The Triangle of Speaker Credibility
Hi there, good people,
The Triangle of Speaker Credibility is IMPROV Inc.'s holistic tool that's firmly rooted in the science of how humans read other humans.
Making a speech? You obviously will say stuff. You also sound a certain way. And you also, undeniably, look like you do, with all your mannerisms.
“The most important thing in communication is hearing what isn’t said” Peter Drucker, management expert
The question is: do these three factors - body, voice, message - align? Or is there a dissonance? Because if it’s the latter, your audience will be too busy trying to work out that disconnect, or to decide whether they trust you, to believe in you and what you want them to know and do.
The Pitch Perfect package in IMPROV’s Performance pillar explains this need for holistic cohesion in a few simple exercises. The principles are:
• Body: posture clear and neutral, relaxed and open. You are ready to connect.
• Voice: calm, clarity and simple tonal variety. You sound in control.
• Message: your words are honest, authentic and engaging. You’re believable.
When you can triangulate all three elements or corners of the triangle, so that body mirrors voice mirrors message, in all the varieties of combinations, you’ll have an audience that’s effortlessly relaxed, engaged and curious.
Try the Triangle of Credibility activity, below, to see how aligned you are with your chosen 'outputs' [your body with the message and the words to convey it].
Good luck! Let us know how it went.
All the best,
Vic n Paul
The Triangle of Credibility
Aim: Stop second-guessing whether your message is landing, your words are persuasive or your tone is vibing and simply align all three.
Outcome: Feel more agile and in control of your talks, leaving doubt at the door.
How it works: Pick a subject - either work related (’the next quarter’s social media should focus on the company’s history’) or general (’fruit salad is a dish that should be served at the start of a meal’). Give yourself a 1min timer and run this in three ways: 1. first express the topic non-verbally, with your ‘pitch’ running in your head; 2. talk about it with a variety of vocal tonalities (Sage, Warrior, Lover, Kidder), as feels appropriately persuasive; 3. Pick a speech type to deliver the message (start or end with a joke; as a call to arms; a moral tale; land it with a motto, etc.). Run this solo, in threes or in a group.
Reflections: Did the three corners of the triangle join up? Which was the strongest pair? What needs more work in order to become credible? Which of the three outputs of the triangle (body/tone/words) comes most easily to you? Which is a struggle to put across authentically? Now you know which to practise and check in with.
