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Hate Public Speaking? If you have to speak in public using a microphone, make sure you speak really slowly. If you speak at a normal pace the words get lost in the echo of the microphone. To help you speak slower, open your mouth up wider than usual, this will ensure what you say is a lot slower than your usual pace. To measure how much wider, place two fingers, as if you were measuring a whiskey, between your teeth - that is how wide your mouth should be. This is actually essential for any public speaking but especially with a microphone.

Miriam Erikson introducing Air New Zealand CEO, Christopher Luxon at a recent Chamber of Commerce Southland event.

Andrew Linn, a linguist at Sheffield University along with sound engineer Shannon Harris created a formula based on tone, intonation (emphasis and inflection), pace, pause (words per minute). They concluded “the ideal voice should utter no more than 164 words per minute and pause for 0.48 seconds between sentences. Sentences should fall rather than rise in intonation (inflection). 

Your voice adds to your authority and credibility but also can do the opposite. It’s not hard to learn how to create your best voice, it just takes consistent practise of very simple exercises.

Once you have emailed Miriam she will set up your own private web page.

From there you will receive an email with a link to this page.

You will start receiving video clips and PDFs of instructions to work your way towards clear speech.

These clips will take you through the first ten aspects of clear speech in English.

This could change your life forever! Email now miriam@sayitclearly.co.nz with Facebook Event in your subject heading.