5 Ways Your Voice Could be Sabotaging Your Career

As a communication coach I work with clients ranging from Fortune 500 CEO’s to new managers at tiny startups. In many cases these ambitious, bright people are struggling to get past some kind of professional obstacle. Sometimes their job requires them to deliver impactful presentations and they’re just not succeeding. Perhaps they’ve been passed over for a promotion a few times. Time and again, I find that it’s often vocal behavior getting in the way of someone’s career goals.

As work professionals we need to remember that it’s not only what you say, it’s how you say it. Understanding the components of your own vocal behavior and improving things like your overall tone, pitch and volume can make a huge difference in how you are perceived. Here are the top five ways your voice might be sabotaging your own career goals:

1. Your pitch is out of tune. Have you ever heard a female executive open her mouth and sound like a little girl? It completely ruins all credibility. In fact, most people are speaking either at the low end of their voice “scale” (the sixteen notes your voice box is capable of controlling) or at the top of the scale, in a pitch that’s too high or sounds nasal. Vocal exercises can help you find the right pitch for your voice that is comfortable and credible.
2. Your tone does not match your message. When I talk about tone, I’m talking about your voice’s personality. Ask someone how he or she would describe you in one word based on your voice. This will give you an idea of how you come across. You may think your tone is brisk, while others might describe it as angry. Conversely, you may be trying to deliver a difficult message with a tone that is too amiable. Consciously working on tone can make a huge difference in how well your message is received.
3. You have poor vocal health. I’m not a nutritionist, but certain food and drink items can impact your vocal performance. First, stay away from dairy if you’re going to have an important meeting or deliver a presentation. You may love your lattes, but they can really clog your larynx. Avoid sugar as well, and make sure you understand how your body handles caffeine. Being jittery is not a good thing and neither is crashing 20 minutes after eating that glazed donut. Both energy spikes and lags can affect your vocal behavior.
4. You don’t enunciate. This is a problem I see with many people who have typically operated in a job that didn’t require too much interaction. It can also be an obstacle for those who use Skype for meetings for the first time. We all hate those folks who mumble. Lack of enunciation can seem less authoritative at best, and at worst, annoying when your boss or co-workers need you to repeat yourself in order to be understood. Speak clearly and enunciate your words so everyone can understand you the first time.
5. Your subtext doesn’t match your message. Subtextual messages are those you send beyond the words you speak. Subtext affects how people receive you when you’re talking. For example, maybe you’re an insurance agent using bad grammar - you’re sending a sub textual message that you might be uneducated. Perhaps you’re a communication coach like me, but your vocal behavior is full of “ums” and other verbal tics. Your vocal behavior must match the expectation of the person or people to whom you are speaking. Without the proper subtext, everything is off.

I’ve never met anyone who didn’t exhibit at least a few bad habits in terms of vocal behavior. The good news is that just being conscious of your vocal behavior in important business situations can improve the manner in which you deliver your message and consequently, increase your credibility.