Are We There Yet? 3 Speed Traps to Speaking

(2 votes, average: 5.00 out of 5)

Loading...

By Jerry Weissman

As soon as I heard my new navigation system announce the routing for my trip, I recognized the male voice. It was the same man who greets me whenever I call United Airlines: warm, friendly, conversational and, most of all assured—unlike the characterless robotic voices that I (and you, too) must endure in so many other automated voice systems. As a result, I listened to his guidance instructions with extra attention.

Image: Yay Images

That’s when I noticed his interesting vocal pattern: Every time he provided an update during the route, he ended his phrase abruptly, his voice rising on the last word — a sharp contrast to his confident United Airlines persona: “Continue on El Camino Real for three miles…,” “Continue on El Camino Real for two miles…,” “In 200 feet, turn left…”. But then, when he delivered his last instruction, “You have arrived at your destination,” he said the last word assertively, his inflection dropping.

This pattern works well for guidance systems because it indicates a continuing journey, but works against speakers because a rising inflection pattern produces three negative effects:

1. Question

At a very basic level, rising inflection indicates a question. To demonstrate, try this: speak this simple phrase, “I had lunch today.” Now say it again, two different ways, first as a question, with your voice rising on the last word, “Did I have lunch today?”, then as a declarative statement, with your voice falling on the last word, “I had lunch today!”

Do you hear the difference? At this simple level, if a speaker is making an assertion (after all, that’s what presentations are meant to do) then the speaker’s voice must convey — not contradict — the meaning of the words.

But it gets worse…

2. Uncertainty

Rising inflection sounds tentative and uncertain, the very opposite of assertive. Rising inflection is often associated with the way teenagers speak and so it conveys immaturity in adults. Rising inflection is also known as “uptalk” or “Valley Girl talk,” the frequent target of mockery in television and films.

3. Steady stream

If a speaker’s speech pattern continues at the same vocal level without breaks, the words string together in a continuous flatline stream, making it difficult for the audience to separate—and process—ideas. Create breaks by dropping your voice at logical points — phrases and sentences — throughout your presentation.

Give your audience (a) breaks! Give them clarity. Guide them to your destination.

You have arrived.

    Jerry Weissman is the founder and president of Suasive, Inc., formerly Power Presentations, Ltd. Jerry founded Suasive in 1988 and quickly established himself as the coach for Silicon Valley CEOs delivering critical presentations for their IPO roadshows. He taught them to tell their company stories through the eyes of their investors, and in so doing, significantly increased the valuations of their companies. He amassed an elite client list and soon widened his focus to helping public and privately held companies develop and deliver all types of business presentations.

The views and opinions expressed in this blog post or content are those of the authors or the interviewees and do not necessarily reflect the official policy or position of any other agency, organization, employer, or company.