Good barristers, politicians and business leaders sound confident, in control and have authority in their speech and voice. Can it be mastered? Yes, and I will explain how.
First of all, in order to achieve authority in your voice be in control of your breathing. Good breath control will bring energy to your voice.
Secondly, good articulation will help you sound clear, more energised and powerful. You can master it with the apps Get Rid of your Accent UK1 (British English) or American Accent App (American English).
Thirdly, avoid sounding monotonous and saying everything on one level of pitch. Change the pitch, power and pace according to the emotion/meaning of a particular message. We can recommend the app 4Ps, Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause if you want to learn and practice this technique.
To achieve authority, speak in a straightforward way and stress the key messages. To make the keywords stand out use a louder or quieter voice (depending on the meaning). Raise the inflection when saying keywords and vice versa, use downward inflection with unstressed words. Learn more about inflecltion and sentence stress in the apps Fluent English Speech (British English) or Fluent American Speech (American English).
Finally, think about physicality and be well in control of your posture and gestures. Have a good straight posture and gestures that support your messages.
What is the best way to practice it? Listen to speakers like Winston Churchill. Watch courtroom dramas and note how effective barristers speak. Here is a practical exercise for you:
Read a speech out loud and record yourself.
Underline stresses keywords and mark pauses in the printed copy of the speech. You can learn how to do it right with the app Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause.
Read the speech again and record yourself. If necessary repeat this exercise a few times.
If you need help book a few elocution lessons.
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