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It's a standard part of everyday business life that we have to give presentations, sales talks or even just talk on the telephone. In this respect your voice is an important and valuable business tool. As with all tools, the better you use it, the better the results you will achieve.<br /><br />Professor Albert Mehrabian of UCLA conducted research on how we take in information during presentations. His research showed that 55% of the information we take in is visual and only 7% is taken in via text. The remaining 38% is through speech. That's a significant percentage and with just a little work and practice it is possible to use your voice in a way that will help you get the most of that 38%.<br /><br /><h2>What's your message?</h2> The first step in developing effective verbal communication is establishing what you want to say. <br /><br />Write out your message in detail and then edit it down to the main points. This will help you to avoid stumbling and hesitating while you talk. It will also help you sound more confident. <br /><br /><h2>Sit up straight</h2> Your posture affects your voice. Slouching or sitting in a hunched over position can make your voice sound drab and lifeless. Not the way you want to sound at a presentation or over the phone. Your voice responds to your physical state. Stand or sit up straight and you will find it's much easier to speak clearly and with confidence. <br /><br />Smiling while you speak makes you sound happier. While frowning and staring makes it easier to sound serious. This may seem odd but try it and you'll find it's true as well as being fun. Use it to your advantage.<br /><br /><h2>We don't all hear the same things</h2> A major problem for many speakers is that of not being heard easily. In many cases a simple shift in how you think can help improve the situation. You see, we tend to use our own ears as the ultimate reference. We assume that what we hear is what everyone else hears. <br /><br />Perhaps you're on a train and the person in the next seat is talking on the telephone. Suddenly the reception gets a bit bad and they can't hear the person on the other end clearly. So what do they do? They start shouting into the phone. Perhaps the other person still has a great reception but our neighbouring passenger assumes that because it's hard to hear the other person, that the other person can't hear them.<br /><br /><h2>Talk to the back of the room</h2> Usually the opposite is true in presentations. The room is usually quiet because everyone is trying to listen to you (we hope!). So, you can hear yourself easily and talking louder perhaps makes you feel a bit embarrassed and that you're shouting. <br /><br />In this situation you need to focus on the person furthest away from you. Talk loud enough to be heard by this person and the rest of the room will hear you too. Of course if it's a large hall there may be a requirement for a Public Address system to amplify the sound. <br /><br /><h2>Rehearsing</h2> Knowing your message well and knowing how you want it to come across is essential. Just writing out the words and firing them off during your presentation isn't going to be convincing.<br /><br />Can you imagine going to the theatre to see a bunch of actors just reading the lines out? No, we want to hear them interpret the lines and deliver them with feeling and passion. <br /><br />You don't have to learn the whole thing off by heart but it's vital that you know the flow of your presentation and that you put the emphasis and pushes in the right places. Rehearsal is the only way to be sure you've got it nailed. You should schedule time to do at least four  out loud' rehearsals in advance of your presentation.<br /><br /><h2>Useful Resources</h2> Some good advice and tips can be found at a website called A Research Guide for Students. It has some very good information on preparing and developing effective presentations.<br/> <a target="example" href="http://www.aresearchguide.com/3tips.html">www.aresearchguide.com/3tips.html</a><br /><br />For those of you who use PowerPoint as part of your presentations Dreaming Dog has a wealth of information to help you create better materials.<br/> <a target="example" href="http://www.dreamingdog.com/tipsheet.html">www.dreamingdog.com/tipsheet.html</a><br /><br /> </div></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td colspan=2 class="spacerTD"> &nbsp;</td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td colspan=2 class="footerTD"> <table border=0 cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0> <tr valign="top"> <td style="padding-right: 6px; padding-top: 3px;"> <img src="userimgs/bits/bni/bnilogosml.gif" width=45 height=27 alt="BNI logo"></td> <td> <div id="theFooter" class="topFooter"><b>BNI Marketwest.</b> A member of Business Network International (BNI). <br/>Email: <a href='mailto:info@bnimarketwest.com'>info@bnimarketwest.com</a><br/></div> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </td> </tr> </table> </div> </div> <script src='http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js' type='text/javascript'> </script> <script type='text/javascript'> _uacct = 'UA-241515-13'; urchinTracker(); </script><script src='http://www.google-analytics.com/urchin.js' type='text/javascript'> </script> <script type='text/javascript'> _uacct = 'UA-241515-13'; urchinTracker(); </script></body> </html>