- It has been my observation over the past 20 years
of teaching voice that singers
can be really tough on themselves.
And I understand why.
We want to sound our best.
But honestly, I don't think we need to beat ourselves up
in order to get the best out of our voice.
In fact, I think we can learn to be kind to ourselves
and still get the very best out of our singing voice.
- [Woman] Sound check.
Check one, check two.
- Hey there, welcome to Voice Essentials
where everybody sings.
My name is Dr Dan.
Thanks for clicking on the video.
A video that will hopefully encourage you
in your vocal development by suggesting a few ways
to be kind to yourself and your voice.
Now, what we're about to talk through
are not only my ideas about self-care
for the developing singer, but a range of brainstorm
thoughts that have come from the Voice Essentials
community during a recent live hangout.
If you're keen you can check out that video
using the link in the description section below.
And our first self-care thought is all in the name.
You need to be prepared to call yourself a singer.
Almost everybody is born with the biology to sing.
This means that anatomically, you are a singer.
When we own our birth right to sing,
it positions us on a foundation of confidence
to be the singer we were born to be.
Of course, when we own it, we also need to ground it.
Karyn from the SingWiseVocals Channel suggested
during the live hangout that we need to learn to own
and ground our technical development.
This in turn can help us to hold back the hurtful
pieces of feedback from others because we have developed
a sober judgment of where we're at technically.
Speaking of judgment, I always encourage my students
to replace judgment with critical thinking.
Obviously, we can't learn if we're unwilling to reflect
on past performance and correct that which needs attention.
But this doesn't mean that we should beat ourselves up
over every single bad note or forgotten lyric.
Voice Essentials subscriber Tone suggested
that we need to fight perfectionism with an attitude
that embraces good enough orientation.
Always remember, excellence is doing the best
you have with what you've got.
And how about learning to ask for help?
In today's individualistic culture,
we can find ourselves living as islands.
But mankind was created to live in community
with one another.
Allowing trusted friends and teachers to instruct
and guide our vocal development is fundamental
to learning to sing.
If you're looking for a place to start you might like
to try my free seven days to a Better Voice singing program.
It will guide you through some of the foundational
skills required for better singing.
Certainly, when developing our singing voice,
we need to, as Gaven suggested during the live hangout,
be more consistent with our vocal practice.
We need to be careful here though,
because we can run the risk of loading ourselves up
with guilt if we don't meet our predetermined
schedule of vocal practice.
When we do practice, Karyn recommended writing a journal
and keeping recordings for later reflection.
These are great tools and can really encourage you
because you can look back and listen to how far you've come.
Sometimes, after a student has been with me
for a few months of lessons,
I'll ask them to sing the very first song
that we worked on together.
Often their face lights up when they hear
and feel the ease with which the song is now performed.
Nobuwa made an excellent point when she reminded us
not to expect ourselves to completely sound exactly
like a studio recording of a song.
This is important because when we size ourselves
up against the latest version of a tune
by our favorite artist,
we're pitting ourselves against multimillion dollar
studios run by award winning producers.
Our smartphone recording simply can't compete.
Brie offered another great thought suggesting
that it helps to look at singing as not necessarily
something that you do to be good at it but something
that you do because it's good for you and makes you happy.
And for many of us.
That's all our singing needs to do.
Yes, there are those singers who need to require more
of themselves and their voice
because they are lifting it to a professional standard.
But for the rest of us being kind to ourselves
and our voice may be as simple as the simple reminder
to sing because it makes you happy.
The voice of the wider Voice Essentials
community has spoken.
If you can practice just some of the suggestions
then I know you'll go a long way towards being kinder
to yourself and your voice.
There is wisdom in the counsel of many.
Thank you to Karyn, Tone, Gaven, Nobuwa
and Brie not to mention, the other people
that participated in that live hangout discussion.
You've all encouraged us so much here at Voice Essentials.
This is why I love this community of singers.
Just so encouraging.
I hope to see you again all very soon.
I'm Dr Dan, sing well.