love the sound of your own voice

Learning how to speak with confidence is a game changer when it comes to both your personal and professional life.

The Spoken Word

Be it face-to-face or over the phone, messages delivered in easy-to-comprehend short sentences, in a clear and articulate manner, with a strong, powerful voice, go a long way in exuding self-confidence even when you may not feel that way.

• Speak powerfully. People with strong, dynamic voices are perceived as having more self-confidence, so make sure you talk with power in person or over the phone.
• Modulate your speech delivery, breathe regularly and if needed slow down your rate of speech. This will add impact to the words spoken and improve overall speech quality.
• Take ownership of your ideas and deliver them with the importance they deserve. When you speak with determination, it shows you are in control of what you are saying, and influences the listener to process what you are saying.
• Eliminate filler sounds, words and phrases like “um”, “uh”, “like”, “right?”, “well”, “maybe”, “you know”, “I mean. These contain no real meaning, but are often used to keep the speech flowing. Be conscious of how many times you use them and reduce them slowly.

2. The Written Word

Making an impact with the written word takes more than just filling your cover letter, resume and emails with keywords. With clarity, cohesiveness and control you can break through the clutter, get your message across and drive recruiters to the action you desire.

CLARITY

• Write in a dynamic active voice instead of a weaker passive voice.

“I handled the position” vs. “The position was handled by me.”
“I managed accounts” vs. “My job was to manage accounts.”

• Highlight key points and prioritize important sections in sequence.
• Combine short and long sentences effectively. 

CONTROL

• Spell-check the document for language and grammar and be sure to proofread several times before sending out the document.
• Structure your written piece in a manner that aligns all the elements towards a clear path and communication goal.
• Lead every word, bullet point and sentence to a call to action.
• Ensure that the reader not only understands you but is more likely to be persuaded by the information.

3. Non-Verbal Cues

There is enough research to prove that in face-to-face communications, the words we speak actually account for less than 10% of the message that we convey, while non-verbal cues account for almost 90% of our message. As you start working on your communication skills, it’s important to recognize, though, that it’s our facial expressions, gestures, eye contact, posture and tone of voice – that speak the loudest.

Your body language must reflect your positivity and confidence from the first “hello” right till the departing hand shake with the interviewer.

• Smile first and then smile often, it’s the best defense against nervousness.
• Maintain eye contact at all times to convey confidence.
• Modulate your tone and speaking style, practice your pitch and pace at home often.
• Be natural with facial expressions avoid nervous gestures and stay calm, composed and pleasant at all times.
• Demonstrate energy by keeping an upright posture and make sure you don’t slump, slouch or shrug.

4. Dress to Impress

First impressions last. This means that the moment you walk in through the door, the impression formed in the first four seconds determine whether you’re hired.

The way you dress for an interview portrays how precise and professional you really are. If you wish to dress to impress and be hired for the job of your dreams here are five tips to help you on your way.

• Dress safe, be formal: Look up the company culture to be sure and just to be safe, dress formal. Make sure you strictly stay off jeans, denims, hats, flashy jewelry and bodily piercings.

Suggestions for ladies: Professional suits, suits with skirts, tights, conservative shoes.
Suggestions for men: Dark-colored suits, long-sleeved preferably white or off-white shirts with tie, formal polished shoes.

• Walk in with a clean face: The first things your potential employers notice are your face and hair, so make sure you tidy them both and you look professional, approachable, and fresh.
• Watch out for bodily distractions: Avoid bodily distractions like excessive perfumes and fragrances, body odors, tattoos and indulgent piercings, no matter how casual the work environment is. And lastly, do a personal hygiene self-check to be safe and sure.