Accent Reduction & Speech Improvement For You - Plus A Do-It-Yourself Assessment Exercise
Posted on Feb 13, 2008 under Speech Improvement |Are your accent or speech habits getting between you and the top of the corporate ladder, holding you back from achieving professional success?
During the fall of 2007, I was a judge at a Toastmasters speech contest. There was one particular contestant, who impressed me. She lit up the stage with an energetic presence coupled with grand gestures, lively body language, and vocal variety. She even brought props. Unfortunately, I could only understand about 10% of what she said. That’s right. She was a non-native speaker. I was straining to understand what she was saying the whole time. My heart really went out to her because she reminded me of my younger self.
When I first came to this country, I was struggling to learn the English language. Just imagine speaking with a thick Taiwanese accent, feeling embarrassed and frustrated, while other people stared and laughed at you behind your back. That’s why I applaud that woman for stepping on that stage - and risking it all. Unfortunately, in the end, she lost the contest to another contestant, who had, among other things, impeccable diction.
Psychologist Albert Mehrabian said that 55% of effective communication is attributed to body language, 38% is attributed to the tone of one’s voice, and a mere 7% is attributed to verbal communication. Perhaps that’s true. But in my view, that 7% can make a difference between winning or losing a speech contest; getting a promotion, a new job, or new clients; or, more importantly, being respected and heard as a member of this society.
Whether you have a lisp, a foreign accent, or perhaps you tend to drop consonants at the end of words, our speech habits, the clearness of our enunciation, can either add to or detract from the desirable image we wish to project as the powerful speakers that we are.
Do you agree with me that continuing to improve and sharpen our speech is important? If so, I have a simple self-assessment exercise for you.
First of all, record yourself reading a newspaper article out loud. Then, listen to your recording, and put a check mark next to any of the following statements that you think applies to you:
_____ I tend to drop consonants at the end of words.
_____ I have the tendency to talk too fast. I need to vary my speaking pace and insert more pauses.
_____ I tend to speak with a monotone.
_____ I say words incorrectly, because I don’t know their pronunciations.
Being aware of your own speech habits is the first step to becoming a better speaker. If you work on your speech diligently, then you will be able to make 100% impact on your audience, instead of just 93%.
To receive my free audio course, “The Five Biggest Speech Mistakes Made by Non-Native Speakers,” please go to http://www.JoanneChen.com, and enter your name and e-mail under “Free Newsletter.” These tips are useful for native speakers as well.