Characteristics of good talking

„When you open your mouth, you tell the whole world who you are“ – Mr. Leroy Washington
 

Voice is your main tool in talking. A good speaking voice is perceived as pleasant, authoritative, and is evoking friendliness. There are certain parameters in voice that distinguish a good voice and the bad one. Phoneticians, as the experts of voice, detected that the female voice is perceived pleasant when its tone is slightly lower, muffled and containing very light nasality.

Modifying your voice in tone, pause, pace, volume, timbre, and articulation will bring you closer to a good talking manner. Although, mime and gesture appertain to nonverbal cues, they are as well a part of voice material. It supports and extends voice into a visible signal. Let see what each element of good talking means.

Tone is the attitude and emotion conveyed by your voice. Low tone implies strength, masculinity and power. Although, it can be used for showing some emotions such as anger, contempt, and sadness. High tone implies vulnerability and it conveys nervousness and fear.

Pauses are parts of the discourse lacking text. They are playing a very important role in talking. The pause during a speech should not last longer than two minutes. If does, it is considered to be interruption of the discourse. They have different roles and different meanings. Regarding the roles, the pause can be divided into delimitative pauses, marking off the sentence; pauses that emphasizes the words that are coming before or after them; lexical pauses taking the meaning of the no verbalized word; processing pauses that gives you time to think about what to tell next, and the pauses of termination of the speech.

Pace is the speed at which you speak. It expresses emotional and other paralinguistic information and conveys emphasis and contrast. It is expressed in the number of the spoken syllable in one minute. Average pace is from 4 to 7 syllables in a minute. This is the ideal pace for the information to be perceived clearly. 

Volume is how loudly or softly you speak. It can be measured in decibels. 35 dB is the volume of our voice when we whisper and about 65 dB in normal conversation. When we decide to yell it will produce 100 dB. Speaking too loud can disturb others, and it’s not polite. Deciding on the appropriate volume is fundamental requirement of the speaking culture. Too low volume that seeks strain hearing is equally rude as loud. Also, semantic of loud speaking is connected with a formality and authority in communicating, emphasizing the distance between interlocutors. Using low volume can imply closeness and privacy.   

Timbre of the voice has its static and dynamic component. The static one is God given and there is little to be done or improved in that area. The area somebody can work with is the dynamic one. Through certain types of exercises the voice can be cultivated.

Articulation is the distinct enunciation and pronunciation of syllables. It depends on three things: the innate potential, psychological traits, and speaking habits. Individual level of articulation shows somebody’s character, intelligence, and esthetic ideals.  

 

 

 

At the end, let me share with you few secrets of good talking from the book “Top leadership Gurus” by Michael Jeffreys:

-          Remember that what you are really selling are not words but feelings and emotions

-          If you want to speak with passion, than you have to be passionate about your topic

-          Use your tone of voice to convey a variety of emotions throughout your presentation

-          Speak as often as possible

For more about this topic you can browse http://my.safaribooksonline.com/book/-/9780814417874/chapter-10-speaking-with-the-voice-of-authority/56