Practice on Video

• 00:05 If you really want to know what captivates people in a voice.
• 00:09 If you really want to know what makes people think,
• 00:13 I gotta listen to this person.
• 00:16 It's not about having a deep voice.
• 00:18 It's not about any one particular accent.
• 00:23 It's not necessarily about speed, as long as you're not too fast or too slow.
• 00:28 The thing that will resonate with audiences,
• 00:31 whether it's one person on a social basis or 1,000 people at a convention speech.
• 00:37 The one thing that really stands out in voices that makes them
• 00:41 more attractive is confidence.
• 00:46 And that's something anyone can have.
• 00:48 Now, how do you get that?
• 00:51 I have found the number one way to really gain confidence in what you're saying,
• 00:56 is you have to practice and you have to record it.
• 00:59 If you're giving a speech, it's not enough to audio record it.
• 01:04 You need to use the video function on your cell phone, on your webcam or a camcorder.
• 01:10 You need to practice your speech on video, listen to it.
• 01:15 Listen not only for the voice stuff, but the substance, how you're coming across.
• 01:20 Every aspect of style and substance,
• 01:24 you need to critique that speech and then do it again.
• 01:29 Do it again on video.
• 01:31 The stuff you don't like, do less of that so that pile goes down.
• 01:34 The stuff you do like, do more of that so the pile goes up.
• 01:39 Keep practicing your speech.
• 01:41 Keep recording it again, and again, and again,
• 01:44 until you like what you see and hear.
• 01:50 I know it could take some time, but
• 01:53 it's worth it if you really want to come across your best.
• 01:57 So that's your challenge.
• 01:59 You've got to keep practicing your speech until you can point to it and say, wow,
• 02:03 that guy's fantastic or that woman is fantastic.
• 02:06 I would listen to that person.
• 02:08 If that weren't me, I would want to listen to that speech.
• 02:12 That's the attitude you need to have going into any speaking opportunity.
• 02:18 It doesn't matter if it's leaving a voicemail to someone.
• 02:21 It doesn't matter if it's one-on-one pitch for a new job, or for
• 02:26 venture capital, or a presentation to ten colleagues on a Monday
• 02:31 morning staff meeting, or 200 colleagues within your industry.
• 02:36 Or 100,000, or 100 million people watching you on
• 02:40 an international TV broadcast, it's exactly the same thing.
• 02:45 Practice on video until you like what you see and what you don't see.
• 02:52 If you do that, it becomes extraordinarily difficult to be nervous.
• 02:57 If you're not nervous,
• 02:59 most of the bad things that happen to people's voices won't happen to you.
• 03:04 Again, it's the nerves that make us speak too quickly, too softly, put doubts,
• 03:09 question marks at the end of the sentence, and all those other things.
• 03:14 So that's the number one thing you can really do to bring out
• 03:18 the full natural resonance of your voice.
• 03:21 And it's easy, everyone's got technology.
• 03:27 You're surrounded by video cameras, audio recorders.
• 03:31 Do that and you will be in great shape.

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