As a member of Toastmasters International I have learned to enjoy giving speeches. I know how to a structure a speech with an opening, a body, and a conclusion. I have learned that using stories can help make a speech more memorable. I have also learned that practicing my speech helps me to prepare and it helps me to be more confident when delivering my speech.

And yet, I have not fully mastered public speaking. It is a skill that I am still developing.

One area where I need to improve is in my use of vocal variety. What is vocal variety? Vocal variety is varying your voice to change the impact of what you are saying. You can change the volume of your voice. You can change the rate at which you are speaking. You can also change the pitch of your voice. You can even pause for a moment to embrace the power of silence during your speech.

Changing the volume of your voice is one way to add some vocal variety to your speech. You can speak more loudly or more quietly to change the impact of what you are saying. Speaking more loudly when stating a point in your speech can make that point sound more important.

For example, in a speech about the benefits of exercise you could list the benefits of exercising using your normal speech volume, then raise your voice and say “you NEED to exercise”. Speaking more loudly when you say “you NEED to exercise” gives it more impact and the audience will understand that you are emphasizing that point.

Changing the volume of your voice can convey a different emotion. For example, to convey anger speak loudly when sharing something that makes you angry. This will have more of an impact than if you spoke that point in a normal voice.

Another way to add vocal variety to your speech is to change the rate at which you are speaking. This means speaking more slowly or more quickly. For example, speaking quickly would convey a different emotion than speaking more slowly.

With pace, it is important not to speak too quickly or too slowly. You want the audience to understand you, so speak at a pace that is easy for the audience to listen to. If you speak too quickly the audience may have trouble remembering what you are saying. If you speak too slowly you will be hard to listen to.

Once you have learned what a good pace for speaking is, you can start to include deliberate changes of pace in your speech to change the impact of what you are saying. You can speed up or slow down your voice to convey different emotions to the audience.

A third way to add vocal variety to your speech is to change the pitch of your voice. You can speak at a higher pitch or at a lower pitch. For example, the Toastmasters International Competent Communication manual teaches that speaking at a high pitch can convey excitement and enthusiasm while speaking at a lower pitch can convey sadness or thoughtfulness.

Another way to add some vocal variety is to pause after making a point in your speech. Pausing gives the audience time to think about what you have said. The silence may make you uncomfortable at first but using silence in your speeches via pauses is another tool available to you in your vocal variety toolset.

Now that you know about the importance of vocal variety, I recommend that you change how you write your speeches. Instead of just planning what you are going to say, also plan how you are going to say it. Include notes in your speech about when you plan to vary the volume, rate, and pitch of your voice. Also plan when you want to pause during your speech to give the audience time to think over an important point you want them to take away from your speech.

After writing your speech, you need to practice your speech using the vocal variety you have planned into your speech. By practicing your speech and using vocal variety while practicing your speech you will be preparing yourself to use that vocal variety when you finally deliver your speech in front of an audience.

Conclusion

When speaking, there is more much more to being an effective speaker than just the words you say. How you say those words also has an impact on the audience. In other words, you need to use vocal variety.

Vocal variety plays an important role in delivering your message. You can change the volume of your voice to affect the impact of what you are saying. You can speed up or slow down your rate of speaking. You can change the pitch of your voice. You can also pause to give the audience time to reflect on your message.

Remember to use your voice during your speech. Not just your words. Your message will have a much greater impact and your audience will enjoy your speech more than if you just used the same volume, rate, and pitch throughout your speech.