Voice Synergy News
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Facing up to your fears
As a non-native, British English speaker, an expert in your subject, it can be a challenge to get your ideas across to the rest of your team. You may have anxiety about whether the others can understand your accent, are you pronouncing your words correctly and are you being judged unfairly because of the way…
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Anxiety? Pressure? Fear of the Unknown?
During the lockdown periods we were wracked by feelings of isolation, we missed our work colleagues and the general hubbub of office life. Now many of us are going back, at least in part, to the workplace and these feelings can return all over again. We had just got used to regular Zoom meetings, Teams…
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Your Voice Needs Your Breath…
Let your breath take away your tension This month I was fortunate enough to have a few days away in the depths of the countryside. Not only that, but I had the luxury of a relaxing massage to unwind and relax. The effect on my voice was incredible. When I began to speak again after…
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Presenting online
How to look after your voice Are you struggling after months and months of online Zoom and Team meetings? Are you preparing yet more online presentations and delivering strategic plans to staff, colleagues and stakeholders? Do you get an overwhelming impulse sometimes, to just run away?! Without the old visual feedback which comes through your…
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Are you treated differently because of your accent?
This week on BBC Radio 4, this question was posed to its listeners. It is topical at the moment as we are hearing many Olympic event commentators with UK regional accents speaking on TV and radio. I listened to this programme, presented by Winifred Robinson, with great interest. Issues that arose included people who had…
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Voice and Personality Types
Over the years I have noticed that in different work meetings, I behave differently and use my voice differently according to the composition of the group. Talking to a group of accountants requires a different style as they speak and behave differently from a group of barristers, for example. Both groups require a specific style…
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Your voice – a sense of self
As a Voice Coach, I help many people to develop their speaking skills and requests come in regularly, asking for help with pronunciation, with confidence building or with clarity. Sometimes behind these requests lies a cry for help to become accepted into a work team or to be established as a team leader within a…
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Gasping with admiration or gently nodding off to sleep?
Presentations – do you love them, or hate them? Either way, they’re an essential part of our lives as we connect with our colleagues or customers online and it’s our constant challenge to excite interest and attention through our speech. If you’ve ever wished you could speak more clearly, with more passion in your voice…
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The Professional Voice User
As lockdown and Covid restrictions go into their second year, I have reflected on how the last year has been for me as a Voice and Accents Coach. In the winter of 2020, I joined Bath Hospital Radio station with the intention of cheering up patients, getting requests and playing some of their favourite tunes…
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Shall we dance?
When we speak, a complex series of actions begin in our lungs, larynx and mouth. The voice is started; we can hear a sound, but just how do we get ourselves understood? Thanks to a sophisticated, complex dance which originates in our mouth, our speech can be recognised and enjoyed by those who are listening…