🎧 Weekly Insight #40: Small Practices, Big Shifts — Building Vocal Presence in Daily Life

I recently had the opportunity to speak at BA & Beyond 2025—a gathering of professionals, facilitators, and change-makers from across Europe. The sessions followed a creative theme based on coffee—something close to my heart and perfectly aligned with the #NoBox spirit of the event. My keynote in Copenhagen was a lungo, meant to steep slowly and linger. A few days later, I led a ristretto session in Utrecht—a short, strong burst meant to spark awareness.

Later on, I read a comment that got me thinking.
It said, “I’ve never really paid attention to my voice—it’s just something that’s always been there. But now I realize how much it influences how people understand me, how I guide a room, and how I’m perceived when things get complex.”

That moment captured exactly what I aim to share:
Voice isn’t always about putting on a show.
It’s about showing up.
It’s how you hold space in a conversation, a meeting, or even a text message.

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Why Voice Awareness Matters—Even in Everyday Life

We tend to think of voice as automatic.
But like any skill—like writing, listening, or focusing—it improves when we bring attention to it.

In the sessions I led, we didn’t do voice drills or public speaking exercises.
We tuned in.
We explored how breath shapes sound.
We asked: Where in the body do you feel your breath?
Is it high in your chest?
Low and wide across your back?
Are your shoulders lifting? Is your throat tightening?

These were small, practical checks—not dramatic techniques.
But they reveal patterns.

And when we understand our own patterns, we start to hear them in others too.
That’s where communication shifts.
Not because we sound more polished—but because we sound more present.

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Try This: Selective Awareness for Voice

In my keynote, I shared a short video experiment called the “Selective Attention Test” (watch it here).
It shows how easily we miss what’s right in front of us when we’re focused on something else.
Voice is similar. We often don’t notice it until it breaks down or gets misunderstood.

But focused attention changes everything.

You don’t need a formal routine or hours of structured training.
You just need small, regular touchpoints—like a 12-minute practice.

Margaret Harshaw was my voice teacher, and I’ve mentioned her before as one of my biggest influences. One thing she taught has stuck with me: she believed it was better to do 12 minutes of focused practice than spend hours just going through the motions.

Over the years, I’ve put that 12-minute practice idea to use. What she taught was simple but powerful: start your day by waking up the body with a short 11- or 12-minute session. That might mean getting your breath involved, gently warming up the voice, or practicing something specific you plan to revisit later. Her approach went against the grain—back then, people would spend hours in practice rooms, repeating things endlessly without clear focus. I’ve done that too. It felt like work, but often it wasn’t productive. Her method taught me to practice with intention, not just time.

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Practical Tools You Can Use Today

Here are three small ways to bring that idea into your daily life—whether or not you ever plan to step on a stage:

1. Record yourself speaking.
   Try sending a short unscripted voice message to a friend. Then play it back.
   Ask: Is this what I meant to convey? Did my tone match my intent?

2. Check in with your breath.
   Take 30 seconds before a meeting to feel your breath.
   Where is it? Shallow or deep? Can you ground it just a little more?

3. Accept the awkwardness.
   Listening to yourself can feel cringey. I get it.
   I made an audio recording of my keynote and only got 10 minutes in before I wanted to turn it off.
   But I learned something useful. And that helped me grow.

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It’s Not About Perfection

There’s a myth that good communication means no filler words, no pauses, no stumbles.
But the truth is—your voice doesn’t have to be flawless. It has to be you.

Filler words aren’t the enemy. They’re just signs you’re thinking.
If they take over your message, it’s worth adjusting.
But if they’re part of your natural rhythm, that’s okay too.

Voice isn’t something you perform—it’s something you bring with you.
It reflects where you are, what you care about, and how you're showing up in the moment.

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When breath, tone, and intention align—even briefly—people notice.

They may not know exactly what changed, but something lands.
That’s the shift we’re looking for.

Like a good cup of coffee, the impact may seem subtle at first. ☕

But it lingers. It wakes something up.

#DevelopingYourAuthenticVoice
#VocalPresence #LeadershipCommunication #EmotionalIntelligence #VoiceTraining #Resonance #Authenticity #Clarity #Confidence #VoiceMatters

 🎙️ Weekly Insight #39: When “YO!” Says It All

Last week, I stood in front of a room full of business analysts and asked them to shout.

Not present a chart. Not define a requirement. Just… shout. “YO!”

And they did.

What followed surprised me—not because the moment worked, but because of how deeply it landed.

Across the two sessions I offered in Copenhagen and Utrecht, participants described the experience in a range of ways: energizing, unexpected, joyful, grounding, even unforgettable. Some said it helped them reconnect with their breath and body in a way they hadn’t in years. Others shared that it shifted their perspective on communication—not just in terms of what they say, but how they say it. A few told me they’d never considered the voice as part of their professional toolkit before—but now, they wouldn’t leave it out.

Several reflected that the session helped them feel more empowered, more present, or more confident to speak with clarity and intention. Some were surprised to discover how physical their voice really is—how it lives in the diaphragm, rides on breath, and lands with presence. One person even described the transformation as “A1”—a little shorthand that says it all.

What struck me most was how deeply this idea resonated: that how we speak matters just as much as what we say. That our voice—our literal vibration in the world—is not something extra. It’s central. It’s how we carry authority, make connection, and invite clarity.

This is something I’ve explored in earlier reflections:

• How tone and breath shape not only how others hear us, but how we feel ourselves (Weekly Insight #32)

• How vocal intention is tied to emotional intelligence and leadership (Weekly Insight #34)

• And how voice becomes a pillar, not a performance (Weekly Insight #35)

These sessions offered live proof of those ideas in action. The feedback wasn’t just kind—it was revealing. People left thinking more deliberately and with gratitude about this gift we all carry. The voice as a calling card. A bridge. A vibration that touches others in ways we often underestimate.

Much of what I shared comes directly through the quiet teachings of those who shaped my thinking: Margaret Harshaw, Giovanni Battista Lamperti, and Frank Sinatra. Though from different times and temperaments, they all taught—in their own way—that voice is not just technique. It’s intention, attention, and soul. I’m grateful to have carried a bit of their wisdom into the room that day.

And that’s what these insights are about.

Not performance. Not polish. But presence. Connection. And using the one instrument we all carry to reach others with clarity and intention.

If something in these reflections sparks something in you—or if you'd like to revisit what came before—you can find the full series at dyavwithelias.blogspot.com. Each post is a step toward exploring your authentic voice—whether you're onstage sharing your ideas, at home communicating, or showing up for your day at work. And if there’s a topic you’d like to explore more deeply, or a question about how these ideas show up in your own life or work, I’d love to hear it. Let’s keep shaping this conversation together.

elmconsultants.net@gmail.com

Until next time,
Keep breathing.
Keep listening.
And yes—don’t be afraid to shout “YO!”

#BABeyond25 @BA & Beyond #NoBox #AnalyseEverywhere #DevelopingYourAuthenticVoiceWithElias

🎙️ Weekly Insight #38: When Voice Becomes the Bridge

Yesterday in Denmark, I had the privilege to close the BA & Beyond 2025 conference with a keynote that wasn’t about performance—but about presence.

What stood out most?
How open the audience was to connecting voice to their daily work.

Business analysts, strategists, product owners—they live in a world of frameworks and systems. But what resonated most wasn’t another process.

It was the voice.

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Voice as a Professional Tool

We hand out business cards, but we lead with our voice.
It’s your calling card before credentials, slides, or formal introductions.

Your voice gives immediate clues about how present you are, how grounded your message is—and whether you’re communicating or just delivering.

One person said afterward, “I didn’t realize how often I hold my breath before I speak.”
That’s where it starts.

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Thought, Breath, and the Human Signal

We worked with this simple flow:

Intention → Breath → Tone → Connect

It’s not just for singers.

• When you pause to breathe after each thought, you allow ideas to land.

• When you rush to the end of a sentence, clarity gets lost.

• When your tone is disconnected—over-rehearsed, unfocused, or mechanical—your message doesn’t land, no matter how strong the content.

Technique is a means toward expression—not the goal.
You can have gold to share in a workshop or keynote—but if the message isn’t clearly delivered, no one can benefit from it.

Voice gives shape to intention.
It makes the message not just heard, but felt.

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Embodied Communication in Real Work

This wasn’t a session about speaking tricks.
It was about what shifts when your voice is connected to intention and breath.

That’s what makes voice a pillar of presence—in a meeting, during a negotiation, or in hallway conversations that shape decisions.

One participant and organizer told me the techniques and ideas I shared were surprisingly helpful and deeply connected to their work.
Several others shared that they were very tired by the end of the day—but that the keynote energized them, gave them a second wind, and left them with something they could use.

Another said they would never forget how much tone, intonation, and breath shape our impact as BAs—literally.

That’s always my intent:
To create content others can carry forward in their own voice.

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Next Stop: Utrecht

I’ll speak briefly at ENERGIZE in the Netherlands.
It’s a short “ristretto” session, as they call it—a concentrated shot of connection to start the day.

We’ll focus on breath, body, and tone.
A way to ground yourself before the day gets moving.
A voice check-in before the next wave of change.

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#DevelopingYourAuthenticVoiceWithElias #VoiceMatters #LeadershipPresence #BAandBeyond #MeetInMay #NoBox #ENERGIZE2025