Greetings, folks!
Beautiful speech – a useful skill that will be useful to anyone, even if their activities are not related to public speaking. People around you always have a positive perception of correctly constructed phrases spoken with a well-defined voice. Today we will figure out how to learn to speak beautifully so that we can always make a good impression on our interlocutors.
What is meant by the ability to speak beautifully?
Beautiful speech consists of intelligently constructed, intelligible, convincing and easy to hear phrases. This skill is best mastered by radio presenters, for whom the voice is the only channel to convey information to the listener. They work to improve their speech in three main areas:
Diction training.
Improvement of speech technique.
Improving vocabulary.
The ability to speak beautifully is also necessary for lecturers and TV presenters, because a person who speaks beautifully is always more pleasant to listen. In this case, they have the opportunity to further influence the attention of listeners through gestures and facial expressions, but these tools become truly effective only with well-defined speech.
What is a beautiful speech made up of?
An experienced speaker pays attention to all aspects of his speech. He sharpens the pronunciation of each vowel and consonant sound, carefully works out their combinations, trains to arrange accents with the help of intonation.
If you want to understand how to learn to speak beautifully, so that you can always arouse the interest and respect of your interlocutors, first of all start working on the characteristics of your speech as:
Literacy. This is the most important sign of beautiful speech. Phrases should be built by arranging and harmonizing all the words correctly. The use of colloquialism, tautology and parasitic words (unless it is a quote or an intentional artistic technique) is unacceptable.
Conciseness. It seems to many that the constant use of complex sentences is an indicator of good command of the Russian language. In practice, simple and concise speech without complex turns makes a much more pleasant impression.
Clear pronunciation. Any person speaking in public should speak as clearly as possible. This will allow listeners to focus on his speech, not distracted by attempts to understand the illegible spoken words.
It’s a rich vocabulary. It is the main speaker’s tool that needs to be mastered perfectly. If a person does not have enough words to express an idea, it can be immediately felt.
Expressive intonation. It is not necessary to finish acting courses, but it is necessary to work on the expressiveness of your speech. The right intonation makes it possible to turn boring and monotonous speech into interesting and convincing.
It is necessary to work through each component separately, as well as train to apply them in a complex. Gradually, this skill will come to automatism, and you can apply it in a live conversation without hesitation. Now let’s move on to specific recommendations.
How to learn to speak beautifully: 10 effective techniques
- Expand your vocabulary
Everyone knows a lot more words than they use in conversation. Thanks to this, the speech of a person with a rich vocabulary sounds very beautiful and there are almost never any incomprehensible words. Most people have a rather poor set of words, which makes it difficult for them to express their thoughts.
It is necessary to expand the working vocabulary, that is, the set of words that you constantly use in communication. If you are not sure that you understand the term correctly, find a definition in the dictionary and write it down. Remember it and try to use it in your speech from now on. But be aware that inappropriate use of words from the extended vocabulary spoils the impression more than their complete absence.
To increase vocabulary, it is useful to read, solve crosswords and anagrams. If you quickly remember a word to fit into the cells of a crossword puzzle, then in the conversation the words will come to mind immediately, not “spin the language”.
- Keep an eye on the literacy and consistency of sentences
One phrase in the style of “going out into the street, I was struck by bright sunlight in the eyes” can greatly spoil the impression of yourself. Always make sure that the words and phrases in a sentence are consistent with each other. The same applies to simple sentences in complex ones.
It is advisable not to use sentences that are too long and complex and compound in oral speech. Even if you pronounce such a tirade correctly, you will still create the impression of a person who is unable to formulate a concise thought.
- Correctly accentuate
When speaking in front of an audience, it is necessary to highlight the most important details correctly, and minor details should be mentioned in passing. If you pay attention to too much detail, you can make your interlocutor bored. A talented speaker knows how to compress information like a sculptor, cutting off unnecessary information from a stone.
When it comes to public speaking, the best way to present information succinctly is to make a plan in advance. It is important not only to work out the material, but also to plan the sequence of presentation. It is in the process of drawing up a plan is usually the most significant information, which should be emphasized to maximize the interest of the audience.
4 Get rid of vulgarity and parasitic words.
Not everyone has a philological education. But that’s a bad excuse for using parasitic words that completely kill the beauty of speech. You may have noticed how much it spoils the impression of famous people if they use a lot of such words in their interviews.
The best way to get rid of vermin and vulgar words is to listen to yourself from outside. Just speak any speech, record it on the dictaphone, listen to it and mark all the mistakes. Rewrite the tape until you get rid of the vermin words at all.
Also, don’t let yourself “ekkat” and “ekkat”. A small pause in your speech sounds much more pleasant than trying to fill it with unintelligible sounds. Feel free to show that some questions or reasoning will make you think for a second or two. But you will demonstrate yourself as a reasonable person who first thinks and then talks.
- Read .
Regular reading significantly improves oral and written literacy, as well as the vocabulary. It is recommended to read classical literature and books devoted to the peculiarities of the Russian language.
Be sure to read “The Word of Life and the Dead” by Soviet translator and literary critic Nora Gal, “s” by children’s writer and poet Kornei Chukovsky. Many interesting things about the origin and meaning of words can also be found in the book “From Adam’s Apple to the Apple of Discord” by Vadim Khrapp.
Try not just to read these books, but to retell small sections to make sure that you understand and remember correctly everything that the author wanted to convey. And be sure to write important and interesting quotes in your notebook.
- Exercise yourself in selecting synonyms…
Sometimes a speaker has to make a choice between allowing tautology or allowing a slight loss of meaning. Synonyms are a powerful tool to diversify speech and avoid tautology without distorting the meaning of what is said.
Studying synonyms is a great way to expand your vocabulary. You can find a special app for your smartphone and practice it for 5-10 minutes daily. After 3-4 weeks you will feel that it is much easier to pick up words on the move.
- Work on your facial expressions and gestures
You don’t have to wave your hands for persuasion. But skilful use of mimics and gestures always draws attention to the speaker. The best way to practice is in front of a mirror. Already in some minutes you will define features of the gesticulation or mimics which have not noticed many years. After that you should work on getting rid of unwanted movements and learn to gesticulate unobtrusively, but expressively.
Conclusion
Literate speech is a valuable tool for convincingly expressing your position and making a good impression on people. It is essential in professional and personal life. Fortunately, everyone can learn to speak beautifully, the main thing is to set a goal and methodically perform all the advice given in this article.