Page 149 - Effective Communication Skills Mastery Bible 4 Books in 1 Boxset by Tuhovsky, Ian

5. Enjoy and Use Your Own Voice

Do not let it be monotonous and colorless, because this is

the fastest way to make your interlocutor fall asleep. You need

to modulate your voice and make it engaging. Sometimes
speak loudly, then go quieter. Sometimes slowly, sometimes

more rapidly. Use stops, which evoke the feeling of strong

curiosity and mystery. Change your intonation. You can

sometimes (don’t overdo it) imitate voices of people you are

talking about if it’s not offensive or do impressions of

characters from movies and cartoons to make people laugh
(unless you have zero stand-up and acting skills, in which

case, hold off until you train them a little). Keep practicing and

listening to your voice and soon it will be a pure pleasure for

everyone to listen to you talk. Since you can’t actually hear the

real sound of your voice, it is a very good idea to record your

monologues from time to time or to join a Toastmasters club
or some other public speaking or acting classes. There are lots

of these activities you can find to join, on sites like

meetup.com and many different places online. Don’t think

twice. These skillsets are very useful in everyday life,

business and your career and you will also probably meet
lots of great people.

6. Ask Penetrating Questions about the Topic

You can lead entire conversations only by asking good

questions (which, by the way, is a great mind exercise) on

which you can learn much more about the topic and your
speaker. When your interlocutor stops talking, ask them any

question regarding the content of their speech. When they are

responding, listen carefully and actively to what they are