Speaking effectively

Chapter 2.1

Business Communication
Chapter 2.1 1
Outline:

❚ Basic speaking skills:

personal qualities
vocal qualities
❚ Qualities to aim for when speaking.
❚ Summary – good speaking.

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 Speaking effectively

How do you estimate your ability at

effective speaking?
Because we learn to speak before
we write and speaking is so much a
part of our everyday life, we take
speaking for granted and sometimes
we “open our mouth before
engaging our brain”.
Business Communication Chapter 2.1 3
Speaking actions:

❚ Answer a phone call

❚ Participate in group discussion
❚ Give information, instructions
❚ Present an idea at a meeting
❚ Make oral reports to your manager
❚ Interviewing

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Basic speaking skills:

They apply in any speaking situation.

❚ Personal qualities
❚ Vocal qualities

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Think:
Think of someone whose speaking ability
you admire.
❚ What are the qualities and characteristics
which contribute to their success when
speaking? Make a list.

Think of someone you regard as a poor

speaker.
❚ Have they any qualities which distract or
irritate you? List these.

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Personal qualities:
1. Clarity:
To be a good speaker you need:
- to be able to express your ideas
clearly
- your language should be simple and
your material organized so that it can
be easily followed
- avoid trying to impress by using
long, complicated words
- explain any terms that may be
unfamiliar to yourChapter
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7
Personal qualities(cont’d):

2. Accuracy:
You should make sure that:
- the words you use say exactly what
you mean
- the facts you use should be correct,
so you should take care to research
your subject thoroughly
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Personal qualities(cont’d):

- avoid making statements which go

beyond the facts and might be
challenged.
“Everybody thinks…”, “Nobody in their
right mind would accept…”- are
dangerous.

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Personal qualities(cont’d):

3. Empathy:
- always try to be courteous and
friendly.
The best way to be courteous and
polite is to put yourself in the other
person’s place.
This doesn’t mean that you have to
agree with them or their ideas, but it
helps you to
Business be understanding
Communication Chapter 2.1 and 10
Personal qualities(cont’d):

4. Sincerity:
This really means to be natural.

5. Relaxation:
The best way to sound naturally is to
relax. When our muscle are tense,
we have difficulty expressing
ourselves naturally.
Solution –Business
take a deep breath!
Communication Chapter 2.1 11
Personal qualities(cont’d):

6. Eye contact:

Have you ever been in conversation

with someone who avoids looking in
your eyes and is looking everywhere
but at you?
How does this make you feel?
Write down your feelings.
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Eye contact

A speaker who never looks at his

listeners may be conveying message
like:
❚ I’m not very interested in you
❚ I don’t like you
❚ I’m not very sure of myself
❚ I’m not sure about what I’m saying
❚ Don’t believe what I’m saying
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Personal qualities(cont’d):

7. Appearance:
How you look can affect how well
others understand you.
Your appearance reflects how you see
yourself.
In most speaking situations people see
the speaker and form judgements
about them even before they speak.
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Appearance

There are two important things to

consider:
❚ Personal cleanliness and tidiness
❚ Dress and appearance appropriate to
the situation

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Personal qualities(cont’d):

8. Posture:
Poor posture also affects your
psychologically as well as physically.

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Vocal qualities
❚ Don’t think that you can’t change the
way you speak.
❚ The first step is to be aware of the
factors which affect the sound of
your voice.
To ensure that the sounds you produce
are clear, your throat muscles must
be relaxed, your jaw must not be
taut or rigid and your lips must be
flexible and capable of assuming a 17
Business Communication Chapter 2.1
Vocal qualities

❚ If you have ever had an anaesthetic

injection at the dentist you’ll know
what it does to your ability to move
your lips properly to pronounce the
words.

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Vocal qualities (cont’d)

1. Pitch
A person whose voice has a high pitch
may sound thin or squeaky.
A person with low pitch will sound
deep or throaty.
When people are frightened or tense,
their voices tend to squeak.

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Vocal qualities (cont’d)
One way to relax your throat muscles is to
practice this simple exercise:

Take a deep breath. Than, as you breathe

out, say several short syllables:
“She gave us all a short talk on art”
Notice how the tightness disappears as you
exhale. It is physically impossible to
breathe out and keep the muscles tight at
the same time. This is why deep breathing
can help you relax.
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Vocal qualities (cont’d)

2. Volume
It’s more easily controlled than pitch,
but practice is still required to get the
right volume.

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Volume

The right volume depends on the

situation and you should note:
- Where you are speaking(size of the
room; indoor or outdoors)
- The size of the group to whom you
are speaking
- Background noise, for ex. the noise
of a/c
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Vocal qualities (cont’d)

3. Diction and accent

Diction is the way in which you say or
pronounce words. In some extent it is
affected by your accent.

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Diction

Diction depends on articulation and

enunciation, which are terms used to
describe how you pronounce words:
-articulation refers to the way people
pronounce consonants
-enunciation refers to the way people
pronounce vowels

Business Communication Chapter

2.1 24
Vocal qualities (cont’d)

Good diction is generally considered to

be the result of being well educated.
It is important not to confuse diction
with accent.
Whatever your accent, you should
pronounce your words clearly.
Accent and diction will tell your
listeners something about you.
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2.1 25
Vocal qualities (cont’d)

4. Vocal tension
Indistinct speech can be caused by a
tight, rigid jaw or tight lips or throat.
5. Speed
It also affects the message you are
sending.
Fast speaking conveys a sense of
urgency to the listeners, makes it
difficult to be understood and you won’t
be able to pronounce words
Business Communication Chapter clearly.
2.1 26
Vocal qualities (cont’d)
Most people who speak in public actually
speak at a slower rate than they do in
normal conversation.
6. The use of pause
A good speaker will pause briefly at the
appropriate places to give their
listeners the opportunity to take in what
they have said.
7. Tone
It can convey Business
whether 2.1 you are happy or 27
Communication Chapter
Qualities to aim for when
speaking

❚ Alertness gives your listener the

impression that you are aware of and
interested in what is happening
around you and what you are saying.
❚ Pleasantness is partly being polite
and giving a friendly tone to your
voice by smiling and looking
pleasant.
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Qualities to aim for when
speaking

❚ Distinctness is speaking clearly so

that your listener can hear and
understand you. This includes
pronunciation.
❚ Expressiveness is putting feeling into
your voice

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Good speaking
Effective speaking is the result of several
things over which you do have control.
❚ Personal Qualities – clarity, accuracy,
empathy, sincerity, relaxation, eye
contact, appearance and posture which
have a lot to do with what you say and
how you behave.
❚ Vocal Qualities – the mechanics of
speech, pitch, volume, diction and
accent, vocal tension, speed, the use of
the pauseBusiness
andCommunication
tone, Chapter
all of
2.1
which affect 30
the way you use your voice.