Used properly in the delivery of a speech, your voice is a powerful instrument of expression that should convey who you are and deliver your message in a way that engages listeners. Your voice also indicates your confidence and affects whether the audience perceives you to be in control of the situation.¹ If you have inadequate mastery of your voice, you may lose your audience’s attention and fail to deliver a successful speech. Fortunately, as you practice your speech, you can learn to control each of the elements of vocal delivery. These include volume, pitch, rate, pauses, vocal variety, and pronunciation and articulation.