Gehanna said:
I would talk more if I could get rid of my accent. I feel like the sound of my voice makes me "seem" less intelligent than I am. Lord knows, I'm no genius as it is and the last thing I need is to come across as being a complete pea-brain.
The second reason I wish I could get rid of my accent is because of the line of work I am in. My voice is perfect for cutting through behavioral issues when dealing with certain personality disorders but my accent nearly destroys the soothing tone required when dealing with grief, certain mood disorders and etc.
While I have not had anyone complain to me personally about my voice, the issue stems from the "stereotype" attributed to individuals who hail from the state where I live. That state being Kentucky in the USA.
Granted my hair is long, I am barefoot (at the moment) and I do have chickens but there are NO broken down cars on my property, I do not have a porch with rocking chairs on it, I don't own a shotgun and I do not live in a house with wheels on it. Oh yes and one last very important point...I was NOT inbred! lol
Gehanna
Oh, girl, do I ever know what you mean. West Virginia's reputation isn't much better than Kentuck's. Hell, some people on the West Coast still think we're part of Virginia. Anyway, I learned a long time ago to be proud of my accent. To a lot of people, it
is soothing, it
is charming, and I find my accent sets people at ease immediately. They don't automatically assume I'm stupid because I talk the way I do - if you're intelligent and someone spends five minutes talking with you and really
listening to what you have to say, the thought of your accent is put completely out of their mind in favor of the substance of your conversation. At least, that's been my experience. I said above I'm not comfortable on the phone - I do better with someone face to face when I can read their reactions. But, I find that I
can get a lot achieved on the phone rather quickly based on the substance of my responses (when I can choke'em out) without resorting to the cliche' "honey", "sweetie" and "sugar".
It's all in your attitude and confidence in yourself. If your mind tells you your accent is holding you back, it will. If it tells you it's an asset, it'll be an asset.
WVWG (loving the way she talks...)