Speak with Confidence

Chapter 16Voice and Clarity

A violin that's missing half its strings, a clarinet with a broken   reed, and a piano that hasn't been tuned since the Clinton administration—those instruments that are not going to make good music regardless of how talented the musician is. As a speaker, your voice is your instrument, and it needs to be in good working order. Furthermore, if you're not confident in your instrument, you won't be confident in your speaking.

Your voice is your instrument.

In this chapter, I'll teach you vital skills for fine‐tuning your voice, starting with how it sounds and moving to things like articulation and accents.

Can I Change My Voice?

My clients often ask me if they can change their voice. It usually comes on the heels of evaluating a recording of their speech. It's an experience we're all familiar with. Our voice just sounds wrong when we hear what everyone else hears. Before answering their question, I explain why it sounds so different. When we talk, we simultaneously hear our voice two different ways: the vibrations that travel through our jawbone and into our ear canal plus the sound coming through the air, but at an odd angle (because our mouth is pointed away from our ears). So, when you hear your own voice, you're literally hearing more than others do. And when others speak, they're hearing more of their voice than you do. With practice, singers learn how to mentally adjust for that difference, and you can do the same over time. Don't try to ...