In days of old, when women wore corsets and stays, a soft-spoken voice was considered feminine and endearing. Thankfully, women’s fashions have evolved and we are not ‘bound’ either by boning or by volume. With the number of women in business today, a voice lacking in a normal amount of volume is not an endearing quality. Unfortunately, it says that you lack confidence in yourself. By the way, if you are a man, it says the same as well.
Today, business requires speed. And constantly repeating yourself because others are unable to hear you is a waste of precious time. People want to hear you the first time you say it. Being continually asked to repeat yourself means your listeners will stop listening and take over the conversation.
- If you are soft-spoken, it is important to understand that speaking somewhere below a normal volume of sound is not what most people do. Therefore, your soft-spoken voice is not ‘normal.’
This past weekend while having dinner with my brother-in-law, I was once again reminded of how frustrating it is to try to hear him speaking at a volume level well below normal. However, I think he is now ready to make the change!
When my clients discover their richer, warmer, deeper voice, they like it, their body likes it, and it feels right. It is like the cogs of a gear: everything falls into place.
However, getting those who are soft-spoken to accept more volume is often difficult because they think they are shouting. Only when I record them and play it back at the correct volume level can they appreciate that indeed their increase in volume sounds normal and is not loud. Yes, it is a bigger sound but not a loud one.
The retraining of your inner ear is vital in accepting more volume and takes work but it is definitely worth the effort. When others can hear you comfortably the first time you say it, you will be delighted with the results. Whether it is for a job, a promotion, a sale, or even among your friends and family, you need to learn to speak at a normal volume level. Trust me, your listeners will thank you for it.
The Voice Lady Nancy Daniels offers private, corporate and group workshops in voice and presentation skills as well as Voicing It!, the only complete video training program on voice improvement. If you would like to see some wonderful ‘before’ & ‘after’ video clips of soft-spoken individuals, check out Mohammad, Kurt, and Dawn at Voice Dynamic.