coach or trusted friend who has experience in these areas, and use technology like video recording so you can assess yourself objectively.
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If all else fails, just remember that no one expects perfection when they hear their first few speeches—they just want to know that someone is willing to try!