THE VOICE, PART TWO

Not every leader and corporation can afford voice coaches like Adam Levin and Blake Shelton, Gwen Stefani and Pharrell Williams.

On the other hand, they have us – communicators and marketers and branding gurus.

We’re serious.  Because guiding our executives through the process of defining words and actions of value for themselves and for the business – a/k/a the voice – is a commitment based on experience, intuition, and no small amount of tears and sweat.

It goes beyond the tried and true message platform, to the heart of what’s believed and what’s been accomplished.  The voice integrates values, vision, and purpose.  And the process never stops.

Where to start?  With an examination of self (and of company).  Begin by asking some standards:

  • What gets you up in the morning?
  • What do you and the business stand for?
  • What motivates others to do their best – for you and for the company?
  • Who are you/the company when both are at your best?
  • What attitudes and beliefs move you forward … or hold you back?
  • How would you define success now, and in the future?

Balance those responses and the initial voice with the leader’s style and personality, a combination of presence, attentiveness, bedside manner, decisiveness, and, oddly, the traits of humility and confidence.  Most of all, the final voice must be a comfortable one, one that connects well with the leader/company.

There’s no audition.  No contest.  And probably no recording contract.  But it’s one of the most rewarding contributions we make.

 

THE VOICE, PART ONE

It’s far different than the NBC-TV contest of coaches and wannabe singers.

Yet it’s similar in its appeal to the heart.

Helping craft “the voice” is one of the most fundamental and most critical jobs we as communicators, designers, and marketers can undertake for our leaders, our corporations, and, yes, ourselves.  It’s also one of the most challenging.

For leaders, the voice must reflect how they support and help, coach and deliver feedback, articulate the vision, and give context and meaning to events inside and outside the business.  It mirrors their style, their personality – and is consistent, clear, and certain.   Of course, given the state of the world, it will also flex to demands and to situations that might be beyond anyone’s control.

A big task? 

For sure. 

Combine it with the goal of defining the corporate voice – and then sometimes, things go awry.  Voices of leaders and companies are often intertwined.  Among the most familiar:  Steve Jobs and Apple, Jack Welch and General Electric, Ray Kroc and McDonald’s. 

It’s when there’s a disconnect, a note of inauthenticity that the voice wobbles. Sometimes, it takes a while for a new leader to pave the way for a re-set of the voice, time to figure out how the two gestalts merge.  And often, employees are the first to identify the variations; usually, front liners will speak up (especially if they’re encouraged to do so).

Starting right is, in our eyes, the best fix.  Stay tuned …