Use the “megaphone trick” to improve the way that you sound!
You’ve heard the expression “kill two birds with one stone” (meaning solving several problems with just one action). I have a speech trick so tremendous that not only does this trick kill two birds with one stone, it kills about five (metaphorically, of course, because I love birds!) What five areas of speech and voice does it help with, you ask?
Here is the list…
Volume–how loudly you speak
Rate–how quickly you talk
Diction–how sharply you pronounce vowels and consonants
Resonance–how full and rich sounding you sound
Intonation–how vocally expressive you are.
Use the megaphone trick to improve the way that you sound! Let me first explain the theory behind the trick:
As you know, a megaphone is a cone shaped object that channels a sound in a certain direction and makes that sound louder. When sounds waves enter from the s
mall mouth opening, the sound waves are small. But as the sound wave travels through the megaphone, the amplitude of the sound wave increases. The sound travels through the space and the sound waves bounce off the walls. If that megaphone would be shaped in a flat way, there would be no place for those sound waves to bounce and the sound would be flat and muffled as well.
So, let’s compare that to your vocal tract…
Your vocal tract naturally can work like a megaphone if you create the space in your mouth. Ever watched someone who mumbles? They barely open their mouth to speak and so the sound has no place to travel. Your vocal cords are the origination of sound and you set them into motion by sending air up through them. As the sound travels up, you shape your tongue, soft palate and lips, and you apply tension or remain relaxed to create a beautiful sound. That is, if you have created a wide open space to allow the sound waves to travel and exit at your large mouth opening!
This trick involves exaggerated mouth movements and creating space like a megaphone. In fact, if you watch in the mirror, your teeth should be visible as you speak and the movement is more up and down than sideways. Just try counting from 1-10 with a limited mouth opening and then compare it to a wide, exaggerated mouth opening.
Do you know who does it well? James Earl Jones and Malcolm McDowell in this Sprint commercial. Watch how wide they open their mouths as they deliver. It doesn’t look unnatural either.
I teach this trick a lot because it increases loudness, slows down your rate (it’s hard to speak quickly when you are exaggerating), improves resonance, and improves intonation (the pitch variation you use) and diction (since you are speaking more slowly). It’s very effective and so simple to use. If you struggle with any of these areas, try opening your mouth wider when you speak and exaggerate your mouth movements!
Do you want to learn other techniques to improve your speech and voice? Schedule a strategy call to determine the action steps you need to have more impact in the world.
Tags: clearlyspeaking, communicate with trust, communication skills, effective communication, exaggerated mouth opening, executive leaders speaking, improve rate of speech, increase resonance, intonation, rate of speech