Today I’m reading my audio book (Saving The World At Work).
It’s a 2.5 day grueling recording process, but very instructive. Of course, I’m making friends as I work. My newest BFF is the Tony Hudz, the producer of the project. Over the last few days, I’ve learned alot from Tony about the value of enunciation, correct word pronunciation and ‘the beats’.
I’m also learning that, when you use your hands to communicate, you communicate with more feeling and accuracy. Over the course of the day(s), I’ve noticed that when I’m attempting to explain myself (to a listening audience), I still use my hands. Tony and I worried that these gestures might be hurting the recording quality by creating distracting noise or blocking the path to my mic.
When I glued my hands to my side, the producer told me I was going flat. By locking up my arms, I locked up a part of my expressiveness — and it make an audio difference. I returned to using my hands, except I did so without waving them in front the mic. My energy was back!
This was a flash for me, because now I know why I have such better calls when I’m hands free. Because my hands are free to gesture and visually articulate, I’m more likely to get ‘in conversation flow’. In these calls I’m doing a better job ‘coming across’ and conveying my intentions.
Take this idea into account when you think about having an important call with both hands glued to the wheel. It’s like having an emotional muzzle on you. Think about it the next time you have an important call, interview or recording that requires an expressive audio performance. From now on, I’m going hands free whenever possible. And I mean free!
