BRILLIANCE IN PERFORMANCE
....or the road to stardom is sometimes must be taken lying down
Originally published in ShopTalk on 1/5/98.
The topic of the day is grounding, focusing and
relaxation. Wait, I guess that’s three topics… but in truth, they work together.
And here’s some good news: no matter what your stress level is, it's not too
late to regain at least some of your sanity and composure. Particularly when
dealing with your voice and your own special voice print, the first fancy trick
is to learn how to be relaxed – and yet energized. This is SUPER crucial,
because it's well known amongst us voice coach types that a beautiful, natural
and relaxed voice is simply never released from a tense body.
On a physiological level, the vocal cords are two little
parallel membranes of muscle designed to make sound of your voice by having
vibration and air passing through them from your lungs. They are diminutive in
size, compared to the muscles of the jaw, neck and shoulders surrounding them;
and are designed to function optimally when they have the right balance of
relaxation and engagement applied. When tension strikes (which is the norm, it
turns out), those poor little rascals don't have a chance at the relaxation
aspect… only the engagement. The result; a tight voice. How do you know if a
voice is tight? Some of the classic symptoms are; voice pitch sounds too high,
overall lack of expression, monotone, nasal sounding voice, a thinner/flatter
sound that you really want. The list is long, but this gives you an idea. Bottom
line; a tight voice is not your natural one, nor is it doing you any favors as
an ambassador to you or message.
Since all the other body muscles are so much bigger than
the vocal cords, they dictate how easily those cords release sound.
Consequently, the relaxation factor becomes the first order of business in
making any kind of natural sound.
There are many relaxation techniques to be found out
there. As a presenter, it's important to have at least one on hand that is
simple, portable and always works. It also must connect with your body - because
as a aforementioned presenter, your body, voice and energy are your "tools of
the trade", and really all you’ve got. So, it behooves you to know everything
you can about the care and workings of this marvelous instrument that is... you.
When we are under stress, our head and torso area is
typically where we feel the detrimental effects the most, with symptoms like;
churning gut, tight stomach, shallowed breathing, pounding heart, chattering
mind (or sometimes it goes blank, that’s always fun) and so on. However, on an
emotional level, the arms and legs remain neutral. Therefore, they become a
useful place to hang out for some peace and quiet. Not only that, your legs
contain a powerful energy that can make you feel grounded and very solid (think
of the feeling you have after a good walk or run, or any exercise where you work
those legs to a point of feeling alive, tingly, energized and strong). When
invited, the energy can make you feel as though your legs are roots growing into
the earth like a mighty oak or that you are standing on two pillars of strength.
It's a major confidence-builder to feel like this. It all starts with a simple
relaxation technique I refer to as the “grounding and focusing” exercise. I
learned it from my voice mentor, Dr. Joan Kenley who calls it the "de-stressing"
technique. (You can find her book "Voice Power; a Breakthrough Method to Enhance
Your Speaking Voice" at Amazon.com)
It goes like this: lie down or sit somewhere comfortable.
Close your eyes and begin slowing down your breath by inhaling normally, then
exhaling and leaving your breath out for a few seconds. Don’t stress yourself by
leaving it out for too long or making it a contest. Take your next breath when
you need to. As you exhale, imagine your arms and legs are big empty sacks that
can be filled up with anything you like. In this case, imagine filling them up
from the inside out with a substance that feels warm, comforting and wonderful.
Warm honey, warm river sand, even warm water - whatever feels great to you. At
the same time, say silently to yourself, "arms...legs..." to keep yourself
focused on what you’re doing (it’s really easy to drift off doing this one).
Do about five or six of these slowed breaths with this
imagery going. Then lie or sit there for a moment and see how you feel.
Typically, it results in feeling more peaceful and relaxed. Sometimes it takes a
little practice, but it's a powerful exercise. I generally recommend doing it at
least 6 times throughout the day; morning and night in bed, on the way to a from
work, a couple of times at work. It’s one of those practices where it’s power is
not as much in how long you do it – but how often you revisit it.
Remember; the more often you focus on this simple
technique in times of less stress, the better it will work for you when the
tension valve gets turned up! You need to train yourself to it as you would any
muscle in your body. And believe it or not, this seemingly meek and mild
exercise continues to be reported back as being one of the most powerful
exercises for preparation, focus and grounding… and it’s portable! But you’ve
got to make it a regular part of your life if you expect it to work in the
trenches… so visit it daily, apply often.
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