It’s all in the pitch

Overview
A voice is an instrument. Entrepreneurs invariably overlook this. It’s a flexible instrument that can add or detract from the words being said. A voice can be intimate, angry and persuasive. It can convey frustration, happiness and surprise. So it’s critically important for the entrepreneur not only to chose the appropriate words but the appropriate voice too.

It must be their voice of course – but with the pitch, tone and diction necessary to reinforce credibility in the mind of the potential investor. That’s the overriding focus; the need to establish, reinforce and maintain credibility.

Distress?
A high pitched tone is a characteristic of a person in distress. So getting the vocal pitch down to a credibility-reinforcing state is crucial. Potential investors rarely if ever invest in an entrepreneur who sounds in distress.
Distress is linked to fear. Fear is never the emotion to portray or arouse in a business meeting of any kind. Nervousness is both inevitable and acceptable but it must be kept under strict control. Fear is nervousness multiplied. A nervous voice can be as distracting as a fearful one.

The entrepreneur that allows fear to leak out into their verbal and non-verbal communication is bound for a quick exit.

Avoiding a premature exit
The entrepreneur that inadvertently arouses fear in the potential investor has lost the battle completely. It’s the opposite of fear i.e. confidence, that makes good business relations. Feeling the fear, though unfortunate, can be tolerated if you can keep it out of your voice. This takes confidence in your latent ability to control the voice – despite the underlying emotion being felt. It can be done. It needs practice. If you don’t practice, it’s usually game-over.

The ‘stage’, the ‘actor’ and the audience
The most powerful way is to control the pitch through controlling fear. This of course, is easier said than done, especially when you’re in a situation where you might not necessarily be able to pay the mortgage, the bank is after you, this is the only meeting with a potential investor and you’re worried about all the background things. Possibly your life partner is strongly suggesting you give up and get a ‘proper job’ instead.

So at this point the entrepreneur has to remember to be an actor. The entrepreneur, like it or not, is on ‘stage’ – possibly the only person on stage and there might only be one person in the audience. Who’s in the ‘audience’? it’s the potential investor of course. They are going to be pivotal to your success, or your failure.

Epilogue
The ability to relax is not an easily acquired habit. Usually when the entrepreneur is meeting the potential investor they tend to tighten up. It’s natural. A bit of tension stops the entrepreneur from being complacent. Focus on understanding the differences in emotional intensity between fear, nervousness and tension – and then apply that focus.

Tags: Entrepreneur, entrepreneurs, investor, pitch