Watching him dance with random people at a party I noticed a vast difference between his dancing and that of any of his dance partners. The difference was that the partners were full of effortful to ‘get it right’ and Gary hardly seemed to move! And yet his dancing is elegant and mesmerizing. Can’t take your eyes off him.

As a vocal trainer who works with singers and speakers who are determined and driven to be artists, I am constantly, yet gently, encouraging them to let go of the effort so the energy and brilliance can flow through. That is how you become a powerful voice of success!

Let’s go back many years in Gary’s life and look at how he achieved his success. I can tell you in 1 word: Technique. Building a technique of muscle memory that becomes second nature in any situation.

He was trying to teach me how to Bossa Nova, bless his patient heart. There is one move where you slide your foot. I was clueless and kept ‘trying to get it right.’ After the song was gratefully over, Gary described his mom sitting him down in a chair to teach him how to slide his feet in a precise and effortless movement. He practiced that move over and over and over again.

The precise, focused practice Gary did as a kid made that movement permanently available to him for the rest of his life!

When I question my clients about their practice and they tell me about singing a song over and over or rewriting their speech to get it just right, I know that the song or the speech has not improved since our last session. You cannot expect the performance to improve without practicing that one sliding movement that makes the performance special.

A great speaker, a great singer, a great dancer makes it look so effortless.

Have you ever been told that you need to be louder? Have you ever been in a meeting where people kept saying, “What did you say?” or “I can’t understand what you said.”? Have you been on stage and noticed the audience straining to hear you?

If that is you, then listen up! Recently I saw a video posted by a very well known speech coach who said, you need to be LOUD if you are going to be heard. I was shocked. Let me explain…

Loud is forced. Loud is in your face. Loud is not polite or respectful. Loud is a harsh use of your vocal instrument and can damage your delicate vocal cords.

The key to truly connecting with your audience is crisp clarity of communication. That type connection, the type of connection that creates relationship between your and your audience, happens on a much more subtle level than LOUD.

Let’s take a look at this more subtle level of communication.

When you are the audience member, you simply want to understand the speaker. You want to understand what the speaker is saying, what the speaker means and what the speaker intends for you to do with the information provided.

When you are the speaker then this should be your goal: to be understandable and transparent. Your words and your intention must be understood to be of value to your audience.

I have 2 words for you: Consonants and Authenticity.

Consonants are the action and the clarity of your words. Someone who is hard of hearing can still understand a soft-spoken speaker who uses her consonants well. Consonants define communication and intention of communication.

When you are speaking, be aware of the clarity of your speech by how you are articulating your consonants – or not. Listen to the sound of your own voice to access the crispness of your message.

Authenticity is even subtler than clear consonants. Authenticity means speaking from your heart and passion. Many of the speakers I work with struggle with speaking from their passion because they fear their authentic self might be boring or come across as fake and slimy.

The truth is just the opposite. Nothing is more fascinating than human beings and that includes you! If you are like the entrepreneurs I work with every day then you are out to change the world in a positive way. Your point of view is unique and exciting. Changing the world for the better is electrifying!

To be authentic you must trust yourself. Not the easiest thing in the world but so worth it to strip away the layers of self-protection to get down to what drives you and what motivates you to work as hard as you do to affect positive change.

My suggestion is that you do your presentation for a trusted friend or in front of a video camera – or both. It can be painful to watch yourself but it’s always a great education. Then do the presentation again using what you learned when watching yourself or from the feedback from your trusted friend.

Loud is never the answer. Connection is the answer. Connection to your passion and the clarity of diction, which relies on crisp consonants, is the answer.

For many more answers please join me for a complimentary webinar, 5 Essential Keys to Speaking Like a Pro. Sign up by visiting http://SpeakingintheSpotlight.com

Sign up NOW because I will be sending you bonus training to help you prepare for what you will learn on the webinar. http://SpeakingintheSpotlight.com

PS – Affiliates are totally welcome for helping promote this webinar. Interested? Email Sally@MorganixMethod.com

Here’s a new series of videos that explains exactly what I’m talking about. I think you’ll be surprised – and it might just change the way you look at high notes forever…!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Join us for a complimentary webinar, 5 Essential Keys to Singing Like a Pro. To get your fr*e ticket to the webinar go to SingersInTheSpotlight.com See you there!

breathe,

Sally

My granddaughter, Shaela called me last evening to tell me I had to watch this video. She’s right – I’m fascinated! You will be too. Listen to what Anna Kendrick says about how she learned percussion cup drumming – by submerging herself in it for an entire day. She didn’t just pick up a plastic cup and go right to being amazing. She practiced and practiced and practiced. That’s how art is – you must love it enough to practice 1 technique all day long. If you do – I guarantee you one of the best days of your life!

Enjoy the video!

Click here to view the embedded video.

Are you ready to be amazing? Go to SingLikeYouSpeak.com and sign up to get 3 Secrets to Rock-Solid Singing! I’ll see you there.

breathe,
Sally Morgan
SingLikeYouSpeak@gmail.com

One of the chapters in Tony Bennett’s book highlights the young vocal artists who have sung on his duet CDs. The one that surprised me most was Lady Gaga. I thought, ‘sure, right, she’s a great artist. She’s a marketing genius, but singer?’

So I searched Youtube for a video of Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga. I was transported by the vocal artistry by both these singers. Lots of singing like exactly like they speak! Take a listen.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Do you want to take your singing to a while new level? Check out SingLikeYouSpeak.com. I’ll see you there!

breathe,

Sally
SingLikeYouSpeak@gmail.com

This video in it’s own silly way shows you the real deal.

Click here to view the embedded video.

You think this is an over-exaggeration? In some cases, this is what it’s like. I spoke with Britney Spears producer once. He said that they had to fix every single note that came out of her mouth!

Your voice, you in your natural form, is the sound everyone wants to hear. You can’t get better than natural. Get the training help you need to set your natural voice free and find your signature sound. Check us out at SingLikeYouSpeak.com

breathe,

Sally Morgan
SingLikeYouSpeak@gmail.com

Part of my New Year’s celebration took me to the Boston Museum of Fine Arts where there had a short film festival. One of the films, Hyperpotamus “de Camino” by Lucas Borras of Spain blew me away. Take a look at the film below and then, what’s even more fascinating to me, the second video is of the singer in the recording studio putting it all together.

Enjoy!

The finished film…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Now the singer in studio…

Click here to view the embedded video.

Brilliant!

Live in your passion and feel the vibrations!

To learn more about Sally Morgan and Sing Like You Speak™ please visit us at SingLikeYouSpeak.com

Sally Morgan
Creator of Sing Like You Speak Contemporary Vocal Technique

This is a fascinating and valuable TED video from a social scientist, Amy Cuddy who has done research on powerful body language. Ms Cuddy is relating body language to job interviews – you of course can relate it to performing. Enjoy!

How Body Language Shapes Who You Are

As a voice teacher I come from the assumption that the body is the perfect musical instrument – when it is straight and aligned. To learn much more about how posture affects the voice – singing and speaking – visit us at SingLikeYouSpeak.com

I have a very special treat for you today that will break that nasty cycle. Take 40 min. to listen because it will change the way you sell your music, your CDs and yourself as a performer to an audience. The formula is so simple and feels right.

If you are a Musical Theater performer you can use the same style of ‘selling’ in an audition!

The link below takes you to my interview with Kristin Thompson, a friend and colleague who trains speakers how to sell from the stage – and this is the key point – without feeling slimy or sounding sales-y.

Listen to this 40-minute interview to learn…

• The mind shift from woe-is-me-starving-musician to sharing something your audience wants – your music

• Fun and gentle ways to offer your CDs

• The secret to ‘selling’ a private party, wedding or event performance from the stage

Kristin and I had a blast doing this interview and I know you will not only enjoy it, you will also learn some very simple strategies to make offers from the stage and still maintain your musical integrity.

Enjoy!

SKN Kristin Thompson Sell from the Stage 1

Learn more about Kristin Thompson.

Watch for more on Singers’ Financial Recovery Plan in a few days.

For lots more free, valuable information to help you earn a living with your music, visit SingLikeYouSpeak.com

Matt Luck and Emma Portner

After the voice lesson it then becomes the student’s responsibility to practice what I have presented to them during the lesson. This is where the learning process either gets reinforced or it stops altogether.

Pursuing any artistic craft requires taking the discipline of practice and elevating it to an art of it’s own. Excellence can be achieved through practice – if you are really practicing. Singing a song over and over 15, 25, or 60 times isn’t going to change or improve how you sing the song. What will make your singing better is to practice with awareness, try something different each time with your technique, record yourself and listen back.

I was inspired by this video of 2 dancers – Matt Luck and Emma Portner. They are artists. Watch their beauty and precision.

Click here to view the embedded video.

Can you imagine the hours and hours of practice these two beautiful dancers put in to achieve such excellence in their performance?

What about the singers on the sound track – How do you think they got such precise pitch and harmony?

How do you think they improved their performance with every practice session?

To learn how to improve your singing with every practice session, visit SingLikeYouSpeak.com