In short: Tongue twisters warm up the lips, tongue, jaw and face, so the words come out clearly when you speak. Run the sheet for about five minutes before you present or record: slowly first, then at a natural pace, then with the stress on the important words. Drink room-temperature water, skip fizzy drinks, and eat something small that is not chocolate. Clear speech depends on warm, relaxed muscles more than on volume.
Clear speech is a physical skill. The words are shaped by the lips, tongue, jaw and soft palate, and those muscles work better when they are warm. A short warm-up before you present, record or go on camera is the cheapest way to make the first minute sound like you on a good day.
The sheet below gives you a set of tongue twisters to run through before you speak. Present Yourself's vocal warm-ups use tongue twisters for the same purpose.
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Who uses the sheet
Presenters before a talk, podcast guests before a recording, narrators at the start of a voiceover or audiobook session, and anyone about to speak for a long time. Print the sheet and keep it in the grab bag, or save it to your phone so you can run it in a corridor.
How to use it, step by step
- Stand or sit upright with your shoulders loose. Take three slow breaths, with each breath out longer than the breath in.
- Start with the mouth. Open and close your jaw slowly, then make each of the vowel sounds with exaggerated lip shapes.
- Read the first twister slowly, one word at a time, with every consonant clear.
- Read it again at a normal speaking pace and keep the consonants clean.
- Work through the rest of the sheet, slow first and then faster. Stop before the words start to blur.
- Finish by saying two or three sentences from your own talk, stressing the important words.
- Sip room-temperature water. If you have not eaten, have a small snack that is not chocolate.
A worked example
A podcast guest is booked in for half past nine. At nine, they stand in the corridor and run the sheet for five minutes: a slow pass, a pass at speaking speed, then a faster pass with a short pause between each twister. They read their opening two sentences aloud twice, stressing the name of their business. They drink some water and walk in.
Common mistakes
- Racing through the twisters so the words blur. Clarity comes first, and speed can come later.
- Warming up loudly and then speaking quietly. Use the volume you plan to speak at.
- Stopping after the sheet and speaking in a flat voice. Say a few lines of your own material afterwards.
- Eating chocolate or drinking fizzy drinks just before you speak.
For the longer routine that covers the whole body as well as the voice, see a ten-minute voice and body warm-up. Guests who want to sound clear on a recording will find how to be a good podcast guest useful, and anyone reading a script will find how many words fit in 30 seconds worth a read.
Related guides
The picture at the top of this page is an illustration, not a photograph of a client or a real job.
Questions we get asked
What are tongue twisters good for before a presentation?
They warm the muscles of the lips, tongue, jaw and face, so consonants land cleanly and you are less likely to slur the first sentence.
How long should a voice warm-up take?
Five minutes is enough for a sheet like this. Do the slow pass first, then one faster pass, then speak a few lines from your own talk.
Should I drink water before presenting?
Yes, room-temperature water, kept within reach. Skip fizzy drinks before you speak, and eat a small snack rather than chocolate.
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