Focus on Confidence not Accent

With English his fourth language, Anton felt insecure when speaking in front of an international group in that language.

Posted to Australia by his Engineering firm, he was determined to achieve a leadership role while working in the country.  He took classes, practised technically accurate English, read the local papers and embraced every chance he could to speak in public.

Yes, all that work made a difference, but he continued to sound hesitant and spoke with a fearful tone in his voice. When we met, he was close to despair.

Together, we agreed on changing the focus. Working on skills in delivery, voice projection and the use of structure in speaking environments, Anton realised that he had been working against, rather than with his existing English language skills.

By relaxing his approach, he took the pressure off himself and his spoken English.  He freed up his spontaneous thinking and began making deeper connections with his professional audiences.

The change of focus from accent to self-confidence made all the difference!

A plague on voice strain

Suzette heads up the HR department of a multi-national organisation.

Her work demands regular trips across Asia.  She is constantly in air-conditioned environments.  And she has been seeing a throat specialist due to sporadic voice loss.

With her specialist's approval, we've been working together:

• On relaxation techniques in confined spaces

• On voice release techniques

• On voice preservation techniques

• And on voice projection techniques

 Establishing a voice care routine will make a difference to your enjoyment of work.  Consider a tailored Master Class.

Quite by chance...

There are times when it appears that a Makeover happens quite by chance. It is appearance only; the context, the mood of those present and the person themselves need to meet and generate change.

Just recently, this occurred in a group working on 'Voice in Story'.  While going through a quick warm-up exercise, I called for volunteers to spontaneously speak on a selected topic. One participant, known in the organisation for a strong, almost forbidding communication style, rose.

The group were spellbound by a gentle, loving story of a relaxed family holiday.

Of interest to me, was hearing how the teller's voice changed as the story unfolded. It moved from direct, purposeful, dogmatic delivery into a blend of wry humour, wonder, reflection and celebration.

The impact still resonates in the group.  No longer seen as stern, demanding and dogmatic, that narrator is now sought-after for their unique warmth, insight and approachability.

When a speaker relaxes and releases the story, it is not just the narrative that benefits!

International Conference Calls - Credibility

Saving time and cutting costs have contributed to the steady rise in virtual communication.

With limited or no body language as a mechanism for interpretation, leaders and executives rely increasingly on their voice, their delivery and their tonal messages to hold attention and speak with conviction.

Charles (based in Australia) and Elise (working temporarily from central Europe) had been colleagues for around 8 years.  They knew each other relatively well and had contributed to a number of key projects as technical specialists; he in IT she in finance.

Their relationship was tested by recent global pressures and changes in business practices in Europe and Australia. Their communication was derailed by time zones, misinterpretation and virtual assumptions.

To better manage their telephone interactions they agreed to a system of language indicators.  The moment one or the other identfied uncertainty or confusion in the other they would stop the conversation, go back one or two steps and repeat the core of the message.  To each core they would add a clarifying statement such as 'This means that....'; 'What I am seeing is...' and similar.

While the repetition was initally frustrating, they found that by closely listening to their communcation partner's tonal shifts and addressing the assumptions and snap judgements that arose from them, they were able to sustain clear, credible interactions.  Each gained deeper appreciation for the other's pressures and challenges.  Eventually, they were able to 'pick up' mood swings in voice and, through that skill, were able to get to the heart of the message sooner.

Yes, instant virtual communication is a boon.  It is also one that needs to take note of context and the potential for misinterpretations.

Style Adjustment for New Leader

'Charles' was flattered when he was head-hunted by a recruitment agency for a significant leadership role in a professional services firm.  Previously, he had worked as a financial specialist in a small, closely-knit IT development company.

His new role demanded a high profile approach to his work, on-the-spot presentations to strategic teams and delivering updates at quarterly Board meetings.  As a confident, clear speaker, Charles felt at ease in his new position.

He was therefore surprised when the Financial Director approached him for a confidential 'chat about his style'.  He was mortified to hear that he was deemed 'light-weight' and possibly 'wrong for the position' because he came across as relaxed and 'overly-confident' when he spoke.

In three-way discussions, the Director, Charles and I agreed that subtle adjustments to voice, vocal tone, vocal expression and language choices would help him fix these unintended, undesirable and inaccurate impressions of him in his new position.

It was a worthy exercise to undergo and useful to identify that styles need to change when people change roles in and across organisations. 

Expectations and ground rules are different for each organisation.  Being able to identify and make subtle changes in style is necessary when changing jobs and advancing careers.

Are you considering a career change?  If so, ask me about appropriate shifts in style in your voice and spoken word presentation.

Avoid confusion - test your clarity

It is so easy to change sounds, drop sounds out, insert additional sounds and generally confuse people when you first speak English.  It is particularly so if, in your mother-tongue, you naturally speak fast.

Jose, a soccer player from Argentina, had just that problem.  Once, when interviewed after a match, he spoke so quickly that he saw only confusion on the interviewer's face.  With shock, he realised, while watching the replay, how difficult it was for people to understand him.

Embarrased and distressed, he asked for help and direction.

In this post, you will find some common errors that occur when speaking too quickly.

Have a go at this exercise and this process if you want to receive some feedback and direction from me.

Get help with giving feedback

It can be awkward giving feedback to someone who is not clear when they speak at work.

Jake contacted me to discuss that very issue when his food production company went on a major recruitment drive.  A number of new recruits had learnt English as their second or subsequent language.  Others had endured poor education opportunities which diminished their use of language and expression.

All of them were struggling to express themselves in small but significant ways.  Managers and team members were frustrated. Relationships were stalling.

Jake wanted to give his talented new people opportunites to advance their careers.  But how do you tell someone that they are difficult to understand?  How do you tell them their grammar is all wrong?  How do you ask them to work on their spoken language skills without hurting their feelings?

After a few conversations and a visit to the organisation, we came up with a 'slow and steady' approach to individual language development solutions.  Working virtually, remotely, in situ, singly and in groups, support was generated within the organisation and across production teams.


Wiht Jake, I worked on how to start the conversation, illuminate a wide range of consequences and generate postive alternatives.

Make contact if you find yourself struggling with giving feedback as a manager, leader or entrepreneur.  If you're interested in exploring more about accent and clarity, open this.