The Science Behind Tone: How Speaking Tone Affects Communication and Understanding

Monday, October 21, 2019

Poor communication can affect multiple areas of your life, including success in the workplace, interpersonal relationships, and basic human interactions.

But poor communication doesn't just mean the inability to say what you need to say. In fact, you can say all the right words and still completely miss the mark and cause conflict.

That's because your tone of voice is just as important as what you say. In fact, it might be even more important.

Keep reading to learn how your speaking tone affects communication with others.

Speaking Tone Communicates Emotion

"It's not what you said, it's how you said it."

We've all said this statement or have had others say it to us. This is a perfect example of saying the right words but displaying the wrong emotions through your tone of voice.

Your tone of voice can give people a better understanding of what you really mean because it shows how you feel. You can say anything you want at any given moment, but you can't necessarily control your tone, especially if you're feeling extremely angry or sad.

Emphasizes Authority

The need to project authority is especially important in the workplace. If you want people to respect you and take you seriously, projecting authority through your tone of voice can make that happen.

It's a lot more difficult for someone to go against you when you speak with confidence and power than if you speak softly and insecurely. This skill is also important if you're in sales, as your potential customers won't buy from you if you seem unsure of yourself through your tone of voice.

Tone Can Change Meaning

Your tone of voice can completely change the meaning of what you're saying. A sentence on its own can have multiple meanings, but the tone that you apply to the sentence will give it its specific meaning.

For example, have you ever sent a text message and had it completely misunderstood by the person you sent it to? You may have sent it meaning one thing, but they read it and applied tone to it so it meant something completely different. This same issue can happen in person if you don't apply the proper tone while speaking.

Tone Is Important When Not Communicating in Person

Facial expressions and body language are integral parts of communication. But when you're not communicating in person, you'll miss out on those important factors and that's where the emphasis on tone comes in.

For example, when you hear a radio advertisement, you'll notice more exaggerated speaking tone than you'd hear on a television advertisement. This is because quality radio voices will make up for the lack of visual communication signs with the tone of voice to get their message across.

Understanding the Importance of Tone When Speaking

Mastering your speaking tone is no easy task, but gaining control of it can make a world of difference when communicating with others.

There's no area where your tone of voice is more important than on the radio. Radio ad speakers need to be masters at using the proper tone of voice to communicate properly through the radio.