When you are about to give a speech at a public event, the first thing a person thinks about is how he will look as a speaker, whether he will be able to speak without hesitation, and whether the audience will like it. And if you have to meet the girl’s parents or have an interview when applying for a job, a sleepless night from excitement is guaranteed.
The ability to freely conduct a conversation, formulate and express thoughts is necessary not only for speaking, but also in friendly conversation, study, collegial communication, and business negotiations. Why do some people’s speech flow like a river, while others find it difficult to coherently pronounce an ordinary congratulation, how to learn to speak beautifully and what to do for this - these questions are discussed below.
To speak beautifully - how is it?
The best examples of beautiful speech include interviews or monologues of famous theater and film actors, radio and television announcers, lectures by university teachers or self-improvement trainings. In their speech, information is presented vividly, confidently, clearly, and in the case of actors - emotionally. What distinguishes it from ordinary vernacular, what is it like to speak beautifully?
- Beautiful speech is speech to the point, literary, literate, rich, with the correct construction of combinations of words, sentences, phraseological units, clear pronunciation of letters in accordance with the rules of orthoepy (pronunciation norms).
- To speak beautifully means to avoid tautology, that is, too frequent repetitions of the same or related words, introductory phrases that do not carry a semantic load (as they say, in general, etc.), parasitic words (this is the same, as it were, shorter, etc.), abstruse, obscene or slang language.
- Beautiful speech flows smoothly, without haste, but without stretching out, is pronounced in an even voice, with good intonation, and does not “swallow” endings in words.
- Competent, beautiful speech is pleasant to the ear, understandable to most, attracts listeners to the speaker, and is well remembered.
- To speak beautifully with people means to show sincere interest in the interlocutor, use polite words (please, be kind, be kind, thank you, thank you, very nice, etc.), and not allow an ingratiating, cheeky, or arrogant tone in the conversation .
Not only his ability to speak, but also his sociability in society, and therefore his success in life in general, depends on how well a person’s speech is developed. What to do if nature did not endow you with this talent (and this is, of course, a talent)? There is only one way out - learn to express your thoughts, speak competently and beautifully.
What is it like, a beautiful speech?
Often the solution to a question depends on how well a person can correctly express his own thoughts. Using the example of advertising, psychologists point out how important the word is in communication. By changing a few sentences and phrases, you can achieve tremendous success in sales, business, competition, and dispute. The Russian language is multifaceted, it has synonymous words, homonyms, pronouns that allow you to color your speech, making it interesting and exciting.
To speak beautifully means to have command of your voice, to know the rules of the Russian language, to formulate thoughts correctly and clearly, to be convincing, eloquent, and concise in communication. Beautiful speech is impossible without:
- clear diction;
- bright intonation;
- brevity;
- logic;
- pleasant manners;
- improvement.
Politicians, businessmen, artists, and merchandisers resort to the services of a rhetoric teacher to hone their reading, eloquence, and ability to communicate correctly depending on the situation. A well-delivered oratorical speech allows you to convince your interlocutor that you are right, convey information clearly, and receive an emotional response.
Ways to develop speech
To learn to express yourself, to speak correctly and beautifully, that is, to develop speech, you need to organize your thoughts. This can be achieved by keeping a diary or blog, making plans for the day, week, month.
Diary entries also require skill and a rich vocabulary. Vocabulary is not replenished on its own, but in the process of studying and reading:
- Educate yourself, try in every possible way to increase your intelligence.
- Read classical Russian and foreign literature thoughtfully and slowly.
- Memorize poetry or prose passages and recite them out loud in front of the mirror.
Try to achieve clear pronunciation and learn to speak beautifully not only by reciting poetry, but also tongue twisters, which, despite their outward meaninglessness, produce beautiful speech. It is usually a short string of words written in such a way as to confuse the speaker's tongue.
Speech teachers consider tongue twisters an excellent language training; they recommend reading them slowly at first, pronouncing the text clearly, and adding pace only after the memorized words begin to “bounce off your teeth.”
We offer examples of tongue twisters for practicing competent speech, many of which you probably remember from childhood, when in kindergarten or elementary school they showed how to learn to speak beautifully.
- There is grass in the yard, there is firewood on the grass, One firewood, two firewood, Don’t cut wood on the grass of the yard!
- Senya carries hay in the canopy, Senya will sleep on the hay.
- The little cuckoo bought a hood, put the cuckoo's hood on, and the little cuckoo looked funny in the hood.
- Just as all tongue twisters cannot be overstated, all tongue twisters cannot be overstated, so all quick proverbs cannot be overstated, and all tongue twisters cannot be overstated.
Students of acting departments, future radio and television commentators, in order to learn to speak without hesitation and beautifully, pronounce tongue twisters while holding a couple of small nuts in their mouths. This will make the tongue become even more obedient.
A few more tongue twister options
What to consider when communicating with others
Record your casual conversations with friends on a voice recorder. This trick will show you the mistakes you are making. More often it is:
- Parasite words . Frequently used words for connecting speech, such as “in short,” “as if,” “probably,” indicating indecision, reduce the significance of what is said. Try to remove slang and jargon from your speech. Do not shorten the words, pronounce them in full. And most importantly, remove obscene language from your speech.
- Fast speech . Speech without pauses prevents listeners from concentrating on what is being said. Many phrases come out crumpled. If among the listeners there are people with hearing problems, then half of them will not hear at all.
- Mangling words and incorrect stress. Pay attention to how others pronounce words. If you put an accent somewhere else, check yourself with a dictionary.
Inappropriate facial expressions and gestures will also distract people’s attention from speech. They should emphasize what they are saying, so there is no need to wave your arms too much or smile excessively. Movements should be smooth and the face should express calmness. Practice in front of a mirror. Pay attention to your posture. The back should be straight and the shoulders should be turned. This will convey confidence, which will attract listeners to you.
Read further: What can gestures tell us? 75 Signs of Body Language
How to express your thoughts correctly and competently
And yet, only a well-delivered speech is not enough to speak beautifully and competently. Literacy presupposes, first of all, intelligence, education, reading, competence in the issues being discussed, and a rich vocabulary. It is easier for a person with a rich vocabulary to express his thoughts, and it is easier for him to learn to speak beautifully. That is why such people move up the career ladder more successfully, get jobs faster, and enjoy greater authority. Wherever a person with a rich vocabulary has to speak, this immediately catches the eye and sets him apart from the mass of other people.
It should be understood that learning to speak correctly and beautifully, having somehow completed school lessons and exclusively courtyard communication behind you, is almost impossible; most beautifully speaking people have been accustomed to good speech since childhood. Reciting poems, tongue twisters and other training will not be enough if there are significant gaps in your knowledge base.
You should care not only about how to develop your speech to perfection and speak beautifully, but also not to talk about topics you don’t understand, and not to use “smart” words whose meaning you don’t understand vaguely.
Reading and reading again
An effective way to develop speech in adults and children is reading. You don't need to read everything. Classic literature or special books on speech development are perfect.
We can recommend such works as “The Living and the Dead Word” by Nora Gal, “From Adam’s Apple to the Apple of Discord” by Vadim Khrapp and “Alive as Life” by Korney Chukovsky.
There is a lot of worthy literature on the Internet, reading which will help you improve your speech and expand your vocabulary.
Retelling what you read can increase efficiency. Just ask someone to monitor how correctly and consistently you present the text.
As you read, you will come across interesting quotes. We recommend writing down the ones you especially like in a notebook so that you can re-read them and remember them from time to time.
In addition to books, social networks are also teeming with clever phrases and excerpts from books. It doesn’t matter where the quotes come from, it’s much more important to remember them.
In the right situation, your brain will tell you who is worth quoting. Such a sudden coloration of speech can turn your words into a real masterpiece of oratory.
How to make your words sound confident and convincing to people around you
Oddly enough, not even all masters of skilled writing are given oratorical abilities. Quite often, a person who perfectly expresses his thoughts “on paper”, when he finds himself in front of an audience, becomes blurred, gets lost and cannot make a speech. This is usually associated with complexes (I have a bad voice, I burr, I will forget the text) or other psychological problems. In this case, the following will help you learn to speak beautifully and confidently:
- voice training classes (phonopedic exercises);
- auto-training (I know what I’m talking about and can improvise, I really want my words to be heard);
- sincerity (if you are honest in front of your listeners, your words will sound convincing).
Persuasive speech is important in many professions, from teachers to medical specialists, from street sellers (you need to convince the buyer that he needs to buy your product) to large businessmen. Therefore, learning to speak well, choosing words correctly, appropriately and beautifully, is also necessary to improve your professional level.
What prevents people from speaking beautifully?
The importance of mastering the art of eloquence does not require proof. However, many people experience fear when they have to speak in public or talk to strangers. Such fear in psychology is called “logophobia” (or “verbophobia”). It is curious that, according to research by psychologists, the fear of public speaking ranks second among people after the fear of death.
People suffering from such a phobia are terrified of speaking not only in front of a full audience, but also in front of a small group of people. They feel hot and cold, they begin to tremble, stammer, and cannot concentrate. This phobia has psychological and physiological causes.
Psychological reasons are associated with the fact that a person does not believe in himself, in his abilities, knowledge, experience, that his speech will be of interest and he will be able to hold the attention of listeners.
As for the physiological factor, as we know, in dangerous situations, the human adrenal glands begin to release the stress hormone adrenaline into the blood, the action of which is aimed at consolidating all protective forces. The same thing happens when a person is nervous before a speech or some kind of conversation.
However, adrenaline motivates a person to take physical actions, such as running, during which it is consumed. When performing or having an exciting conversation, there is no such physical activity, so adrenaline is not fully used, and its excess only causes harm. As a result of strong excitement, instead of a brilliant performance, the result may be uncertain and crumpled.
Exercises for training
If you have all the conditions to speak beautifully and clearly, but your tongue still gets stuck, you need to train your speech. Not only the muscles of the tongue need training, but also the lower jaw, lips, and respiratory organs. To learn to speak competently, beautifully and for a long time, we recommend more often using exercises designed to develop “speech breathing”:
- For the diaphragm: take any comfortable starting position (lying, sitting, standing), place one hand on the abdominal area, the other on the chest. Inhale through your nose, trying to “inflate” your stomach and chest as much as possible. Exhale slowly through your nose - the stomach and chest “retract” back.
- Inhale quickly through your nose, hold your breath for a couple of seconds and exhale smoothly through your mouth. Repeat 2 times.
- Inhale quickly with your mouth wide open. Exhale slowly while pronouncing any vowel sound. Repeat with all vowels.
- Inhale evenly through your nose. Exhale slowly, counting to 5. If 5 is easy, count to 10, if 10 is easy, count back - 10, 9, 8, etc.
- Close your lips tightly, pronounce the sound “m” and extend it as long as possible, pronouncing it with different intonations of your voice.
- Do the same exercise for the sound “r” with your lips open.
The organs involved in the conversation need to “learn” to be mobile in order to speak beautifully. The following exercises will help train them:
- standing at the mirror, stretch your tongue as far forward as possible, repeat 5-10 times;
- alternately touch the tip of the tongue either the right or left surface of the cheek from the inside for 5-7 minutes;
- with closed lips, “polish” with your tongue the back side of the dentition with circular movements 10-15 times in different directions (from right to left and back);
- make circular movements with your tongue sticking out forward 15 times clockwise and counterclockwise (the exercise is not as simple as it might seem);
- for 5-7 minutes, either gather your lips into a tube, or stretch them into a smile;
- puffing out your cheeks, move the air in your mouth, first clockwise, then in the opposite direction.
The “Ball” exercise will also be useful.
Abruptly pronouncing the following series will help you get rid of “swallowing” letters and endings:
- ba-pa, beep, be-pe, be-py, boo-poo, bo-po;
- pa-ba, bee-bee, bee-bee, poo-boo, poo-boo, po-bo;
- wait, wait, wait, wait, wait, wait;
- Hello, hello, hello, hello, hello;
- kpta-kpto, kptu-kpte, kpti-kpty;
- mvti-mvste, mvsta-mvsto, mvstu-mvsty;
- bird-bird, bird-bird, bird-bird;
- tpka-tpka, tpka-tpka, tpka-tpka.
This fun workout actually “trains” the tongue to pronounce complex letter combinations, which will help you not stumble when pronouncing difficult words, but learn to speak them beautifully and naturally.
If you are preparing for a long speech or lecture, do not forget to breathe correctly, do not strain your vocal cords - start speaking only after taking 2 calm breaths through your nose and exhaling through pursed lips, take short (a few seconds) breaks.
Working on the content and technique of your speech
One of the common speech mistakes is speaking too quickly. When a person is in a hurry, as they say, chattering, it is difficult to perceive him. You need to learn to control the pace of your speech. To begin with, you can pronounce at a very slow pace some speech material that does not require special understanding. This could be a sequence of numbers, for example, up to one hundred, names of months, cities or countries, a list of male or female names.
It is better to write down this sequence so that you can pronounce the words in forward and reverse order. Over time, having memorized this sequence, it is better to reproduce it from memory, simultaneously training your memory. Then you need to move on to repeating the text by ear. Moreover, it should be recorded at a fast pace, but it will need to be repeated at a slow pace.
How to become smart
A person who strives to become smart, to learn to speak beautifully and eloquently, must understand that intelligence is obtained through hard work - constant study, reading good literature, reflection, observation, comparison and analysis of facts. This is not a practice of several days or months: “agility of mind” should be established from childhood and constantly develop. Recently, psychologists have noted an increase in the interest of the fairer sex in smart men, which partly explains the desire of young people to appear smart. We hope our readers will be smart enough not to seem smart, but to become smart thanks to the advice from the article.
Presence of gestures and facial expressions
A live conversation always involves movement of the hands and body.
A dry presentation of material without a pronounced emotional coloring is boring and implausible. The speaker, living the content of the speech, forces the audience to join what is dear to him and close to him. These are not just clumsy swings. Every gesture he makes is beautiful and logical. Under the influence of sincerity, a rich, open dialogue between complete strangers is obtained.
It is useful to practice gestures and facial expressions in front of a mirror. Shortcomings and some excesses in movements are immediately visible. An open, beautiful look helps to cope with unnecessary and stupid gestures that do not fit into the overall picture.
Sometimes the accompanying gestures seem inappropriate and provocative. But a cold expression is prone to repulsion and misunderstanding. Find the harmony of words, body, voice.
How to manipulate people
The ability to manipulate people is not the best quality in a person.
As a rule, this ability is associated with such associated character traits as selfishness, cunning, self-interest, lust for power, and capriciousness. And the tools of manipulation are pressure on conscience or pity, hysteria, threats, the ability to speak beautifully and convincingly. Psychologists know manipulative phrases, although even small children are capable of manipulating adults if they succeed at least once. As a rule, those who selflessly love or trust limitlessly are manipulated.
Let's vote
To make your voice big and sound beautiful, you need to learn how to use the upper (skull, mouth and nose) and lower (chest) resonator systems. Take ten shallow breaths into your belly. Short inhalation and slow exhalation. And you can start exercising.
Moan – don’t forget about your posture. Say the sound “M” with your lips closed. Say it as you exhale, without straining. Now start changing the position of your head while making the same sound. Gradually you will begin to feel vibration in the upper resonator. Having mastered the sound “M”, start adding other vowels: o-a-i-y-u, so that they sound like “mmmm-e-mmm-o-mmm-a-mmm-i-mmm-u-mmm-y” " When you have mastered this practice, move on to the continuous pronunciation of different variations of these sounds.
Tongue Twisters . Pronouncing tongue twisters is a truly great way to hone your speech and master the art of speaking beautifully, pronouncing each letter clearly. Try saying the phrase: “broke,.. broke, broke,.. broke, broke, broke,” while rubbing your forehead. We do the same with the words “we are lazy” - rubbing the nasal cartilage, “we caught burbot” - rubbing the cheeks.
Beep - straight posture, lips in a tube, pronounce the sound “U” as you exhale. Next, combine it with other vowel sounds. The main thing is not to change the position of your lips.
Poems - read them out loud and with intonation, using a medium tone. At the end of each line, inhale and say the line as you exhale. I recommend finding the poem “Reading Rules” on the Internet, which was written by A.V. Pryanishnikov. It is ideal for performing this exercise correctly.
Exercises that will teach you how to communicate with people
In situations where the need for communication arises, many fall into a kind of stupor. In order not to think for a long time about how to learn to communicate with people and be interesting, we will look at exercises. After a week of practice, even a modest and reserved person will turn into a talkative interlocutor. We are not talking about classes that improve speech, but about complex exercises. They make you think while communicating and have an exciting conversation.
Continue your interlocutor's thought
Goal : Learn to find unusual solutions, make thinking more flexible.
Execution : Turn on any TV show or video on the Internet. Listen to the speaker for half a minute. Turn off the sound and develop the thought further on your own.
How much to do : From 5 to 10 minutes a day.
Retell
Goal : Learn to think correctly and talk interestingly at the same time. Exercise helps strengthen the connection between thought and speech.
Execution : Visit a blog you like. Select an article and take a few paragraphs from it. Read and retell them out loud. Then do the same with the following paragraphs until the entire article has been read and retold.
How much to do : Depending on the volume of material. It is recommended to retell one article per day.
Give a lecture on any topic
Goal : Memory training by extracting unused information from it. Improved thinking flexibility.
Execution : A partner is required to carry out the exercise. Choose a subject that you will talk about with your interlocutor. What should be talked about is its appearance, methods of use in a given room, its importance for the individual and humanity as a whole. If you practice regularly, you will soon be able to easily rant for an hour about a pencil, a teapot, or a table leg.
How long to do : 5 minutes is enough to start.
Learn to highlight the main thing
People like to listen to speakers whose presentation is informative. A speech with a minimum amount of important information, unnecessary details that do not affect the listeners in any way, will not have the desired effect, even if a person has learned to express his thoughts well.
If it is necessary to convey any amount of information in a speech, it is better to use one of the following techniques: exclusion, generalization or replacement. You can practice them on texts of any subject. The main thing is to do the work regularly.
To speak beautifully means to speak meaningfully, correctly placing semantic accents. It is necessary to find a middle ground that will not allow the speech to become dry, devoid of emotionality, or overly lengthy. Start your speech with an aphorism, a short parable that will become an epigraph to your message, and then move on to a logical presentation of your thoughts, accompanying them with 1-2 short examples.
When delivering a report, it is necessary to constantly monitor the public's reaction. If people do not show interest, it is necessary to enliven the speech with some vivid comparisons.
Avoid tautology
A tautology is a figure of speech in which words that have the same root are used in the same phrase. The best characteristic of the tautology is oil. Awareness will help improve speech; a person must thoughtfully construct each phrase, checking whether it contains speech errors.
You can improve your speech by pre-recording it in a text editor or on a voice recorder. After different periods of time, it must be read or listened to several times, then speech deficiencies will be visible. You can get rid of tautology and say the same idea beautifully only by expanding your vocabulary and selecting synonyms.
Talk with your mouth full
Let’s make a reservation right away: the exercise only indirectly helps you become an interesting conversationalist, clearly express your thoughts and always find topics for conversation. The essence of the lesson is to improve diction, which, in turn, makes speech impeccable and increases the confidence of the speaker.
Goal : Quickly improve your diction before an interview or speech, recording audio for a blog, etc.
How to perform : The exercise can be performed in several ways, the essence will not change. You can place a spoon on your tongue. Alternatively, insert a few nuts into your cheeks and try to speak as clearly as possible. Experienced speakers warm up their mouths by holding a pencil between their front teeth and pronouncing each word. Great advice, try it too.
How long to do : From 7 to 10 minutes.
Get rid of parasitic words
Parasitic words (“like”, “as if”, “well”, “this” and others) minimize not only the literacy of speech, but also its persuasiveness.
Getting rid of verbal garbage is not easy; you need to constantly monitor your speech. To do this, you need to slow down the pace as much as possible, and as soon as an unnecessary word wants to roll off your tongue, stop. Such work requires strong will and is difficult. The results will also not appear immediately. However, perseverance will help you overcome this deficiency and subsequently gain the ability to speak correctly.
Talk to the mirror
Goal : See yourself from the outside, learn to express thoughts correctly, and communicate with yourself.
Execution : The task is to, looking at your reflection, come up with a theme and develop it out loud. Go to the mirror and start talking about your thoughts. Make a smooth transition from one topic to another by connecting them together. After some time, you will learn to sincerely talk about everything that is in your head.
How much to do : 10 minutes twice a week.
The Lewis-Carroll Mystery
Goal : Get rid of stereotypes, the habit of thinking in stereotyped ways.
Execution : The exercise is based on a riddle invented by Lewis-Carroll - “How is a raven like a table?” It’s better to start doing it in pairs so as not to choose simple things for yourself. One person must say one word, and the second person must say another. After which you will reflect on the similarity of these objects. It will come out something like: “How is an iron similar to a hamster?” Get into the conversation and pick interesting options.
How much to do : To begin with, it is enough to discuss 10 pairs of objects at a time.
