Be the Amitabh of Presentions

One of the least talked about aspects of making a presentation is the presenters VOICE. This- is what a speaker uses in making his speech. The slides are just a visual aid to his speech. Yet, people don’t think about their voice when speaking.

Can you imagine Amitabh with a squeaky voice – he would never have had the same impact on screen! Listen to him carefully in an advertisement or movie. He lays stress on particular words; he says certain words in a certain way; his voice rises and falls; he whispers; he shouts to show his emotions. In short, he emotes through his voice.


If a speaker talks slowly and tiredly…then you would fall asleep. Imagine if the voice is too high pitched and irritating. Some invisible button in your ears would turn off.

So what can a person do if their voice is naturally boring or low or squeaky? Think of the radio jockey or the TV or movie stars. Are they ALL born with great voices? They are NOT. They train in voice and diction because they know that they want to enter the particular field. Bad voice projection can KILL a good presentation. If you make only a few presentations a year, then you can manage by
- Drinking plenty of liquids before your presentation
- Avoiding oily or too cold food
- Doing simple breathing exercises to relax.
Relax your voice during long training sessions by taking breaks or allowing your audience to speak.

Ever tried recording yourself? Try it and you may be surprised by what you find. You would discover what kind of words you tend to stress on, whether your voice has life (or is dull), whether you use a lot of ‘eeer..’ ‘ right..’ and other fillers…
You can work on the obvious problems you find and polish the good aspects – and see the results in your next presentation. Your audience would be sitting up and taking notice, because you are showing emotions – showing that you are interested in what you are saying.

For those who feel they need more assistance with their voice, voice coaching classes can help. Such classes are attended by people (Executives, Managers and CEOs) who make a lot of critical presentations. There are a number of them available in Mumbai. They are not just for call center executives or drama artists. And NO, you do not need to acquire an American accent…
Good diction is NOT about making you 'talk posh'. It is about clarity - making sure what you say is heard.