Align Your Head and Elevate Your Leadership Presence

Working with a group this week, I was confronted with participants who found it difficult to realise their head was jutting forward when they spoke.

Leaning forward, contrary to popular belief, does not make it look ‘caring’ in all environments. In fact, it’s particularly bad for you for several reasons.

First, you mostly look aggressive. Real power, the power of gravitas, is in the lower body. Throwing the head forward is an indicator that the powerful muscles of your body have taken a break and you are resorting to thrusting the weak muscles of your head as a last resort.

Secondly, it is truly unhealthy. The ligaments stretch, and pressure is put in the wrong place of the spine, and this will lead to problems down the track.

Lastly, a voice that fires perfectly requires a head straight on the body. As you jut your jaw and head forward, the effect on the larynx is to strangle your sound. You limit your pitch variation, and your tone becomes squeezed and unattractive.

We almost all do it at times, especially since we became glued to our screens since Covid. Famous in the public eye for head throwing is Julia Guillard who uses her head for accent on words. In the voice world, I have heard this called doing a ‘chook’.

Here’s an exercise for you: Stand with your back against the wall and your neck as close as you can. Now speak and try to become loud and make sure the chin does not jut out and the head doesn’t move at all apart from the jaw opening.

It might feel odd, but that is actually more like what should be happening.

Practice makes perfect!