Author Archive for: sjahan
Entries by sjahan
Open Ended Questions
When it comes to small talk, we’re often told to ask open-ended questions, and grammatically, that’s pretty easy to do. Asking questions that start with “Do you” or “Would you” are yes/no questions that will result in a dead–end typically rather than a full blown conversation. But open-ended questions can be dangerous too. Everyone’s biggest […]
Why Do You Need a Speech Coach?
It’s always been surprising to me how often clients tell me they want to improve their speech and become better public speakers, yet they don’t want to record themselves and no one gives them any feedback. It’s surprising because with most things in life, if you want to be successful, you know that you have […]
When in India
When I was in India meeting with a Voice Coach, he kept asking me about how Americans could fly to New York and then drive all these places, like Ohio or Iowa or even California. I couldn’t understand why he kept asking me this. He also asked me which city he should move to. I […]
How To Do This Work
Over the past 12 years doing Accent Reduction work full-time, I have learned that the “what” of the work is not the hard part for clients. People realize that they will have to work on challenging sounds, intonation, and word stress. What’s much more challenging for people is the “how” of the work … that […]
Understated Elegance… What EF Hutton Was All About
I liken the desired “understated elegance” quality of Executive Presence to what it feels like when we dress for an event. Imagine Scenario #1: Have you ever gone to an event where you felt really uncomfortable even though you were wearing the required attire? (suit and tie or ballroom gown). It’s like you were “uncomfortable […]
What is Executive Presence? | Part 3: Gravitas
Of the three areas of Executive Presence, gravitas is arguably the most elusive. What is it? How do you know when you have it? I like thinking of it as having “gravity” in its core. There’s a “weight” and a “groundedness” to it. Gravitas is really about how comfortable and confident you are in your […]
What is Executive Presence? | Part 2: Communication
This topic has a lot of complexity to it, so I’ll mention a few areas. The key is to be honest with yourself about your communication. Most of us don’t really know what others think of us, so it’s important to let people weigh in and really listen … if Executive Presence is your goal. […]
Jaw Dropping
If there’s one commonality all non-native speakers could focus on, it’s jaw dropping. Easier said than done. Most languages have more closed mouths and often tighter jaws. Even for Americans, tight jaws can occur (like TMJ) and clients may experience jaw clicking or even pain. Some dentists recommend night guards, and there are even massage […]
Public Speaking & Presentations for Non-Native Speakers of American English
There’s no shortage of information on how to give a presentation or how to be a good public speaker. The suggestions, examples, advice, and descriptions run the gambit from videos to how-to guides to checklists. If English isn’t your first language, however, you might need to concern yourself with a different kind of thought process. […]
What is Executive Presence? | Part 1: Appearance
Most of us have a sense of what Executive Presence is, and there is certainly no lack of definitions on the net, but for purposes of trying to “wrap our brains around” what it is in order to acquire it (or contemplate whether or not we have it or how much we have), it seems […]
So You Talk Too Fast… Now What?
It’s a given that many people talk so fast that others can’t understand them. Maybe you are one of those people. I’m one of those people. So what can we do to improve our speech so everyone understands us? The first step is to realize that it’s not just the speed you are speaking at. […]
Small Talk
I’m often asked to help clients with small talk, and almost always, they are embarrassed about asking. It’s like they’re supposed to know how, and when they don’t, they aren’t comfortable announcing it. The truth small talk isn’t as easy as it sounds. If you think about it, talking to strangers for periods of time […]
Why Do Some People Talk Lightning Fast?
I have a lot of Indian clients who talk fast, really fast. It’s not even just the speed, it’s the up and down intonation and feels random to a native speaker of American English. The hardest part is figuring out how to have a conversation with someone who is talking lightning fast. When you try […]
Does It Matter If You Have An Accent?
Clients are always asking me if it matters if they have accents. It’s a simple question, but no one seems to agree on the answer, least of all the “experts.” There are those who argue the only thing that matters is whether or not you can be understood. Intelligibility is everything. This resonates with people […]
It’s All About the Breath
If you are a past client, you already know how important breath is for speech. The thing most people don’t realize is it’s too late to change if you try to “breathe differently” as you speak. You have to change your deep underlying habits through good practice ahead of time. This is especially true of […]