Does It Really Matter to Have a Strong Accent?

In 2004, I, Olga Smith, was looking for an elocution tutor. My American husband could not understand some of the words I was saying. People often asked me to repeat what I said. Then I was saying it in the same way; it was a vicious circle. I felt my foreign accent was a nuisance for me and others.

After a long, difficult search and failed attempts with numerous "elocution tutors”, I found Linda James, a qualified phonetician with 20+ years of teaching speech in London drama schools and accent reduction to international professionals. From the very first lesson, I fell in love with Linda's teaching method and could see the progress straight away.

In 2006, I told Linda I wanted to write a book based on her method and asked her to co-author it. I wanted to make Linda's exclusive and very enjoyable lessons available to a wide audience. This is how the international bestselling book Get Rid of Your Accent, Part One (Audible/Amazon) was born.

Linda and I later co-authored Parts Two - Advanced Level and Three - for Business, and our most recent book is Get Rid of Your Accent for Beginners.

We recently created accompanying video courses for the mentioned above apps:

All our books have been converted into iOS and Android apps by developer Yury Kravchenko. Yury himself had a strong Russian accent, and his elocution tutor recommended our Get Rid of Your Accent book. He enjoyed the book and the progress he was making with it. Yury proposed turning the entire series into apps:

British English

Elocution Lessons

Get Rid of your Accent:

Fluent English Speech

Business English Speech

4Ps, Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause

Get rid of Chinese Accent

Get Rid of Russian Accent

American English

Today, nearly 20 years later, what started as my personal struggle has become a global resource.

If you've ever felt held back by your accent — in meetings, on stage, or simply in conversation — I want you to know: clear, confident speech is a skill. And like any skill, it can be learned.

Whether you prefer books, apps, video courses, or 1-to-1 coaching, we have a path for you:

  • 📗 Bestselling books on Amazon & Audible

  • 📱iOS & Android apps (British & American English)

  • 🎓 Video courses on Udemy

  • 🎙️ Online & in-person coaching in London

Find free tips on www.batcsglobal.com

Warmly

Olga Smith

Elocution Lesson with Prince William

This is the third edition in the Elocution Lessons With Royals series, where I analyse Prince William's short speech in Cape Town (2024).

What Worked Well

Three elements were particularly strong: the introduction, the conclusion, and his overall presence.

What stood out to me the most was the way William approached the stage: with a measured pace and clear confidence. Many public speakers rush on, which can signal nervousness—and often amplifies it. By contrast, a calm, unhurried walk helps set the tone, giving the speaker a moment to collect their thoughts and establish presence from the outset.

That’s exactly what happened here. William began by greeting the audience in several African languages, and that was met with genuine enthusiasm. It’s a simple but powerful technique in public speaking —especially for international audiences. Taking the time to learn even a basic greeting in your audience’s languages can immediately build rapport and create a strong, memorable opening.

His commanding presence was further elevated by masterful eye contact and resonant voice projection.

William used rhetorical devices (repetition, alliteration) and the rule of three to enhance his speech:

“People dedicated their time, talent and vision”

“When they succeed - we all succeed, when they thrive - we all thrive, when they win - we all win”

He closed his speech by offering farewells in several African languages, rekindling the audience’s enthusiasm.

What He Could Have Done Differently

  • For most of his speech, Prince William stood with arms crossed in front of his body.

It is his signature gesture. It projects composure and restraint in informal or observational settings. It can signal thoughtfulness, control, and a certain self-assured poise. However, in the context of public speaking, the same gesture can work against the speaker’s objectives.

An arms-crossed posture is often read, consciously or not, as closed or defensive. It creates a subtle barrier between the speaker and the audience, limiting openness and connection. Open gestures, by contrast, signal confidence, transparency, and engagement. There’s also a physical limitation. A constrained posture can therefore make delivery feel less dynamic and less persuasive.

For a speaker of Prince William’s stature, whose presence already carries authority, adopting a more open stance—relaxed arms, purposeful gestures, and grounded posture—would enhance warmth and relatability without sacrificing gravitas.

The body of his speech was marked by extended, densely constructed sentences, with little use of pause. This made the delivery harder to follow and risked diminishing audience engagement over time.

In public speaking, shorter sentences combined with deliberate pauses work better. Pauses, in particular, give the audience time to absorb and reflect, ensuring that each message is fully received before moving on to the next.

Public speakers can master phrases with the app 4Ps, Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause (iOS/Android).

In my next speech, I will be analysing a speech of another member of the British Royal family.

Warmly

Olga Smith

Public Speaking Phenomenon of Princess Diana

In our elocution lessons, students strive for perfection. We work on RP, controlled delivery, and confident body language.

At the same time, I always encourage all my students to be authentic, recognise their individual strengths and use what is uniquely theirs.

Princess Diana is one of the clearest real-world examples of how authenticity matters even more than perfection.

Early in her public life, her speech was noticeably formal and careful. You could hear the effort to “get it right.” The tone was controlled, slightly distant, and highly polished in a traditional sense. Let's have a look at how her speaking style transformed.

  • In the Anti-landmine speech (1997), she said: “I am not a political figure, nor do I wish to be one, but with the spirit of compassion, I appeal…”

She lowers her status (“I am not a political figure”) and builds trust by removing the tension around authority. She uses “I” and emotional framing instead of formal political language. Her humility creates an instant connection.

  • In her HIV/AIDS speech (1987), she said: “HIV does not make people dangerous to know, so you can shake their hands and give them a hug…”

Her direct, simple, human language (no technical terms) and the use of physical imagery (“shake hands,” “hug”) enhance emotional clarity.

  • Princess Diana often visited charities and hospitals. She often said things like:

“I just want to be with people and listen.”

Such short, unforced sentences and wanting to listen show her authenticity.

  • In many speeches and interviews, Diana used pauses to add emotional weight.

She pauses before emotional points.

She slows down noticeably when topics are sensitive.

Her public speaking strengths were:

  • simplicity

  • authenticity

  • clarity

  • compassion

  • connection with the audience

  • emotional vulnerability

  • great use of pauses

Princess Diana did not become impactful by sounding perfect. She achieved tremendous success in public speaking by being clear, present, and human. Her speeches show how she became who she was born to be - The Princess of People’s Hearts.

If you want to discover your own strengths in public speaking, please get in touch: www.batcsglobal.com/contact

Warmly, Olga Smith

What Does Elocution Teach?

Apart from clear pronunciation and good articulation, elocution helps develop control.

What I mean by that is control over how and when we speak.

Today I had a student who tried so hard to sound good that her speech became tense, and as a result, she made pronunciation mistakes. She is not the only one who has this issue.

Tension is not control. Speaking in a relaxed and clear way is.

I would recommend to all my elocution students the following exercises:


1. Start with breathing exercises from the app 4Ps, Power, Pitch, Pace, Pause (iOS/Android) – lesson 2.

2. Then work on pace (lesson 4), and finally use of pauses (lesson 5).

3. Record a one-minute speech, then listen back and note your use of pauses and pace.

4. If you notice tension or rushed speech, try again with deliberate pauses and a more relaxed delivery.

Finally, practising long vowels and diphthongs is a good way to slow down speech and improve clarity—rather than clipping them, learn to lean on long vowels and diphthongs. Lessons 1-5, 16-23 in the apps:

I also recommend being intentional about what you say. Sometimes, it is best to use very few words—or say nothing at all. Being economical with words and using pauses can be a very powerful means of communication—more on this in my next edition.

How to Enjoy Elocution?

Elocution does not have to be a long and exhausting practise. It works whe it is consistent.

It can be a lot of fun.

Do not wait for a perfect moment.

Let’s say you have a spare 5 minutes before starting an important meeting or task, or you are waiting for something.

Waiting can be boring.

Instead of another coffee or useless social media scrolling, take your phone and start practising with the app for 5 minutes.

Listen to amusing sentences and verses, repeat, record yourself, and then listen to how your speech becomes more precise and clear.

I recommend downloading all our apps to give yourself a variety of practice:

British English

American English

Do not wait for a perfect moment, practise one lesson today for 5 minutes.

Try not to miss a day of elocution practice.

Warmly

Olga Smith

How to Pronounce the /w/ Sound?

/w/ sound does not exist in many languages, for example, in Hindi, Russian, French, and Hebrew.

My native language was Russian, and it took me 6 months to strengthen my lip muscles in order to pronounce this sound correctly without thinking about it. In the past, I was substituting it with the /v/, and people could not understand me. As you can see from the examples below, the meaning of the word changes if the pronunciation of the /w/ sound is incorrect:

wet - vet, west - vest, whale - vale, wane - vain, worse -verse, wheel - veal.

If you want to achieve great results, practise the long /u:/ sound for three days, Lesson 2 and then /w/ sound, Lesson 25, in the apps:

·        Elocution Lessons

·        Get Rid of your Accent

·        Business English Speech

You will feel your lip muscles getting used to the forward position. The practice will take 10-20 minutes a day.

309. The lost art of elocution — and why your career depends on it

"Speech is power: speech is to persuade, to convert, to compel."

— Ralph Waldo Emerson

I once watched a brilliant engineer lose a promotion to someone with half the technical knowledge — simply because that person could command a room. The ideas were equal. The articulation was not.

That moment crystallised something I had long suspected: elocution is one of the most underrated professional skills of our time.

What elocution actually is (and isn't)

When people hear "elocution," they often picture Victorian-era deportment classes or actors projecting to the back row. But in a modern professional context, elocution is simply the disciplined practice of clear, expressive, and effective spoken communication.

It encompasses how you pace your words, the clarity of your diction, the deliberate use of pause and emphasis, and the resonance you bring to your voice. It is not about sounding posh — it is about being understood and believed.

Clarity Pacing Diction Tone Emphasis Presence Pause

38%

of communication impact comes from tone of voice alone

7 sec

to form a first impression — largely based on how you speak

3×

more likely to be seen as a leader if you speak with vocal clarity

We spend enormous energy crafting what we write — slide decks, reports, proposals — yet treat speaking as something we simply do. The result? Brilliant thinking delivered in a mumble, brilliant ideas lost in a rush, brilliant people overlooked because their voice does not match their capability.

Four principles to elevate your spoken presence

1. Slow down more than feels comfortable. Most professionals speak far too quickly when nervous. Speed signals anxiety; deliberate pacing signals authority. Practice pausing for a full two seconds before answering a question. It will feel like an eternity. To the room, it reads as confidence.

2. Articulate consonants, not just vowels. Consonants carry the meaning; vowels carry the music. Crisp word endings — the 'd' in "world," the 't' in "important" — transform mumbled words into messages that land. Read one paragraph aloud each morning, exaggerating every final consonant.

3. Use the strategic pause. Silence is punctuation for the spoken word. A pause before a key point creates anticipation. A pause after creates weight. Leaders who master the pause never need to raise their voice to be heard.

4. Vary your pitch deliberately. A monotone voice, regardless of the content, signals disengagement to the listener's brain. Rising inflection invites; falling inflection concludes; sudden variation captures attention. Record yourself for sixty seconds and count how little your pitch moves — then work to double that range.

PRACTICE TIP

Read one page of a speech, novel, or article aloud every day. Not to yourself — into a recording. The act of hearing your own voice objectively is the fastest feedback loop in existence. Thirty days of this will change how you present permanently.

This matters more now, not less

Hybrid work has not diminished the importance of elocution — it has amplified it. On a video call, your voice is the primary signal. There is no body language to fall back on, no room energy to ride. Your words, your pacing, your clarity: that is all you are.

In an era of AI-generated text and asynchronous communication, the human voice — used well — is a rare differentiator. The professionals who invest in how they speak will stand out not despite technology, but because of it.

"What's one speaking habit you've deliberately worked to improve?"

Share your experience in the comments — I read every one.

The boardroom, the job interview, the keynote stage, the one-to-one with your team — all of these moments hinge not just on what you know, but on how fully and credibly you can deliver it.

Your ideas deserve a voice that does them justice.