Lesson 2: Talk the Talk

Speech and Voice

A lot of people find it really hard to speak in front of other people. It might make you feel shy, exposed, and hyper-aware of how you’re coming across.
THIS IS SOMETHING THAT YOU SHARE WITH EVERYONE IN THE INTERVIEWEE SEAT.
You are not alone. We’ve all been through this.
However, with a bit of practice, speaking clearly and effectively in an interview is something you can easily gain confidence in.

Find Your Voice

The skill of communicating effectively takes practice. Like all things – playing the piano, playing soccer – it can be improved with consistent practice.
The following articulation tips, practiced regularly, will give you the confidence to speak to people in a manner that is clear, precise and to the point. Let’s get started!

Clarity and Sense

Most of us have a slightly sloppy way of talking. We call the informal way we speak to friends on the phone “colloquial.” It is very different from the way you’ll need to speak in the workplace or in an interview.
The most important factor to remember when speaking is that you are understood.
Things like volume, flow, pronunciation and pace are all things that play a part as to whether someone is making themselves properly understood. We’ve compiled a list of simple exercises here, to get you speaking like a pro!

Speaking Clearly: Tutorial

There's nothing more frustrating for an interviewer than not being able to hear what a prospective employee is actually saying.

The first way to sort this out is to focus on articulation.

What is articulation? Articulation is making sure each word, phrase or sentence is spoken in a clear, audible way.

Here is a quick exercise to show you the difference between colloquial speech and “work” speech.

• Find a piece of text. This can be an article online, a piece of news from the newspaper, or a page of a book.

• Press record on your phone. Now, read through the text as you would normally.

• Next, make a fresh recording where you focus intently on making all the consonants nice and clear, the volume slightly louder, and aiming for the sense in each sentence. Focus on flow – does each sentence build on the one before it? Is the sense of the paragraph coming through properly? Imagine that you're reciting the text for the radio – this is the kind of clarity we need.

• Here comes the hard part – listen to both recordings one after the other. We know, listening to your own voice can be embarrassing, but put that behind you – you’re in training, and you’re going to ace this. 

• Compare the two recordings, making notes of what is up to standard, and what needs work, in your opinion.

• Here are some criteria you may want to consider: 

• a) Are you swallowing your words?

• b) Are you talking too softly?

• c) Are you articulating all the consonants properly?

• d) Are you talking in monotone?

• e) Are you talking too fast? Too slow?

Go Easy on Yourself!

While it’s good to practice, you’re not John Khani auditioning for a role.  You still need to sound and feel like “you,” so relax! 
The aim is simply to come across as the “best version of you.” 
If these exercises are making you sound robotic, integrate them more into your normal speech patterns. They’re just set up to identify problems with speech, so these are not “tests” you have to pass or anything.
Your goal is to sound like a nice, blended version of “natural” and “crystal clear.”

Don’t expect overnight results. Taking a few minutes every day to top-up your speaking skills is a small investment of time, but will yield great results which you’ll be able to be proud of!

Important Things to Remember

• The importance of how you present yourself.

• From your choice of words down to the colour of your tie, first impressions count.

• Looking good and taking care of how you speak shows you are interested, keen, and are making an effort – three things prospective employers will be very interested in.