voice sounding younger than i actually am

[pocket]

hey everyone, i dunno if this is in the right place so sorry if it osnt.

but when i talk on the phone, or when my voice gets recorded and played back, i sound like im 7, but really im 18. you cant hear me say my S's on the phone either, i really dont know why and its getting me frustrated because my job involves talking on the phone and people struggle to believe im 18.

any ideas?

[NotesMaeve]

Don't worry about it. If you're very self-conscious about it, just be forthright. "Yeah, I sound like I'm 7, but they DO enforce child labor laws here." I had a young-sounding voice, and I've outgrown it. Know that your knowledge will carry you, and that's what people respect about you; not the pitch of your voice.

[Ilya]

Welcome to the board, pocket!
When we are adults we take our way of speaking for granted. We don't think much about it. But voice control is a learnable skill as almost anything in our life.
You say that you voice sounds young when on the phone or recorded. I suspect, that it sounds the same even when someone is talking to you face to face. It's just you have no way of listening to you own voice other than recording.
We perceive our voice in a different way than it sounds to other people. We hear our voice both through the ears and also through the vibrations of our bones, and tissues. And I don't know which is the primary way for us.
So, however unfamiliar, the voice in the recorder is your usual voice. The good news is that you can use a recorder as a great feedback device. If the voice sounds good on a recorder it will sound good to others, however strange it may sound to you inside your head.

I guess, "sounding like 7 year old" means a very high pitched voice. Usually it is possible to vary the pitch of the voice to a great extent. Can you make a scary "monster" voice as a joke? I don't know how people imitate bears in your country, but in Russia anyone can make a "bear voice" for fun.
Try to speak with the low pitch voice. It may sound awkward, but the first goal to make it lower. Then you'll have to learn to make this lower voice as expressive as your own. Note that the change needs not be extreme. Sometimes a very small change to the pitch can make the voice much older and respectable. Also, try to speak a little slower if you speak fast. The slower voice is easier to make lower in pitch.
And always check with a recorder when practicing.
Hope this helps.

[Mark Lapierre]

My voice was like that too. I worked in tech support for 4 years, but as NotesMaeve suggested, if you're forthright it won't matter. I just told myself that people were calling me for help, I knew how to help them, and how old I seem would be irrelevant since it would be clear I knew what I was doing.

I have a less youthful voice now, but to the amusement of my friends it still 'breaks' once in a while. It's not normal for people to be making jokes about going through puberty when you're 28. But it is funny!

I like Ilya's advice. I heard of a personal development speaker who also used to have a high-pitched voice which he didn't like. He said he changed it to it's current timbre by singing in the car at full volume. I do the same but it probably never helped me because most of what I listen to has female vocalists (incidentally that speaker's voice was deep, but monotone. I found the lack of variation in his tone very unappealing. Just goes to show, having a deep voice isn't everything)

[4Mind4Life]

Suggestions:

1) Don't worry about how your voice sounds.

2) Learn to talk more powerfully or purposely change your tone of voice if you don't want to sound so young.

[votoshka]

I think my voice pitch changes based on how I'm feeling at the time!

When I was about 18, one of my sister's teachers rang up the house and when I answered assumed I was my mother! (So I just went along with it ) Oddly he'd been my teacher a couple of years earlier!

Then, one day when I was in my 20s someone rang up trying to sell raffle tickets or something for research, and asked if my parents were home...

Usually, I have a reasonably deep voice for a female, but it can get higher pitched and younger under different circumstances! I do believe if you practice, you can work on changing the pitch of your voice.

[pocket]

thanks for your advice everyone, i do talk pretty fast so ill try talking slower lol i my voice doesnt sound that high in person i dont think, it might do at times lol ill try practising sounding older and ill let you all know how it goes
thanks for your help
xxxx