How to speak with Cadence as an Influential Executive, Leader or Authority

Speaking, like music, involves expression over time. When we speak, we produce varied and complex sounds for our conversation partners. The process of speaking is both intellectual and mechanical, which accounts for why:

• We can lose the train of our thoughts
• We can lose the rhythm of our sounds
• or a combination of the previous!

This article will discuss Speech CADENCE and how it creates convincing conversations.

Speech intersects diction, voice and message. How you calibrate your diction, voice and message determines your cadence.

What is Cadence in Speech?

Cadence - The regular rise and fall of sound, especially of the human voice.

Cambridge Dictionary

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Good Examples of Speech Cadence

This video provides an insightful overview of what intact speech cadence sounds like.

Some viewers of the previous video reacted with considerable conviction.

Where does cadence come from?

It's not common knowledge that speaking is a sophisticated fine motor skill.
It can take up to 365 days for an average human to produce their first words in infancy, sometimes more.

We start life learning cadence.

Consider a baby's babbling:
"Mamamama"
"Bababababa"

There is a natural rhythm to these sounds.

• Babbles, like our adult speech, change in:
• Pitch
• Intensity (volume and motive)
• Speed

As we grow, our brains build tight language and pronunciation networks. Before long we've moved from vocalisations and dribbling to complete sentences.

From the outset, speech is how we express our thoughts and what matters to us. Communication places us under internal and external pressures. These pressures can erode our speaking cadence.

A sudden question breaks our mechanical flow...

A difficult contact intimidates us, and we sound croaky and hesitant.

It's easy to lose speech connection, especially when under pressure.

Cadence issues are multi-faceted and account for why you may notice yourself:

• Mumbling
• Losing vocal clarity
• Speaking too fast or slow
• Experiencing unexpected gaps and loss of connection in your message while speaking
• Use too many filler words
• And more.

Research confirms stress and psychological pressure sabotage speech cadence (Kappen et al., 2020).

Why is speech cadence so challenging to maintain?

Loss of cadence is a speech timing issue. Speaking involves a trajectory of time-based behaviours.

Mind and Thoughts: We first must identify what it is we wish to express

Retrieval: We then must find the information, words and topics to build our message

Cadence: How we distribute these ideas, thoughts and emotions into meaningful sound waves

Good cadence counts on using our speech articulators (insert vocal tract diagram) at

• The right pace
• With the correct pronunciation
• Using ideal volume
• While emphasising key elements through a logical structure
• Supporting our intent with voice tone, emphasis and intensity features

All the while, we hope that our listeners trust or value our contribution.

When we lose our speech cadence, our listeners read the cue that we're less sure of our message.

Cadence is your sonic reputation. 
Cadence is sound-based.

We can therefore make sense of it through speech acoustics and voice science.

Let's take a look at what builds speech symmetry and cadence when interacting in critical conversations while presenting, in the boardroom and more:

"You're establishing control over the theatre of the negotiations."

Joe Navarro. Former FBI Agent

The Foundations of Powerful Speech Cadence

Speech with cadence has more influence over your listener.

What should you aim for to achieve a good speech cadence?

Here are the verified parameters for achieving a powerful speech cadence.

#1 Speech Flow & Pace

Effective speakers use precise rhythmic timing. Balancing your words over time keeps your listener attentive and engaged.

Well-paced messages, well, land.

Consider what sabotages your rate.

When you lose cadence, do you tend to speak too fast, or too slow or both? Different triggers can cause your speech to lose its measured pace.

At Cadenza, we train our executive clients in speech pacing techniques. The result? Speech equilibrium, even in high-pressure meetings.

Speech pacing work is best compared to working on your swimming stroke. It's a mechanical skill that requires a degree of coordination, repetition and training. Imagine swimming in the open sea and knowing how to move your arms in synchronicity. You'll stay afloat easier! You evade fatigue longer. You have a higher survival chance. Speaking uses your muscles. We can train your speech muscles to calibrate with cadence. It will keep you afloat in deep water and complex conversations where it matters the most.

At Cadenza we will show you how to produce comfort rate and protect your cadence.

Comfort rate - the speed of speech at which your thoughts and words intersect.

Cadence training at CADENZA tightens the rhythmic integrity of your speaking. We use the Cadenza protocol to integrate cadence into real-life speaking outcomes.

Your listeners will no longer have as many distracting speech signals to process. Your words fall clear, precise and on time. It feels amazing to be in cadence.

Does speaking slower help my speech cadence and influence?

Good cadence is not only speed-based, so if you are trying to work on speaking slower by yourself, be careful. Slow rates tend to align with boring messages.

Slower speakers also struggle to convey credible and persuasive messages. It's essential to get a context-specific understanding of your rate. Drop cadence, and listeners will second-guess your competence.

Slow speaking speeds drop your influence and charisma. Cadence is not about a slow rate. It's about a flowing, connected rate. If you step on stage or into the boardroom and find yourself racing, the answer is not to slow down. The answer is to find your cadence.

💡 Takeaway:

If you step on stage or into the boardroom and find yourself racing, the answer is not to slow down. The answer is to find your cadence. Cadence improves your perceived credibility, confidence and trustworthiness (Guyer et al., 2021).

How is speech rate calculated?

Speech rate is often calculated based on the number of words per minute. But at CADENZA, we prefer to use a more precise metric. Instead, we calculate the speech rate by the number of syllables per minute.

Not all words are the same length. Counting syllables per minute provides a closer understanding of rhythmic pace. Syllable level calculations also help us consider speed variations and cadence disruptions.

If we plan to train your speaking symmetry, precision is vital.

What speech rate factors affect speaking cadence?

Speech rate disruptions vary. We apply a diagnostic approach to your speech cadence and train you at the sound wave level.

A Cadenza program will assist you with:

📌 Speech gaps: word finding, pauses, and hesitations, which skew speech balance.

📌 Rushes of speech: Sudden accelerations at the syllable level due to speaking pressure.

📌 Post-pause behaviours: poor management of pauses affects your diction, flow and cadence. We train speakers to manage pauses and entries to prevent mumbling.

📌 Pause durations: Speakers with solid cadence show pause regularity. We'll show you how to use equal pause lengths to increase your vocal charisma (Niehbuhr, 2016).

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#2 Voice Tone Clarity

Influential speakers use clear and consistent voice. Your vocal integrity is a powerful signal of executive presence, charisma and confidence. Voice is also one of the most reliable and effective ways to engage and influence your listener.

Cadence relies on an even and clear tone of voice from the beginning to the end of the utterance. Cadence relies on vocal sonority. In short, you need to bring your voice production closer to lyrical music making. Sentences must flow like poetry, connected and persuasive.

The following voice behaviours will destroy your cadence:

• throat clearing
• rough tone
• breathiness
• vocal cut-outs

At Cadenza, we train you to apply melodic inflections with high accuracy. You'll learn to produce accurate voice vibrations at the sound wave level.

What is voice tone, and how does it build speech cadence?

Voice tone can feel mysterious. Especially if you're not a musician, physicist, singer, actor or voice therapist.

In short, your voice operates according to natural physics laws.

Let's consider two voice-tone types that impact cadence.

Voice Tone Type 1: Forward Resonance (Clear, sonorous and acoustic tone)

The best voices are clear, acoustic and carry. We call this resonance voice. Forward resonance, to be precise.

Speech cadence is always supported by a projectable clear sound.

We create optimal voice tone through:

• correct muscle positioning and posture
• proper breath management
• following vocal health principles
• voice muscle stamina, power and efficiency training

Forward resonance is the product of symmetrical voice vibrations.

Speakers that use a well-positioned tonality gain listener preference. Vocal clarity strongly predicts sales success, engaging public speaking, and even leadership opportunities.

“Vibrant resonance creates brilliant speech cadence!”

Voice Tone Type 2: Backed Resonance (Croaky, rough, weak voice tone)

Croaky and rough voice tone deteriorates your cadence because it will:

• Break the speech line. Vocal cutouts make it impossible to link and bind words together effectively.
• Reduces projection efficiency. Rough sounds remain trapped at the back of the throat, usually due to tense vocal muscles. As a result, your words do not carry. Your ideas sound more hesitant, harder to hear and less noteworthy.

💻Related Read: How to secure a Crystal Clear Voice tone that never fails you (even when you’re nervous)

What voice tone factors affect speaking cadence?

Voice tone disruptions vary. We apply a diagnostic approach to your voice production so we can fix it.

A Cadenza program will assist you with:

📌 Correct sound pressure levels: Even voice tone arises from regulated air stream pressure. We can measure and average this in pascals. Cadence calls for balanced air stream pressure.

📌 Audible inhalations/ exhalations: Cadence suffers if noisy breaths interrupt your message. Audible breath-based errors and disruptions need removal. We will assist you in accurately calibrating the exact amount of air you need to stay suspended. Breath and voice connection are critical indicators of vocal charisma. Noisy breathers experience lower charisma ratings (Niehbuhr, 2016).

📌 Vocal fry or strain: A croaky or hoarse voice loses musical intensity. Words can only fall with beauty of tone with a coordinated voice muscle. We'll train you to add emphasis and certainty- vital criteria for speech cadence.

Does speaking with more expression and removing monotone help my speech cadence and charisma?

A good speech cadence is not only expression-based. While reducing monotone is a great goal, take care. It's easy to overdo vocal expression and sound hysterical!

Vocal inflection and melody must be context-specific.

Excess expression tends to correlate with neurotic and disingenuous communication.
Statements vary in intent, and their melody must, too. Speakers need to be able to apply both monotone and expressive inflections. Consider that the following message goals need different types of expression:

• Directives
• Assertions
• Rapport bids
• Persuasion

Don't oversimplify. You'll need subtle monotone for assertions and balanced expression for persuasion. We recommend training with an expert on how to infuse meaning with voice tone.

💡 Takeaway:

Be careful if you're trying to sound more expressive when speaking. Intonation is necessary. Your message will lose impact and cadence if your pitch varies too much.

#3 Diction and Articulation

According to speech science research, precise speakers who articulate their words with balance and symmetry are perceived as eloquent and more credible (Strangert & Gustafson, 2008).

Slips of the tongue, repairs and repetitions show a negative correlation with being a good speaker. Listeners rate your speaking skills according to your diction and cadence- your ability to keep a connected, integrated and flowing message running, even when under pressure, will secure deals, garner trust and encourage listeners to act on your directives.

Diction is a critical factor on which your authority and expertise will be judged, albeit at face value.

What is diction, and how does it build speech cadence?

Diction - The manner in which words are pronounced.

Cambridge dictionary

📌 Speech gaps: Consistent voice tone is the road your speech cadence travels. Diction is how well you handle the gears. And each gear change is a syllable.

Words break into smaller elements- syllables. The way your syllables connect and segment will result in either:

• Articulated speech cadence or,
• Imprecise mumbled speaking

We will diagnose your diction before you start speech cadence training at CADENZA.
Diction disruptions vary. We apply a diagnostic approach to your articulation and pronunciation so we can fix it.

A Cadenza program will assist you with:

📌 Consonant pressure: Crisp articulated high-pressure consonants add eloquence to your speech. The following consonants must be well differentiated and contrasted: /ptk/ and /d/b/g/

📌 Vowel vibrancy - vowels with increased acoustic energy create heightened vocal charisma

📌 Vowel durations - speakers with longer vowels sound more eloquent

📌 Sound linking versus segmentation - sounds link and segment at the spoken phrase level. Good cadence shows an appropriate balance between word segmentation and connection.

Pronunciation integrity depends on how well you coordinate your speech articulators.

Consider speech the product of how well-oiled your speech machine is. Your vocal tract is a moving machine with intricate parts. Elocution training assists you in operating the mechanisms with increased integrity.

Speakers who enunciate clearly sound best prepared and competent, too.

💻Related Read: How to Stop Mumbling and Sound more Influential at Work

If I open my mouth more and overpronounce my words, will I improve my speech cadence?

Pronunciation clarity and good diction are paramount. But don't overdo it! Over-articulation can make you sound vain and less sincere (Michalsky, 2019).

Furthermore, if you over-connect words, speech may sound slurred. Excess connection conveys "absent-minded, stressed and clumsy" communication (Michalshky, 2019).

Good speech cadence is all about achieving balanced and symmetrical articulation.

"The human body reveals in real-time when there is psychological comfort and discomfort, and the lips, the body's seismograph, can help us understand that others may be struggling physically or emotionally and may need our attention or empathy. And, while many of us tend to focus on the eyes for information about emotional states, don't neglect the lips, as they are even more likely to reveal what the heart conceals."

Joe Navarro, Psychology Today

Speaking under pressure is an emotional process, and our pronunciation can easily be affected. At Cadenza, we have numerous speaking pressure tools we can assist you with to make it easier!

#4 Word Retrieval and Logical Flow

Speech cadence also relies on impeccable message structure and word retrieval under pressure. When your ideas follow a logical, calm trajectory, it is easier to flow and pace your speaking.

Eloquent speakers integrate the content of what they say with the right timing. And listeners love it when they get logic and rhythmic symmetry.

Imagine this. You're about to share a thought but lose it! What follows is never pleasant.

We tend to lose our cadence when we struggle to retrieve the exact word we need or the ideal turn of phrase we hoped for.

It's impossible to eradicate this experience, but training in rhetoric helps. Yet, it is possible to follow structure in high-pressure interactions.

Word retrieval and logic disruptions vary. We apply a diagnostic approach to your delivery skills so we can fix it.

A Cadenza program will assist you with:

📌 Delivering precise and concise messages off the cuff

📌 Managing impromptu questions, crisis communications

📌 Storytelling and sharing data backed insights

📌 Improving your vocabulary so you no longer stick with dull, repetitive words

📌 Showcasing your opinions, expertise and recommendations without hesitations, tangents and deviations

Using tight structures in critical conversations and impromptu speaking benefits your speech cadence. And the impact of your opinions and ideas.

Conclusions

Humans are experts at reading and interpreting speech signals. Our message delivery is measured for its merit and worth. Cadence predicates our connection and impact. Most profound personal and business relationships begin with a conversation. It's always valuable to improve.

At Cadenza, we train speech cadence for executives, leaders and experts so that the integrity of their thoughts, intentions and messages remain intact once in the boardroom, on camera or stage, using speech science principles and the CADENZA protocol to both set you and your listener at ease for the conversations that matter.

Speech cadence gives your message a competitive advantage. Cadence puts you and your listener at ease. If you got this far, no doubt your eager to present your insights better.

I have many resources and science-backed tactics that can assist you. Get in touch for more info.

References

• Barkat-Defradas, M., et al. (2021). Vocal Preferences in Humans: A Systematic Review. Voice Attractiveness: Studies on Sexy, Likable, and Charismatic Speakers. B. Weiss, J. Trouvain, M. Barkat-Defradas and J. J. Ohala. Singapore, Springer Singapore: 55-80.
• Guyer, J. J., Briñol, P., Vaughan-Johnston, T. I., Fabrigar, L. R., Moreno, L., & Petty, R. E. (2021). Paralinguistic Features Communicated through Voice can Affect Appraisals of Confidence and Evaluative Judgments. Journal of nonverbal behavior, 45(4), 479–504. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10919-021-00374-2
• Kappen, M., Hoorelbeke, K., Madhu, N., Demuynck, K., & Vanderhasselt, M. A. (2022). Speech as an indicator for psychosocial stress: A network analytic approach. Behavior research methods, 54(2), 910–921. https://doi.org/10.3758/s13428-021-01670-x
• Niebuhr, O., Voße, J., & Brem, A. (2016). What makes a charismatic speaker? A computer-based acoustic-prosodic analysis of Steve Jobs tone of voice. Computers in Human Behavior, 64, 366–382. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.chb.2016.07.022
• Petlyuchenko, N., Chernyakova, V. (2019). Charisma and female expressiveness: Language, ethnoculture, politics, Lege artis. Language yesterday, today, tomorrow 4 (1), 83-132
• Pinheiro, A. P., et al. (2021). "Emotional authenticity modulates affective and social trait inferences from voices." Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society B: Biological Sciences 376(1840): 20200402.
• Rodero, E., Mas, L., & Blanco, M. (2022). Effectiveness, attractiveness, and emotional response to voice pitch and hand gestures in public speaking. Frontiers in Communication, 7, Article 869084. https://doi.org/10.3389/fcomm.2022.869084
• Shang, J., & Liu, Z. (2022). The “beauty premium” effect of voice attractiveness of long speech sounds in outcome-evaluation event-related potentials in a trust game [Brief Research Report]. Frontiers in Psychology, 13. https://doi.org/10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1010457
• Strangert, E., & Gustafson, J. (2008). What makes a good speaker? Subject ratings, acoustic measurements and perceptual evaluations. Proceedings of Interspeech 2008, 1688–1691.