***If Your Voice Is Childlike, What Image Are You Projecting?

I hear it all the time: women phoning me and complaining that their voice sounds like that of a child. If you have this problem, then the image you are projecting is not one of confidence or maturity. The good news is that you have a better voice inside of you which is resonant and more mature in sound. I found mine when I was in graduate school and it landed me the jobs I wanted in New York City as well as jobs I wasn’t seeking.

Recently I held a voice and presentation skills workshop in Austin and one of the participants was a lovely woman in her early 30’s. Her voice was very young-sounding when we met. Running 2-3 webinars per week, she knew her voice was not an asset but indeed a liability.

She discovered her ‘real’ voice at the workshop which was deeper in pitch and had a wonderfully warm quality. She emailed me a few weeks ago, saying, I REALLY heard my new voice over this past weekend. I was taking a video of my son showing us how he says "please" in sign language. I watched the video and heard myself talking and I was blown away at the pitch difference. I sounded so much deeper and more mature and I loved it!!! Words can't express how much your workshop will help me for years to come.

What Taylor knows is that not only is her new voice a great improvement over her habitual voice, but her speaking voice will continue to improve as she ages. In addition, she is now able to project her voice instead of shouting or yelling. Projection is only possible, however, if you are using your ‘real’ voice.

Powered by the large cavity of your chest, your ‘real’ voice alleviates much of the work on your throat and vocal folds (cords) in speaking. It is important to understand that most people are not talking in this manner which means that their habitual voice tends to be higher in pitch, thinner in quality, and possibly nasal, whiny, wimpy, or shrill, to name just a few of the problems you may be noticing. Once the chest cavity becomes the primary amplifier, however, the quality of the voice improves. In some cases, the change is so dramatic that you might think you were watching 2 different people in their ‘before’ & ‘after’ videos.

There is absolutely no reason for you to sound like a teenager, preteen or child any longer. You can make the change. Listen to your voice on recording equipment and ask yourself what image that sound is projecting.