Four Voice Habits Affecting Your Executive Presence

I first learned about Executive Presence (EP) during my MBA program at Fairleigh Dickinson University. I remember the class discussing the importance of EP, which was defined as having a high level of confidence. Whenever you communicated, EP showed in your physical presence and how you came across with your knowledge, ideas and information.?

At the time, I recognized that professionals with EP were able to capture attention wherever they communicated, speaking clearly and decisively, and they commanded a presence, during all of their interactions. Wherever they spoke, whether in-person, online or on camera, EP mattered.?

Now, think about your EP and how you show up. How much do use the power of your voice when you communicate as a tool to influence and impact the people around you??

How large or small a part does your voice play in your EP? For most of my career, I didn’t think about how my voice helped to define me as a communicator or aided me in my communications.

As you may know, I've shared in earlier newsletters how the road to "The Influential Communicator" breaks down into three equal parts: The Voice, Verbal Cues (the words you access and use) and your non-verbal cues or body language. Your voice is one third of the equation. As an equal third, it's worth your time to explore a little more about the power of your voice.

Leaders who want to enhance their voices and their EP, realize they need to understand voice habits that often fly under the radar. These habits include:

1. Vocal Fry: You’ve probably heard the term "vocal fry” used many times. Or, maybe you’ve heard the fry sound, but have not labeled it yet. Vocal fry is the "fraying" or some even say the "spraying" sound of your voice. It comes across as speech that is low pitch and often sounds “cracked” or “crackling.”?It’s when your voice has a rough sound. Although there are articles and sources that state vocal fry is trendy today among younger generations, the constant fry sound can be difficult on the ears. At times, vocal fry also occurs when there’s not enough air flowing through your vocal cords, which is more of a breathing issue when you’re speaking. If you’re not breathing properly the sound of your voice suffers. In order to avoid vocal fry, it’s important to breath properly when you speak, getting air into your diaphragm, and doing more “belly” breathing, as opposed to breathing from your chest or throat.
2. Voice Pitch: Voices either too high or too low affect how people perceive you and the actions they take as a result. Higher voices can signal a youthful demeanor, maybe even less serious in some business circles. A steady low voice, one which lacks modulation, can come across as monotone and even boring. It’s important to understand the highs and lows of your voice and when to modulate correctly. When you want to get people excited you may raise the pitch of your voice higher, at a moment of important and passionate news. However, when you're stressing a point that is more serious your voice may go lower. The ability to modulate your voice helps to keep your audience interested and ultimately affects how they respond to what you're sharing.
3. Up Speak: Whenever you speak, you may notice your voice modulates higher or lower at the end of a sentence. A voice lilt is how you raise or lower your voice appropriately. There are times you’ll lilt up to ask a question, or lilt down to get your point across. However, when you constantly lilt up, at the end of a sentence, this is referred to as up speak. Regardless of whether your statement is a question or not, lilting up sounds as if you’re asking a direct question. Repeated up speak is a sure way to have your audience questioning whether you know what you're talking about. They may even question your expertise. Too much up speak will lessen your audience’s confidence in you.
4. Voice Speed: The speed of your voice matters. If you're speaking too slowly, then people may not tune in long enough for you to make your point. However, if you're speaking too quickly, people may not understand you, and will need you to slow down for better comprehension. It’s important to know your audience and what they expect from you, based on the communication situation. For example, if you’re teaching a new subject, with a number of lengthy steps, you'll speak more slowly. However, if you’re in a meeting with your in-house attorney, CFO and CEO, and you only have their attention for 10 minutes, you’ll want to speed up your communication to show the importance of the conversation, and to be respectful of their time. It's important to understand what people on the receiving end need from you and when it makes sense to use speed as a means to interest them. According to the National Center for Voice and Speech, about 150 words per minute is considered an average rate for US speakers. Knowing your voice speed is a good way to benchmark, and then use the knowledge to increase or decrease your speed as required.

Your voice matters. How you sound is an important part of your EP and helps you on your path to becoming The Influential Communicator.

Here’s a video discussing some breathing techniques that will help you to enhance the sound of your voice and how you come across vocally.

BONUS: With over 1 billion hours of video watched daily on YouTube, showing your EP and being relatable on camera, can make a difference. If you’re interested in increasing your influence and, at the same time, want to come across as your authentic self, then you may want to check out my LinkedIn Learning Marketing Strategy: Relatable Video Content course to help you show up and deliver your EP, in ways that excite your audience and get them to act.