Dont just speak,
really communicate
What is it about the way you communicate?
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What do I do?
Job applications and work appraisals often refer to your ‘oral communication skills’ but what does that actually mean?
Being articulate?
Having a ‘nice voice’?
It’s both. It’s about what you say, but also how you say it.
As a coach specialising in voice and diction, I work on the ‘how’; if you know what you want to say, but aren’t so confident about how you say it, I can help.
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Who's it for?
“I mumble a lot, I don’t really enunciate my words”
“I’m always um-ing and err-ing”
“I tend to speak quite fast and sometimes people can’t keep up”
I get nervous doing presentations, and then I lose my thread”
“I think carefully about what I want to say, but I don’t end up saying anything at all”
You can probably hear I have quite a boring voice
Does any of this sound familiar? These are the sort of things people tell me when I ask them why they’re interested in speech coaching.
Whatever the issue, there are usually TWO things that are lacking:
confidence in your ability as a speaker
awareness of how to use spoken language to its full potential.
When you work on number 2, you begin to deal with number 1: when you treat speaking as a skill instead of a mystical, unattainable gift, you’ll discover a new sense of belief in your power to speak effectively.
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What happens in a coaching session?
Depending on what you need to work on, we’ll use a range of exercises to explore how the pace, rhythm, melody and tone of your speech can be used to support the meaning of what you’re saying.
Some exercises deal with non-verbal communication, or to use a terrible cliche, ‘body language’: how your physical presence can affect the impact of your speech, and the overall impression you make on others. Not just posture, but your face, your eyes and your gestures.
Sometimes we’ll use video or audio recordings so that you can be your own audience, and get a clear sense of how you come across and what you need to do to improve. And all the while you’ll be receiving guidance and feedback from me, to support you through the whole process and give you a clear picture of what you need to do to continue making progress.
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What's the format?
I believe the best way to approach this work is one-to-one. It means I can design a course that’s focused completely on what you need, and moves at a pace that suits you. And it gives you flexibility, because there’s no timetable to stick to - we can schedule sessions around your other commitments.
It’s also easier to do this kind of work in the privacy of a one-to-one session: often what stops people being confident when speaking is self-consciousness, or a sense of being observed. This way, you won’t be comparing or competing with anyone else - you can work and develop your speaking skills entirely at your own pace, on your own terms.
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How long does it take?
Following the taster session, I generally recommend a package of 10 sessions. We will work in depth on what's relevant to you, and over the course of several months we'll develop habits of regular work and practice that will give you the best chance of making lasting progress.
Alternatively, 5 sessions is usually enough to cover the basics, but if you decide partway through your 5 sessions that you’d like to carry on and do 10, you can upgrade and simply pay the difference.
Each session lasts an hour, and I usually recommend taking a session a week, so that you have time to practice in between sessions. And believe me, you will need to practice.
I’ll be completely honest with you: the way you speak is set of deeply-ingrained habits, and it will take patience and time to change them. You won’t see results unless you are really committed, and prepared to put in the regular practice you’ll need to make progress.
Having said that, you’ll be surprised how soon you’ll become aware of a difference in yourself; and other people will notice it too. Many clients tell me about the positive comments they get from bosses and colleagues after just a few weeks.
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Where do classes take place?
I can work with you over Zoom, Teams, or another videoconferencing platform - I was doing most of my coaching this way even before the pandemic. Or if you’re based in central London or can travel there easily, we can arrange to meet face-to-face. This may involve an additional fee if we need to using a hired meeting space, but I’m happy to see you at your home or office, if that suits.
Why is it important to speak well?
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I know you are confident - do you sound confident?
My courses aren’t just for people who have to give presentations - speaking well is crucially important in meetings, teleconferences, even a snatched conversation in a corridor.
Do you look forward to those encounters, or do you dread them?
Very often, when people are unhappy with the way they speak, the issue is a lack of confidence - which is ironic, because the people I coach are usually extremely confident in their other abilities, especially in their professional lives. But when it comes to speaking, they feel they are letting themselves down.
It’s that disparity - between how confident you are, and how confident you seem - that this coaching seeks to address.
The people I work with are career-focused and have a strong sense of where they want to go in life. Some are just out of university, getting ready to enter professions like law or medicine. Others are aiming for promotion to more senior positions in management, administration, consultancy - roles that require authority and leadership. Their communication skills are more important than they used to be. They want to be taken seriously.
If that sounds like you, get in touch and let’s talk about how I can help you get where you want to go.