Your phone is your friend

Do you use “um” or “like” a lot when you’re speaking?

Do you speak in a monotone voice, where everything you say is on the same pitch?

Or maybe you have problems with “up-speak” where everything you say is a question? “Today, we’re going to cover communication basics?”

Your phone is your friend.

The next time you’re speaking at a meeting, in front of a group, or maybe on a land line–use your phone to record yourself and listen back afterwards. You can use the voice memo function or start a video with the camera facing down (so you just focus on the audio).

I know, you hate hearing your voice–so do I. But, as I tell my workshop participants,

“hearing how you sound to others can be a huge motivator to take steps to improve”