***Which Do You Prefer: Your Voice on Your Answering Machine or The One You Hear in Your Head?
by Nancy Daniels, The Official Guide to Public Speaking

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Recently I spoke to a group of Toastmasters in Detroit and I posed that question. Not one person in the audience liked hearing themselves on their voicemail. Not one person!

If your hair is a mess, you fix it because everyone sees it. That is part of your visual image. If your voice is a mess; i.e., if it is nasal, or possibly too soft or too loud, childlike, or monotone, why wouldn’t you fix it? Bear in mind, what you hear on your voicemail is how you are recognized by everyone else. THAT voice is your vocal image!

In April I had an opportunity to spend a day at a marketing seminar in North Jersey. One of the speakers was a very dynamic presenter, however, he spoke much too fast and his voice was somewhat nasal. While I had attended his presentation in the morning, he was also the final speaker for the closing of the seminar. I chose to leave the conference early because I knew if I had to listen to another hour of him, I would get a headache. (And, I had no intention of fighting North Jersey traffic with a headache!)

Most people are unaware that they can improve the sound of their speaking voice and in many cases the change can be quite dramatic. We all have a better voice inside. I refer to it as your ‘real’ voice, a voice that is warmer, richer, and probably deeper in pitch… a voice that sounds mature – not old, not young. Just mature. In addition, once you’ve had training you will gain tremendous control of your nervousness, your speed, your pitch and your delivery in any form of public speaking.

Voices like that of George Clooney or Kathleen Turner or Morgan Freeman or Elizabeth Hurley are not anomalies. More than likely these actors have had training; however, there are so many fantastic voices in this world, most of which will never be heard because most people don’t know that they have a better voice inside.

Voice training is simple; it is basic; and, it is fundamental. When you learn the techniques for finding and using your ‘real’ voice, you will gain an asset that you never knew you had. In addition, you will discover other benefits that have nothing to do with the voice because the techniques used in good voice training are the same techniques used in the reduction of stress.

Imagine standing at the lectern:

1. You know your material;
2. You are able to control your nervousness;
3. You make eye contact with your audience thereby talking to them and not at them;
4. You deliver your speech or presentation with color, with life, with emotion; and,
5. You speak with a voice that sounds fantastic on your answering machine!

Author's Bio
The Voice Lady Nancy Daniels is a voice specialist and president of Voice Dynamic as well as the SelfGrowth Guide for Public Speaking. Holding corporate and 2-day workshops throughout the US and Canada, she launched Voicing It! in April of 2006, the only video training course on voice improvement. You can watch clips from her DVD on her website and ‘before’ & ‘after’ takes of her clients as well as download an audio presentation in which Nancy how voice training can improve your life both professionally and personally at: www.voicedynamic.com

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Nancy Daniels, the Official Guide To Public Speaking