***Have You Heard Hillary's Voice Recently?

By Nancy Daniels, Official Guide to Public Speaking
The official guide to Public Speaking

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***Last Monday night I heard Hillary Clinton speaking to a small group of women and I was stunned. In a recent photo of her, I had been shocked to see how much she has aged in the past year and also how tired she looks. What I heard from Hillary's mouth, however, was tremendous vocal abuse caused by continual misuse of the voice.

Early last year I sent out a newsletter to my own subscribers in which I loosely described Hillary's voice as an unpleasant ordeal. The woman yells! She is loud. Her voice is grating to my ears. In my mind, her strident voice does not display a person of compassion or feeling let alone the person I want to represent me as the Presidential 'Voice' of America.

What I don’t understand is why someone hasn’t told Hillary that she needs voice training. My goodness, she is running for President of the United States! I am confident that she has someone telling her how to dress and how to do her makeup and hair. Someone gives her a schedule every day. Someone (probably) writes her speeches. Why hasn't someone told her that her speaking voice is akin to nails on a blackboard? It certainly doesn't warm the cockles of my heart!!!

Monday night's soulful lament was totally different however. Her voice was not loud but soft because she was physically unable to push it any further. Her voice was not strident but hoarse. She has been pushing her voice, day in and day out, for the last year which not only damages the vocal cords and throat but is also extremely tiring. With just a little training, she could have discovered not only more voice by the end day, but more energy as well. And, for the rest of the world, voice training would make her much more appealing.

While many people in the spotlight – politicians, actors, and radio & TV broadcasters – are aware of and making use of voice training, most normal, everyday people are unaware that they can improve the sound of their speaking voice. The techniques are simple and basic. The results? Fantastic. You will not only discover a richer, warmer, resonant sound but you will also enjoy hearing it on your voicemail!

If you suffer any form of vocal abuse – chronic sore throats, hoarseness or loss of voice – you will notice a huge difference once you allow your chest cavity to power your voice instead of just your throat, your vocal cords, your mouth, and/or your nose. In order to use your chest cavity, however, you must learn to breathe with the support of your diaphragm. (If you’re interested in voice training and you’re searching for trainers or products, should the program you’re pursuing not stress diaphragmatic breathing, don’t waste your time or your money.)

Another powerful benefit of good training is that you will learn how to increase your volume, WITHOUT SHOUTING. It is called projection and it is extremely beneficial for your listeners’ ears as well as your throat and vocal cords.

Do you want to know the best means for controlling nervousness in public speaking? It’s called voice training and it involves breathing with the support of the diaphragm. (There I go again talking about that breathing!) When you breathe in this fashion (which all other mammals do incidentally), you will discover so many other benefits that have nothing to do with the voice or presentation skills: you will be able to control stress better; you may sleep better at night; your blood pressure may lower. The list goes on and on. Suffice it to say that shallow or lazy breathing, which is characteristic of most people, actually increases your stress. Deep supported breathing, on the other hand, eliminates the toxins in the body and decreases stress.

Imagine all the changes that could occur in your life just by taking a breath…