Speaking - Do you match your tone with your intent?

When communicating with others, it is important to match the tone of your voice with your intent. The way you deliver your message can significantly impact how it is received. A well-matched tone ensures clarity, understanding, and strengthens relationships, allowing your true intentions to shine through effectively.

This is extra important for consultants - we need to make sure our clients trust us and feel confident in the solutions we provide.

Match tone with intent

• Show confidence - Avoid a raised inflection at the end of your statements. This habit can make your statements sound like questions, reducing your perceived confidence and authority. Instead, aim to finish your sentences with a neutral or downward inflection to project confidence.
• Show you care - Speak with lots of energy to keep your listeners engaged and feeling good
• Avoid sounding defensive - It can come across as agressive
• Pause effectively - Use pauses to emphasise key points and show you are thinking about something

Improve your vocal tone

By yourself

To ensure your tone matches your intent, try these steps:

1. During your next call, record your voice
2. Reflect - Listen to the recording and ask yourself these questions:

• Are you showing confidence?
• Are you showing care?
• Do you sound defensive?

In a team

1. In your next Daily Scrum, play the videos at the start: Are you Engaging to Listen to? How you Sound Matters (30 sec) Do you match tone with intent | Brady Stroud & Adam Cogan | SSW Rules (3 min)
2. Then do your Daily Scrum while being careful with tone
3. Ask if anybody wants to comment on tone suggestions
4. Ask the question "Show a thumbs up if everyone's tone was great"

After doing this for a while, you will start to notice patterns in your tone and be able to adjust it in realtime.

You can also improve your tone by watching a good speaker and trying to mimic their tone.