Choose Your Choice

**Happy New Year!** It being a new year, many of us are making choices. Whether that is resolving to change, choosing a word or intention, or ignoring the whole thing.

Choice is an interesting thing, though. Many of us would assume that choice is an action, something that we must do in order to get to whatever outcome, toward whichever path we've chosen at the fork. But we are making choices all the time, some of them without our active control.

This morning, you might have chosen whether to wake up immediately with your alarm or to press the snooze button. But for some of you, pressing that snooze button was such an automatic reaction that it wasn't really an action. Others hopped out of bed in that same passive choice.

Many such forks presented themselves to you before you even got to work this morning. You have, when you approach those types of transitions, already chosen how you will respond based on your habits, past experiences, confidence, and fears.

And all of you who use your voice have chosen how your voice will enter the room. Very likely, passively.

Conscious choice requires something else. It requires that your neurological intention and your physiology work in tandem to move forward into the action that you desire.

My invitation to you in this new year is to do a voice and speaking audit. Make room in your calendar (15 minutes should suffice), turn off notifications, and find a comfortable place - perhaps with a favorite beverage. In short, give it dedicated and respectful time.

Answer the following questions:

- Do I like the sound of my voice?
- Does my voice reflect how I want to present myself in this room?
- Do I feel confident when I enter a room, or a conversation?
- When I speak, am I taken seriously?
- Does the way in which I speak inspire?

And, if any of the answers to the questions above is "no," the next question is, "Are you ready to do something about it this year?"

The voice remains how many of us enter the room. It is how we engage with others and represent ourselves. And in this post-AI world, it is how we can make our mark with humanity, connection, and fully as ourselves.

**So Gina, I'm interested in improving the way I speak. What do I do next?**

I'm so glad you asked. All of the work required to become a good speaker for a number of applications can be learned by you, for free or low cost. You can spend some time observing your breathing, noticing your patterns, and perhaps even taking on some metered breathing exercises, such as box breathing:

1. Inhale for four
2. Hold for four
3. Exhale for four
4. Hold for four

Many of us already know this exercise. You could decide to just sing more. I know this one is controversial, but singing is the single most beneficial thing that you can do for your voice and your pulmonary health. Notice I did not say singing beautifully or powerfully or even on pitch, but just letting your voice into the room. You could write and practice scripts. Be very prepared for the conversations/meetings/presentations in your schedule. Focus your energy on what you intend to do and what your desired outcomes are.

With diligence, all of this would make you a very good speaker in about 1-5 years, depending on how much time and focus you actually put into it. If that time span seems a little bit too long, then perhaps you'd like to consider getting some help.

Taking singing voice lessons is an exceptional way to improve the quality of your voice, if that is your concern. If instead your concern is the way in which you speak, your actual voiced communication, then you might benefit from working with a voice and speech coach or a voice communication coach.

Whichever path seems most viable for you, I do hope that you actively choose it. The best time to start was five years ago. The next best time to start is now.

___________

Gina Razón is a voice and human connection strategist, and former professional opera singer with both a BM and MM in Voice Performance. She is an associate teacher of Fitzmaurive Voicework, and Somatic Voicework. Gina is a certified Appreciative Inquiry Facilitator.

Over the past two decades, she has taught voice and speech to individuals, organizations, and in academic settings. She is sought after as a teacher of voice and speech, internal and external voiced communication, and public presentation. Gina also continues to perform as a classical mezzo-soprano.

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