Recently I was giving a Voice Power speaking skills workshop and a participant who was the director of operations for a small IT company stood up and said that he was currently hiring new people and the problem was that many of the applicants looked really good on paper, however, when he spoke with them in the interview, he could not understand them.

I’m Israeli, he said and I know I have an accent that is why I am in your workshop: to speak even better than I do. Both my CEO and I believe that speech and communication are important business drivers for our company. If my employees cannot be understood, how can they communicate and how can I manage them. I asked if he ever told these applicants that they were not hired was because he couldn’t understand them. The answer was no.

This story beautifully illustrates the first way that your speaking voice stops your career. All your brilliance, and the education and hard work that you put into your chosen profession, can be stopped by not being easily understood by your employer, fellow employees and your clients and customers. May I also say that speaking clearly is not only applicable to foreign speakers, but also to native English speakers.

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If they can’t understand you, you may not be promoted.

Rolando, a fifty year old executive, whose native language is Italian, was told by his senior manager that his heavy accented, speed talking was one of the reasons he was not being promoted to the next level in his company. Michael a brilliant, middle aged Polish IT expert said that he definitely felt that he would be much further along in his career if he spoke louder and more clearly. Rajesh, who has three thousand people in his division, spoke very fast with a heavy Hindi accent and his General Manager told him that he needed to speak more clearly in order to be effective.

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Knowing how to control your voice is a powerful tool that gives you a competitive edge in the business world. My clients, whether an employees or an entrepreneurs, realize that improving their voice will make them more successful and rich.

Charles, a business consultant working for a national consulting firm, was asked to give webinars in order to bring prospective clients on board.  Charles told me that during the first webinar he felt like he was doing a radio show and didn’t have the talent or the broadcast voice to deliver a great 45 minute show.

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Joan, the marketing VP of a national telecommunications company called me to “spiff up” their sales people. Joan said, The reps are not closing the sales, the morale is low and we’re turning over people every couple of months. Your website says, “You too can use your voice to increase your company sales and your rep’s, commissions.  If you can do that you’re hired to train 250 sales people.

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A physically disabled person can level the playing field by using their voice powerfully.

Throughout my career, I have had the honor of working with physically disabled male and female business professionals and war veterans who were confined to wheel chairs. American Society has opened up more and more opportunities for the physically disabled: for example, more and better job opportunities and wheel chair access in public venues and during travel.

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