***Want to Heard in the Club Scene?

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

See all Articles by Nancy DanielsSee Nancy Daniels's Expert PageGet Updates on DatingGet Updates on Nancy Daniels

Yes, your lack of volume is the issue. I can’t tell you how many people get in touch with me because of this problem. And, it doesn’t just affect those who are soft-spoken.

The amount of volume needed in a loud bar or club (or even a wedding) is at least 50% more that what I refer to as Volume 1 – your everyday level of speaking. If you are soft-spoken, however, that percentage is higher.

You may find that after trying to increase you volume for a certain amount of time, your throat begins to hurt and, in some cases, hoarseness follows. The reason is because you are pushing your sound from your vocal folds (cords) and throat: you are shouting.

In order to increase your volume without the undue stress to those delicate organs, you need to learn how to project. This technique immediately lessens the wear and tear on the vocal folds and throat. It sounds better; it carries better; and, it won’t hurt your listeners’ ears.

Projection is only possible, however, if you use your chest cavity to power and amplify your sound. What this means is that you need to break some old habits and instill some new ones. Most people are not using their chest cavity in this fashion. They use their other 4 resonators for all of their voiced sound – throat, voice box, mouth and nasal cavities. This is why you will probably find the habitual pitch of you voice somewhat above your optimum pitch. It may be offer by a mere ½ step but it could be as high as 4 or 5 steps above your optimum.

Vin Diesel, Sean Connery, Kathleen Turner, Cher, Ashley Judd, and George Cooney are all speaking within their optimum range. This is why they all sound as good as they do. You have a better voice inside. By changing your voice placement and allowing your chest cavity to do more of the work, you will discover a voice that is richer, warmer and deeper.

If your voice bothers you now at the club scene, it will not improve on its own if you continue in the same manner. And, if vocal abuse is a problem, it will only get worse as long as you continue shouting instead of projecting.

There is most definitely an answer if you want to be heard in the clubs, aside from leaving the building. Discover your ‘real’ or true voice and you will be amazed not only with the ease you will have to project your voice but also by the incredible difference in how you sound.