Want that promotion? Deepen your voice.
By Leigh Crymble, Founder, BreadCrumbs
When we communicate, we use an arsenal of linguistic and para-linguistic tools that shape how we are perceived — not just through our language abilities, but with our body posture, facial expressions, accent and even the pitch of our voice. And even though these signals are very persuasive elements that influence how the world sees us, we are often not aware of these cues because they have become so second nature.
But, what if we did focus on them? What persuasive power could we harness?
In the HBO documentary, The Inventor: Out for Blood, we witness one of the most dramatic modern-fall-from-grace startup stories to come out of Silicon Valley. Following a Wall Street Journal exposé, we are taken behind the scenes of Theranos, a once US$9-billion dollar empire pegged to revolutionise the healthcare industry. And then we meet Elizabeth Holmes — petit, blonde, blue-eyed Elizabeth — with an unusually deep baritone voice. Although not immediately noteworthy, the surprisingly low timbre of her voice becomes a pivotal part of later analyses of Elizabeth’s psyche. Because, as it turns out, she ‘faked’ her low voice. The question is, why?
Elementary, dear Watson
When we picture leadership, we think of competence, strength, trust and authority. What doesn’t often come to mind, is voice pitch. But, it has been scientifically proven that we are inherently biased to voices that we perceive as being more competent, stronger and more trustworthy — and we ultimately attribute these positive leadership traits to deeper voices.
Multiple studies have shown that we change our voices to suit certain contexts and depending on who we’re talking to. Our conversations with children will differ to conversations with CEOs of companies — and not just in terms of subject matter and vocabulary choices. Factors such as social mobility and where we’re based geographically also have a big impact on how we speak.
Whether genetic or generated, lower-pitched voices are associated with success.
When it comes to voice pitch, Elizabeth Holmes is not the first prominent leader to recognise its linguistic power. Margaret Thatcher, one of history’s most powerful female figures, spent months undergoing rigorous vocal coaching during her term as UK Prime Minister. In a series of sound wave analyses, language experts mapped the change in Thatcher’s vocal range from when she first entered the political arena to the height of her government career. The results are undeniable: she deepened her voice by ~60 Hertz with taking into account any possible age-related changes. This was a strategic, time-consuming investment with a professional speech coach that she believed would help make her sound more authoritative and ultimately shape her political success.
Whether genetic or generated, lower-pitched voices are associated with success. In fact, this Duke University study found that deeper-voiced male CEOs lead larger firms: just a 1% decrease in voice pitch was linked to a $30 million increase in their company’s size. Added to this, leaders with higher-pitched voices, gender aside, came across as more nervous, less truthful and less qualified.
Although Elizabeth Holmes’ pitch did not come naturally, there is in fact a global trend in deepening female voices. Research done by the University of South Australia shows a decrease in vocal pitch among educated women between the ages of 18 and 25. Recordings comparing conversations in 1945 were overlaid with more recent recordings and the findings were fascinating. The team found “significant audible differences” between the groups, with a drop of ~23 Hz over the five decades. And to silence the cynics, researchers were careful to exclude smokers and those on medication that could affect hormonal changes from the sample. Their conclusion? Vocal transformation is indeed happening, and likely due to the rise of women to more prominent roles at home and in the workplace.
From vocal pitch to the football pitch
Linguistic adjustment is not limited to women — as is evident with soccer superstar David Beckham. His rise to football fame in the late 1990s was accompanied by multiple TV and radio interviews and event appearances.
Men with lower-pitched voices are intuitively considered more attractive and physically stronger.
Although he has never acknowledged his voice change, language scientists including Emma Serlin, from the London Speech Workshop, used sound mapping technology to analyse the linguistic patterns from interviews during his early career years to more recent ones. According to Serlin, Becks’ evident voice work “changes the impression he makes”, and these strategic modifications have helped him “sound less working class”. For many of the same reasons Holmes and Thatcher chose to tweak their voices, arguably so too did Beckham — in his case, for a higher social status. With the influx of ambassador and sponsorship deals that were coming his way in the early 2000s, his new voice helped him to reflect a higher social standing that would have proven beneficial. Added to this is the perceived aesthetic effect. Men with lower-pitched voices are intuitively considered more attractive and physically stronger.
The language ebb and flow
What is clear is that language is not static but dynamic, and constantly evolves and adapts to suit the fashions of the time. This is resulting in new pronunciation, varied accents and changing vocal pitch. Whether consciously or unconsciously, we are adapting our vocal range to project authority and dominance in the workplace, to align to new opportunities that are available (arguably more so for women) and even to elevate our social status or perceived rank in society.
And if Thatcher, Beckham and Holmes are anything to go by, your own career success could be just a few speech therapy sessions — and Hertz — away.
