2. Reasons for poor volume:
1. You don’t know how to use your
voice.
2. Nervousness is subduing you.
3. You’re not looking at the people
you’re speaking to.
3. How to Solve the Problem:
1. Breathe properly. Try doing
different breathing exercises.
- Stand up, shoulders back, hands on
your stomach. Let your stomach
muscles relax.
- Breathe in through your nose and fill
up your abdomen first (you should
feel and see it expand), then your ribs
and all the way up to your chin.
4. - Hold this breath and count until
ten.
- Now exhale slowly. As you
exhale, keep your ribs expanded
and tighten your abdomen. The
lower abdominal muscles should
come in first as though you were
rolling up a tube of toothpaste.
5. 2. Relax your voice by opening
your mouth widely.
- Yawn and make your jaw drop
as far as you can without stress.
Finish the yawn by prolonging
the last sound and turning it into
a hum. (“Mmmmm”)
6. - Waggle the jaw from side to side
and continue humming with the
lips closed and jaw loose.
- Repeat the yawning and
humming.
Notice your throat muscles have
loosened and become relaxed.
7. 3. Practice the “volume exercise”
daily.
- Breathe deeply and exhale with a hissing
sound.
- Vary the loudness of your voice using a
vowel sound “ah”. Start with a soft sound,
then middle and loud. Repeat, starting with
the loud sound until the soft. Repeat again
soft>loud>soft>loud>soft>loud… for
several seconds
9. 4. Look at the people you’re
speaking to. Our natural desire to
make a connection makes it easier
for us to “up our volume” so that
the person we’re speaking to can
hear us. Looking at a person
directly, whether he be across the
room, will make us speak more
loudly so be sure to establish
really good eye contact.
10. Good Body Posture
- correct posture can make you look more
professional and sound much better;
ultimately, that leads to more confidence
and a better performance!
- When you are speaking in front of an
audience, nothing is more important than
posture. Correct posture makes you seem
more professional and commanding, which
is a central part of public speaking.
11. Correct posture for public speaking
includes:
1. Keeping your shoulders back and
down, not slumped forward – since
this causes your rib cage to rise
slightly, it makes you sound better.
2. Keeping the core of your body
tight – this helps you stand straighter
and not slouch.
12. 3. Planting your feet flat on
the ground about shoulder-
width apart– though it may be
tempting to jiggle your leg or
stand with one of your hips
slightly jutted out, keep your
feet flat on the ground,
shoulder-width apart.
13. 4. Keeping your chest slightly
raised – again, it’s important not to
slouch! Raising your chest slightly
opens your lungs and improves your
voice projection.
5. Holding your chin slightly up –
you don’t need to look at the ceiling,
but avoid putting your head down!
Lowering your head hinders air flow
and diminishes voice projection.
14. ***At times, correct posture probably
won’t come naturally, but it’s good to
keep in mind nonetheless, as
practicing this good public speaking
posture has benefits beyond just
looking professional. As mentioned,
good posture facilitates better voice
projection, improved air flow
and is better for your back. Standing
up straight is always better than
slouching!
15. When it comes to public
speaking, AVOID:
• Standing with your hands behind
your back or, worse, with your arms
crossed in front of your chest
• Slouching (even slightly!)
• Lowering your head (even if you
don’t have your speech memorized,
don’t keep your head bent, reading
off note cards the whole time)
16. Sources:
1. Verderber, R. (1979). The challenge of effective speaking (4th ed.).
California: Wadsworth Publishing Company, Inc.
2. http://www.entrepreneursspeaking.com/1/post/2013/02/3-daily-exercises-to
improve-your-voice-projection.html
3. http://www.toastmasters.org/199-YourSpeakingVoice
4. http://www.speakingaboutpresenting.com/delivery/project-your-voice/
5. http://www.parischiro.com/blog/public-speaking-posture
