Written by: Nimra Khan / Communication / May 17, 2022 / 9 minutes read

Many people might think that social skills are all learned during childhood and teen years, however as adults and in various work environments, it becomes clear that the social needs of yourself and others can change. Many adults find that, once in a professional working environment, conflicts arise more commonly than expected. There is also more pressure to perform well at work, and especially with more confidence. 

You may find that you have difficulty managing:

• Speaking rate 

• Reduced enunciation of words 

• Increased upward intonation 

• Run-on sentences or difficulty thinking on the spot 

As one can expect, being under pressure and nervousness can make this more difficult. While managing nervousness is one part of this, another way to help with feeling nervous is to use strategies to control voice, intonation and enunciation which can help you feel more confident. One area that won’t be covered in this article, but can also be helpful for presentations, is breath control – which you can read more about here. 

Intonation describes how the voice rises and falls in speech.  Downward/falling intonation at the end of a sentence or thought is a good way to sound more confident. 

Falling intonation is the most common intonation pattern in English. It is commonly found in statements, commands, wh-questions (information questions), confirmatory question tags and exclamations. For example: It was nice to meet ↘you. It is common that upward intonation is used more when feeling nervous or unsure. The use of upward intonation is common and normal, especially when asking a question or telling about a list of items (Ex: ‘I’m going to buy  cereal, milk, and cheese’).

The issue only arises in a professional setting, such as giving a presentation. If more falling intonation is used consistently at the end of sentences, then run-on sentences can be avoided more easily, as well. 

This covers areas such as pacing (managing the speed of speaking), increasing mouth movement for clearer sounds, and using clearer beginning and ending sounds. Although this will feel exaggerated at first, this can become easier with practice. A good way to practice is with tongue twisters and alliteration – get used to speaking at a comfortable pace (not too fast or slow), making sounds very clear, and exaggerating your mouth movements to assist with this. 

Here are some examples:

1. Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
   A peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked
   If Peter Piper picked a peck of pickled peppers
   Where’s the peck of pickled peppers Peter Piper picked?

2. Betty Botter bought some butter
   But she said the butter’s bitter
   If I put it in my batter, it will make my batter bitter
   But a bit of better butter will make my batter better
   So ‘twas better Betty Botter bought a bit of better butter

• Becky's beagle barked and bayed, becoming bothersome for Billy.

• Can you keep the cat from clawing the couch? It's creating chaos.

• Dan's dog dove deep in the dam, drinking dirty water as he dove.

• Fred's friends fried fritters for Friday's food.

• Greedy goats gobbled up gooseberries, getting good at grabbing the goodies.

• Hannah's home has heat now, hopefully.

• Jackrabbits jump and jiggle jauntily.

Also try these strategies to prepare for presentations, as well!

It is important to consider your speech for professional settings (i.e. meetings, debriefs, short presentations), as being as clear as possible. In order to communicate your ideas well, it is important how you structure this. What many people can find difficult with this is structuring as you are speaking/trying to think of what you will say next. Think of this as a ‘main idea’ structure when you start speaking. What is the large background that you can talk about first, which you will then add onto? 

For example, imagine that a manager has asked you what your thoughts are on a new project. Firstly, the most obvious: don’t panic! The feeling of a time limit will only make this more difficult. Then consider some statements that can allow you some appropriate amount of time to think, such as:

• That’s a good question…

• I’ve been thinking about this as well…

• I’ve heard about…

• I wonder if you’ve looked into…

Next, consider a topic statement to summarize your main idea, such as:

• This would be a good step to take next. 

• I’m unclear on XYZ area, however I have another idea that could work well. 

• I don’t think XYZ is going well. 

These statements will also help you structure what you will say next, including as many details as are appropriate. Use of the downward intonation and enunciation, mentioned above, as you speak will  help to create clear communication. 

Separately, these areas will not be as effective as when they are used together, and practiced in order to become more automatic. This is another area that a Speech-language pathologist can provide advice and practice, as surprising as it may seem! You might have leadership positions to fulfill at work as well, in which case it could be helpful to do some self-reflection on types of leadership.

To speak with one of the speech-language pathologists at Well Said: Toronto Speech Therapy, schedule an initial consultation by clicking the link below or calling (647) 795-5277.