by Steven Maddocks | 28 April, 2025 | Authenticity, Voice
“The Rain in Spain Falls Mainly on the Plain” Once upon a time, a voice coach might have asked you to repeat this sentence over and over until you were placing your vowels in exactly the right region of the soft palate. Thank goodness the days of elocution lessons,...
by Steven Maddocks | 5 December, 2024 | Authority, Communication, Fake Facts, Leadership, Q&As, Voice
Pause before answering a question. Confident speakers pause. They pause before they begin and when switching to a new topic. They pause to allow their words to sink in and when deciding what to say next. When asked a question, they pause before answering. A pause...
by Martyn Barmby | 5 December, 2024 | Body Language, Presenting to Camera, Voice
When presenting, always have a glass of water to hand. The most obvious benefit is hydration. A moist mouth and throat are vital when we are speaking for longer than usual. A dry mouth feels unpleasant and makes strange noises. A sip of water also gives us an...
by Martyn Barmby | 27 September, 2024 | Communication, Public Speaking, Voice
Best Laid Plans One of my favourite hobbies is triathlon. This year I was particularly excited, as I’d signed up to do an Ironman 70.3 (a Half Ironman) in Les Sables d’Olonne, in the west of France. The setting is beautiful and the course pleasantly flat. As we...
by Steven Maddocks | 24 April, 2024 | Communication, Leadership, Presentation Skills, Public Speaking, Voice
‘Make sure you have a glass of water to hand.’ That is a piece of advice we always give our clients at MSB Executive when helping them to prepare for important presentations. Pausing to take a sip of water fixes a dry mouth, calms jitters, and buys you a moment to...
by Steven Maddocks | 24 May, 2022 | Building Confidence, Communication, Presentation Skills, Voice
Teaching people how to breathe might strike you as teaching grandmother to suck eggs. But there are different ways of breathing, and some are better than others. By looking first at the habits and consequences of bad breathing, we can make sure we are doing the...
