Use Your Inside Voice by SellingPower.com

Voice control – great presenters use it to make sure their messages are heard loud and clear. Expert communications consultant, founder and president of Power Presentations, Inc., Sheri Jeavons offers these tips to use your voice more effectively:

Speak up. Pick a spot or a person in the back of the room to begin your communication. Make sure you speak loud enough for that person to hear you. However, warns Jeavons, if using a microphone, don't yell; instead, adjust the amplification so that you can be heard clearly while using your normal voice.

Tell stories. Some ways to make sure you have voice modulation and enthusiasm in your voice is to tell stories, and use analogies, metaphors, and alliteration. For example, using alliteration such as, "simple, selective service" can make a point memorable. You can also repeat a phrase so that it will be etched in your audience's mind. "You'll see a 30 percent cost savings. That's a 30 percent cost savings."

Use pauses. "If you feel that you speak particularly fast, stop and pause at the end of a key point and/or when you are changing a slide," says Jeavons. "This will stop the energy. Incorporating more pauses will help slow you down because it's a discipline."

Be natural. When you are presenting, use your everyday talking voice, says Jeavons. "People sometimes get into a presenter voice and it's a little too phony," she says. "Instead use your natural speech patterns because they have variations in pitch. For example, if you feel yourself droning on and notice that your audience is losing interest, the best thing you can do is stop talking and ask a question to change your tone of voice. This will engage you in a conversation and conversation is more natural because it adds modulation to your voice."

Seek variety. Tell a story so you can slow down or pick up your speech pace to make a point stand out. "Variety keeps it interesting," says Jeavons. "Think about where you want to speed things up or slow things down, and then slow down where you really want them to get it. Make it obvious." If your voice is really strong and quick normally, soften it, and slow it down. Conversely, if you tend to be laid back when speaking, get a little louder and intense on a part that's really meaningful to the client. Another way to add variety is to adopt a more staccato pace at certain points of your presentation – short, quick phrases can draw immediate attention to what you are saying. "That stop, start, stop, start will grab people's attention," says Jeavons.

Be enthusiastic. "Take it up a notch or two," advises Jeavons. "The way to do that is to tell the customer about the value they are going to receive from your product or service. When you are talking about something they want or need, you will see them smile or shake their head and that will create more enthusiasm for you, too."

Take care. Drink room temperature water before, during, and after you speak to prevent potential voice problems during your presentation. Jeavons says that coffee, tea, or sodas have acidic properties in them that can dry out your throat. She also warns against drinking cold drinks because they can constrict your throat.

Always practice. Jeavons suggests to audio record yourself and then listen to the way you present. Is there enthusiasm? No? Then tell more stories, ask more questions, or use people's names to create more energy. Does your tone vary? Does your pace vary? Do you need to pause more often? If so, where? Once you know where you need to improve, it can be easy to incorporate changes.

11 Tips to Be a Better Public Speaker by www.SixWise.com

Public speaking is a skill -- one that takes practice and perseverance to master.
(read more here http://www.sixwise.com/newsletters/08/05/07/11-Tips-to-Be-a-Better-Public-Speaker.htm)

And now, without further ado, here are the 11 top ways to become a better public speaker.

1. Know your audience. Tailor your message directly to this group, then greet some of the audience members as they arrive so you feel like you're speaking to friends.
   
2. Know your material. In general, you should only give a speech about something you know very well. Make sure you know even more about the topic than you intend to include in the speech.
   
3. Practice makes perfect. You should practice every speech, out loud, and including any visual aids you plan to use, numerous times.
   
4. Take a breath. Pauses can lend just the right emphasis to an important point, so be sure to include them when appropriate.

Remember to use body language, including your facial expressions, eye contact, posture, and hand gestures, to engage your audience and convey your confidence.

5. Use body language to your advantage. Your posture, eye contact, hand gestures and facial expressions speak volumes. Here are some tips to use this non-verbal form of communication.
   
6. Visualize a successful speech. Picture yourself wowing the audience with your charisma, poise and wit. It will help to ease your nerves.
   
7. Do not apologize. If you stumble on your words, appear nervous or mix up a part of your speech, don't say anything about it. The audience will probably not notice, unless you bring it up.
   
8. The audience is your friend. It's easy to think of the audience as the big, bad wolf. But in reality, they want your speech to be a success.
   
9. Figure out your take-home message. What is it that you want the audience to leave with? How would you want them to sum up your speech if they were to describe it to someone else? This is your take-home message. Use it to build your entire speech.
   
10. Start with a bang. The first few minutes of your speech will set the tone for your entire presentation, so use them to your advantage. Try a joke, a shocking statistic, an inspiring quote or a news headline that will get the audience's attention and peak their curiosity.
    
11. Get personal. When appropriate, share your personal stories, experiences and thoughts. This keeps your speech unique while sharing your motivations and enthusiasm with the audience. Also, speak to the audience as you would a friend. It's generally not appropriate to keep things overly formal or technical.
    

Recommended Reading
How to Overcome Your Fear of Failure
Taking Risks: How to Take Calculated Risks to Get Ahead in Anything

A Convenient Truth at Toastmasters by Meryl Runion

Whitewash
Have you ever been beside yourself? I’m talking about the kind of mind-body disconnect where your body is there but your mind is someone else. That’s what I was like that day.

I took a deep breath as I observed the clock. It seemed to drag and fly at the same time. I didn’t hear a word the Toastmaster said until the sound of my name reached me through my fog. I somehow found my way to the front of the room.

The light from the window obscured the view of my audience. I was relieved that I couldn’t clearly see their reactions to my first speech ever. My mouth was moving, but I wasn’t aware enough to supervise what came out. I somehow knew when to stop and sat down to hear my presentation evaluated.

I feared the evaluation more than the presentation itself. I shouldn’t have. My evaluation was a whitewash. The evaluator sang my praises and failed to note a single flaw or idea for improvement. Wow. I must have been some kind of speaking genius.

I continued to present speeches and continued to receive rave reviews of my amazing, flawless presentations until something happened after my forth speech that took me down from my cloud.

Betrayed by the truth
What happened? I received an honest review. Bonnie, my evaluator, identified the strengths of my presentation and proceeded to identify the areas where I could improve.

I felt mistreated, abandoned and betrayed. Bonnie broke the rules! She was supposed to tell me how perfect I was like the others had done.

Yet beneath my inner protest I knew she had given me a far greater gift.

Nothing less than the truth would do
About a month later, I resolved to enter the Toastmasters humorous speech contest. Suddenly I was serious. Suddenly I wanted honest feedback. Suddenly I wanted Bonnie to evaluate all my speeches. And suddenly Bonnie left the club and was no longer available to tell me how I could improve.

I won second place for the Iowa Humorous Speech Competition that year. Had Bonnie been able to coach me, might I have won first?

A feast of feedback
Years later I sent a videotape of a Toastmasters speech to the largest seminar company in the United States. I was thrilled when they flew me in for an audition and later hired me.

At that point, when I spoke, 40 – 400 people who had paid money to hear me evaluated me each day. Some of the evaluations were whitewashes. Some were critical but lacking in recommendations I could implement. But mixed in, there were useful evaluations that Bonnie could have written. I used those evaluations to help me improve.

Now, I book my own speaking engagements. My platform is to Speak Strong – to be willing to tell people what they need to hear, even when they are reluctant to hear it. Bonnie demonstrated what it means to Speak Strong when she evaluated my presentation accurately.

A great resource
My career began for me at Toastmasters with a woman who was willing to tell me what I needed to know. I was terrified at my first presentation, and 1000 presentations later I still deal with that fear every time I present. I dreaded feedback then, and I still embrace it with trepidation today. But I love to speak more than I fear it, and I am grateful for the support that helped me get where I am.

Have you ever been beside yourself? It’s easy to disconnect and easier to give up. But then you’d miss the Toastmasters’ opportunity to learn how to speak well. You’d miss the opportunity to hear what you need to hear. You’d miss the opportunity to learn make your point so others get your point. You’d miss a fabulous opportunity to Speak Strong. What an opportunity that is!

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Meryl Runion and Speak Strong (SpeakStrong) provides Power Phrases (PowerPhrases) and other tools to help you improve communication skills at work and at home.

She is the author of the books Speak Strong, PowerPhrases!, How to Use PowerPhrases, Perfect Phrases for Managers and Supervisors and How to Say It: Performance Reviews. She can be reached at 719-684-2633 or by email: E-mail Meryl.