I’ve been listening to the debates since last year and observed the voices of the candidates. As the race goes more fierce, I can’t help but commenting on their voices.
Here are a few points to keep in mind as you read along.
1. I’m not for or against any candidate.
2. I come from a neutral standpoint and comment as an outsider.
3. I’m only commenting from the perspective of the voice, not the content.
4. You don’t need to agree or disagree with me.
How should a leader sound like? To say the least, it needs to project enough energy.
Bernie Sanders has a voice that sounds too old, weak and trembling. It reflects the person either as old or weak and not in good health. You don’t want to have a leader who is too weak and not in good health. If you are not in good health, during your presidency, it’s a question whether you can get through it. Just look at Obama and his hair turning from black to grey.
On another note, he was hunching his back, which not only prevents him from projecting a proper voice, but also reinforces his lack of energy and possibly being too old to stand straight.
In contrast, Hillary Clinton has a voice that projects energy. Now, here, “energy” doesn’t mean high pitch, even though Hillary’s voice pitch is too high and that’s another issue I’ll touch on shortly.
Hillary’s voice also projects certainty, which is critical for leaders. People follow leaders who projects certainty, certainty in difficult times that shows them the direction without self-doubt, and certainty in prosperous times that leads them to an even better future.
On the downside, Hillary’s voice is too high pitched, which will turn certain people off. Margaret Thatcher, the Iron Lady, worked on her voice that dropped almost half an octave that not only projected more authority, but also made her voice more pleasant to listen to.
Most researches show, regardless of male or female leaders, voters tend to vote those who has a lower pitch. This can be misleading. A lower pitch doesn’t mean that you have to purposely lower your voice. More accurately, those who want to develop certainty, authority and humbleness in their voices need to develop a full voice. A full voice projects your voice with the proper way and engages your full body. It develops the authenticity, generosity and authority in you.
You can watch the debate and listen to their voices.
