A partner just told me that the way I speak is holding me back in my career. I tend to mumble, speak too fast and mix my words when stressed. He advised getting a voice coach to help. I looked into it and this is not something I can afford at the moment. Does anyone have any advice of skills I can learn at home or books on enunciation?

likehelpful
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I went through quite a bit of “voice” coaching (~ 20 hours 1:1).

Couple really small things you can do:
1) Record yourself when presenting whenever possible, listen, and identify areas to improve
2) Learn to pause — Pausing is hard to do but practice speaking so slowly and pausing so long that you feel uncomfortable — That’s the right speed to speak at
3) Find break phrases — Someone asks you a question and respond “Yes, that’s a fantastic question, [name]”. These are just stall tactics — It shows the person you’re responding, but allows you to think through your response without stumbling over your answer

Also, find a buddy — Someone who will be critical of you speaking and can be honest with you. Have them listen and tell them you’re trying to improve

likehelpful

This is great advice. I would add that I always try to prepare my talking points and sometimes a script ahead of time if I know I am presenting.

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good for that partber to deliver direct feedback that can improve your career

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Agree. It’s hard to give tough and direct feedback. I hate doing it even though I force myself to do so.

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Join toastmasters

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Yes. I speak fast and am noticing lately consulting is full of Type As who speak very aggressively. Practice certainly helps.

Watch YouTube tutorials, there are mouth exercises you can do very easily at your desk to help improve

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Also along these lines, so many voice coaches took to TikTok and Reels this past year being remote + wanting to become a trendy doctor of sorts. There’s some decent content there.

likesmart

So assuming you are a native English speaker I’d say this sounds like mostly due to lack of confidence in yourself or the material your presenting. If due to lack of confidence in yourself, see a therapist. If it’s because your not comfortable with the material, make sure you give yourself enough time to really know the material and what your speaking points are (develop an outline). Join a public speaking class/group, there’s a popular one out there but the name is escaping me at the moment but join and just practice. Your either not confident in your public speaking ability or yourself in general.

This is just my assumption. May be wrong but feel like typically when people have issues with public speaking (can be meetings not huge events) it’s due to being afraid of speaking in public and/or lack of confidence in general.

likehelpful

Does your employer offer some coaching? It may be worth asking especially if you’ve been directed to work on this

likesmart

Sponsor is too strong a term. All that's being said here is "partner expense approval". Which makes sense, asking the partner who suggested it in the first place.

Practice speaking at home by yourself, in front of mirror. Play through a meeting the night before and slowly, clearly, enunciate what you might say. Same before giving any sort of presentation. Mumbling should be easy to overcome. It is usually a sign of low confidence and not feeling good about what you are saying so you mask it by mumbling. Figure out what you want to say and then say it, confidently.

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I love all the advice. The only thing I’ll add is to focus on your delivery during very low-risk, internal meetings. Maybe an internal status meeting with only a couple people… really focus on your delivery and the tools and skills that work best for you. I really think the way you speak is a muscle that you can strengthen with practice!

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The other thing to do is to learn to relax in your speech and be more purposeful in what you say. This will take practice and at bats with clients

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Or just watch mad men

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You could check at a community college near you for public speaking courses. Do it in the evenings and this can often be sig cheaper than taking an in person course

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That’s a solid partner for telling you that

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Have worked with a number of team members on communication skills and it’s not an easy skill to improve…requires strong commitment and a lot of practice. Also not everyone can excel at public speaking, alternatively there are other career paths that do place a premium on presenting.

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There are some udemy classes you can take probably. I had a problem of mumbling as well, I practiced by trying to say words while biting down on a pen (trick reporters use) and meditate, helped me a ton

Often times, in my observation, there is a fear of “what other’s will think, or are thinking whilst you’re presenting” that impacts a person’s vocal delivery especially if you’re less experienced in public speaking, and where you don’t have a complete understanding of the subject matter you’re speaking about. In my opinion, fixing the two is more than half the battle won.

Can you ask your firm to pay for it? My team has paid for voice coaching for people - even interns! It’s not insanely costly, and you asking to take action on the feedback indicates that you take the feedback seriously and want to grow.

What is wrong with people….just say which company

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Something that I recall just before every important meeting / presentation: Slow down to go fast.

In other words, speak slowly and deliberately so that the audience understands you quicker and you can make decisions faster.

You should be able to afford what would keep you successful at your job, which gives you an income. Cut the rest, rice and beans

Try Orai and Elsa speak. Both great apps to work on communications

Read the book - The exceptional presenter by Tim Koegel

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