Monotone. Irritating. Creaky. Immature.

These are some of the words used to describe "the screech in the next cubicle" in a recent Wall Street Journal article (Sue Shellenbarger, "Is This How You Really Talk?" Wall Street Journal, April 24, 2013). Along with the reminder that few people like to hear themselves, the piece discusses how your voice affects other peoples' perceptions of you.

(To boost the influence of your voice in professional settings, download my free cheat sheet, "5 Key Tools of Vocal Dynamics").

The Importance of Your Voice in Business

You may not think too often about how your voice affects your success. The truth is, however, your voice and your speaking skills are hugely important in terms of your influence--from likability to believability to success in business.

As the article mentioned above points out, new research indicates that the sound of your voice "strongly influences" how you're viewed. In fact, according to research by professional communication analytics company Quantified Impressions, the sound of a speaker's voice can matter twice as much as his or her content.

Communication specialists have been arguing over this point for decades, concerning the primacy of nonverbal communication over verbal content. Whatever the exact percentages may be, one essential fact remains true: the way you say something can matter as much or more than the words you're using.  In other words, the how of spoken expression can have more of an impact than the verbal content.

The Child in the Street Scenario

Consider the situation of a child who takes a few steps off the sidewalk into the street while her mother chats with a neighbor on the front porch. In one scenario, the street is in a sleepy part of town with hardly any traffic at any time during the day. The mother says to her daughter, "Melinda, get out of the street," with no particular urgency in her voice. The child may or may not step right back on the sidewalk, having correctly interpreted her mother's state of mind as lack of real concern from the tone of her voice.

Now imagine it's a street in a busy part of town with lots of traffic. As soon as the mother sees her daughter step into the street, she shouts, after darting quick looks up and down the street: "Melinda, GET OUT OF THE STREET!" The child immediately gets back on the sidewalk, and if the tone of voice frightens her enough, may start to cry. Once again, she has accurately heard and processed her mother's state of mind from vocal clues over and above bare content. Same words exactly, but an entirely different meaning and message are conveyed.

The Role of Emotions and Perceptions

I use those scenarios to point out to my speech coaching clients that human beings are hard-wired to respond emotionally to the sound of another's voice. Some responses, in fact, have nothing to do with content. Instead, they depend upon a strong emotional undercurrent affecting whether listeners enjoy being in the presence of that speaker and whether they trust what that person says.

As Ms. Shellenbarger's article points out, according to a recent study published in the Journal of Voice, people can make important value judgments based solely on a speaker’s voice:

People who hear recordings of rough, weak, strained or breathy voices tend to label the speakers as negative, weak, passive or tense. People with normal voices are seen as successful, sexy, sociable, and smart.

At my company, Public Speaking International, we consider the link between vocal skills and audience perception to be vital components of a client's success. Trouble often arises, however, when speakers in business or professional settings actually change their vocal style due to anxiety and self-consciousness over public speaking. The relaxed and effective voice of a person in a social setting can become the tense, defensive-sounding voice used in the high-stakes speech or presentation. If that's the case with you, here's how to calm your nerves before speaking, even if you only have 5 minutes to spare.

Can You Change Your Voice?

Vocal improvement, if you have weak or unattractive aspects to your speaking style, starts with awareness. You may know that your voice isn't what you want it to be, either from self-awareness or feedback from others. Or you may have recently developed self-knowledge from seeing yourself on video or listening to yourself in a recorded phone conference or webinar.

Whatever route you may come by concerning voice improvement, you don't need to change your voice—in fact, it's not advisable that you try. But chances are you can become more skilled in your vocal choices and performance. Speech pathologists are available to help with issues of anatomy and certain speech deficits. Speech coaches, especially those trained in theatrical performance, can help with vocal performance and overall confidence.

There is much you can do on your own, however, to use your voice more effectively and productively. Ask for help from colleagues or family members, or videotape yourself delivering a presentation. (If vocal issues are a priority, I recommend listening while the clip is playing but not watching yourself, since visuals can easily absorb your attention.)

Take care of your voice as you would the rest of your body to keep it fit and energized. Get enough rest, and drink sufficient amounts of water during the day. Take an acting class to hear what your voice is capable of when you take chances and explore its range. Above all, learn to breathe diaphragmatically so your sound is supported and resonant. And use this approach for a more pleasant voice for business communication. The career you boost may be your own.

Key takeaways from this blog:

• From likability to success in business, your voice is a vital tool.
• How you say something can have more impact than the actual content.
• Listeners' emotional response to your voice affects their perception of you.
• You shouldn't try to change your voice, but to overcome specific deficits.
• Take care of your voice as you would any part of your body.