Get A Better Broadcast, Podcast and Voice-Over Voice

2023.06.19 – 0900 – Confidence And Self-Esteem ·        Lack of confidence – most of us have a fear of failure, but we can only survive and thrive by putting ourselves in a situation in which we are tested, and you can’t easily replicate being on air without actually being on air. You’re also more likely to experience performance anxiety if by nature you’re...

2023.06.18 – 0899 – Underlying Reasons For Mic Fright What the underlying reasons could be So, just why are some broadcaster-performers exhilarated and energized in front of the mic, while others feel a crushing sense of fear and dread, and sometimes see studio work as something that must be endured rather than enjoyed?   These can be summed up by: [1] ·      &nb...

2023.06.17 – 0898 – Causes Of Mic Fright   So, what’s going on? Extreme nervousness is one of the most unpleasant experiences to go through: physical and mental suffering that, if you are a broadcaster, may be in public and recorded and be played back - not just in one’s mind but also on social media for years to come.   glossophobia /ˌɡlɒs.əˈfəʊ.bi.ə/  noun   The f ear  o...

2023.06.16 – 0897 – Studio Excitement   Excitement Yes, finally, nervousness might be excitement in disguise [1] . Physiologically, they certainly have some of the same symptoms: knees shaking, heart racing, hands sweating, gut misbehaving… Nervousness is often seen as a negative experience to do with fear and potential survival, shying away from risks and limiting success. Excitement is a po...

2023.06.15 – 0896 – Studio Sensitivity   Sensitivity to snarkiness Like a physical issue any underlying emotion can also be ‘heard’ in your voice: angry or anxious, stressed or depressed, walking on eggshells or on cloud nine, your voice won’t be natural unless you are ‘centred’. All of these situations manipulate your mindset: how do I feel, how do others see me, am I letting them see the ‘r...

2023.06.14 – 0895 – Studio Workaholism   Workaholic-ism Stress may come from being too focused on your mic work, at the expense of your family and friends, hobbies and health. If you have too much on your plate or are continually hunting around for scraps, then anxiety may be caused by being too laser-focused on working hard: being a workaholic .   A versatile voice belongs to someone wh...

2023.06.13 – 0894 – Studio Perfectionism   Perfectionism You may get stressed in the studio because everything has to be ‘just so’: asking for take-after-take because the next one will “ be the best one ”; continually cogitating about the cadence of every sentence; editing and re-editing so much that your saved files have names like ‘final’, ‘final version 2’, ‘final version 3’, ‘final final...

2023.06.12 – 0893 – Studio Imposter Syndrome   Imposter syndrome Do you sometimes feel overwhelmed by self-doubt and nervousness before turning on your mic or camera? You feel as though you’re “ not good enough ” and that you “ may be found out ”, “ exposed as a fraud ” and “ don’t deserve success ”. That’s even though you know you’ve had ten tons of training and continuous career accolades....

2023.06.11 – 0892 – Studio ‘Voice Confrontation’   Voice confrontation (or “ I Don’t Like My Voice! ”) You may be visibly uncomfortable hearing your voice live, in your headphones, or when your recorded-voice is played back. You may become stressed at what you think others may think about your pitch, accent or diction.   As we have seen before, this is down to a mix of physiology and psy...

2023.06.10 – 0891 – Studio Embarrassment   Embarrassment As a voice-over, you have perfected a cast of characters while alone in your home studio and then you get your big break: a director wants you for a big-budget part!   You sit in the big-city studio, the microphone facing the control room and through the glass you see directors and producers, engineers and executives, script-writer...

2023.06.09 – 0890 – Studio Disillusionment   Disillusionment On occasion, you may simply not feel up to presenting a podcast. Your voice may be fine but you’re not ‘feeling it’, not in ‘the zone’ and don’t know why. This may be boredom or negativity about the podcast topic , maybe disillusionment or resentment about its ‘return on investment’, the amount of work balanced with the number of do...

2023.06.08 – 0889 – Studio Claustrophobia   Claustrophobia Sitting alone in a home studio booth with several screens, a mic and a mixer, but no air conditioning, recording a voice-over session for an hour, or an audiobook for even longer, may be enough to make anyone feel odd. If you feel a need to break out and run away, it may not be down to nerves, but claustrophobia or loneliness.  ...

2023.06.07 – 0888 – Studio Depression If it’s not nerves, stress or anxiety, it may be something else Let’s not just stick with ‘feeling nervous’, there are other feelings and emotions which may arise in and around a studio and affect your voice, sometimes these are temporary feelings, and sometimes they can last a long time.   Here we look at other things that go on in your head, and how the...

2023.06.06 – 0887 – Studio Anxiety Anxiety is persistent and may not be linked to a specific situation. The intensity may ebb and flow, but it never completely goes away, and with ongoing feelings of unease or dread, anxiety can prevent you from doing something you enjoy and make it difficult to focus and go about your day. Persistent anxiety has links to physical illness including gastrointe...

2023.06.05 – 0886 – Studio Stress Stress may be seen as ‘extreme nervousness’. It too is triggered by a ‘presenting situation’ and is usually short-term. If controlled appropriately, a rush of chemicals in your blood can lead to a heightened state of awareness, and a more powerful performance: a stressful person may be loud and energetic, seemingly thriving on the pressure (‘nervous energy’ or ‘ne...

2023.06.04 – 0885 – Studio Nervousness Nerves, stress and anxiety Nervousness, stress and anxiety are part of the same bodily reaction of fight-flight-freeze which we’ll look at in a bit more detail later, and because they have similar symptoms it can be hard to tell them apart. Here is a rough, non-expert guide.   Nervousness may be triggered by a specific situation but it doesn't usually pr...

2023.06.03 – 0884 – Mic Fright   " The actor's nightmare ", “…what it must be like to give birth" Laurence Olivier, on stage fright   INTRODUCTION Do you want to express yourself, but it feels like a boa constrictor gets hold of your throat? [1] In this section, we look at powerful mind shifts that can help you get a better broadcast, podcast and voice-over voice.   Yes, because the...

2023.06.02 – 0883 – Self Massage   Self-massage ·        Put your first and forefinger together on each hand. Gently at first and then with stronger pressure stroke by stroke, draw your double-fingers in a diagonal line down the side of your neck from just behind your ear across to where your throat starts, just short of your ‘Adam’s apple’. This massag...

 2023.06.01 – 0882 – Vocalisations of Different Voice Sounds   These are sometimes described different, with different words and terms [1] . Ok let’s go for this: ·        Aphonic – a whisper ·        Biphonic – two pitches at the same time ·        Breathy – air in the...

2023.05.31 – 0881 – Surgery And The Voice   Surgery If you are given anaesthetic, it’s likely you will be intubated, that is have a tube put down your throat and past your vocal folds, to help you breathe.   This process can cause: ·        Dislocation of your vocal folds - or more specifically the cartilage that attaches to them ·  &nbsp...

2023.05.30 – 0880 – Vomiting And The Voice Vomiting We’ve mentioned this a few times in terms of acid reflux and alcohol consumption. Let’s take a second to look at it a little more closely. (Ugh!) Vomiting is extremely damaging to the voice and it’s not surprising, as the stomach contents flows ‘the wrong way’ into the pharynx and larynx and potentially into and out of your mouth (‘reflux’ means...

2023.05.29 – 0879 – HPV And The Voice   HPV The Human Papilloma Virus can be sexually transmitted but can also be shared in other ways not fully understood. It causes many different diseases, often in the cervix and also in the throat sometimes leading to head and neck cancer and sometimes ‘recurrent respiratory papillomatosis’ which causes warty growths in the throat, most commonly on the vo...

2023.05.28 – 0878 – Alcohol And The Voice Alcohol It’s unlikely you’ll be having a drink just before a broadcast show, podcast recording or studio session, but what might be the damage to your voice if you’ve had one (or several!) the night before, or for serval nights before?   Alcohol can: ·        Contribute to dehydration of your whole body – and dr...

2023.05.27 – 0877 – Steroids And The Voice Steroids These might be used to reduce swelling in the body, in our case, the vocal folds, perhaps caused through misuse, which may then return to a more natural size and vibrate more efficiently and so make you sound like your real self.   They should of course only be taken under professional medical supervision for a one-off reason. Habitual use c...

2023.05.26 – 0876 – Vaping And The Voice   Vaping This trend is too young for there to be hard and fast stats on how it may affect the larynx and voice, and that’s probably good enough reason in itself to be wary of taking up the habit.   Personally, I’d not want a cocktail of vegetable glycerine, poly-ethylene glycol, nicotine, and flavourings, pyrazine additives, aldehydes (formaldehyd...