If you are a singer, or a singing student or even a shower singer, it is important that you take some easy steps to look after your instrument.

Yes that's right, your voice is an instrument and because you cant pop down the local guitar shop for a restring, you need to take steps to make sure it is protected and cared for.

​Here are some of my top tips to get you started. ​

1. HYDRATE - As a singer, it is essential that you keep your water intake up. This ensures that your vocal folds/vocal chords are properly hydrated, otherwise they may tire easily and take longer to recover. It is also important to drink enough water throughout the day and not just when you are singing as drinking water only as you sing is not enough to ensure hydration. Staying hydrated, apart from being excellent for your health in general, helps ensures vocal cord lubrication and reduces the risk of damage. The other benefit of having a drink bottle with a straw close by is that you are able to do some straw phonation which is super easy and kind of fun and is also a perfect segue into the next tip.
​

​​2. WARM UP YOUR VOICE - Warming up the voice is essential for singers and speakers, as it helps to gently stretch and prepare the vocal cords, improving flexibility and reducing the risk of injury. It is never advisable to sing without warming up, you are at risk of strain and pain if you do this. It is also a good idea to warm down after singing. Treat your voice and your vocal chords with the respect they deserve. Just as a runner would warm up and warm down after a marathon, your vocal chords need the same love and care.

Try some gentle humming, or some lip trills (bubbles) moving up and down a scale. For straw phonation - fill a cup with enough water to be able to blow bubbles using a straw, and then do your vocal exercises through the straw. It’s as though you’re taking a sip of water but instead you are pushing air through the straw into the water as you phonate your exercise. This is a great way to warm up the voice and gently expand your vocal range.

5. SLEEP - Quality sleep is paramount for singers as it allows the vocal cords to rest and repair, enhancing vocal endurance and performance consistency. Adequate rest also promotes overall well-being, ensuring singers remain mentally and physically prepared for demanding rehearsals and performances. It isn’t unusual for singers to keep irregular hours, touring, gigging, even recording can go late into the night, so try and catch those zzz’s when you can. If you are on a tour bus, make sure your sleeping area is dark and wear and eye mask, also get some noise cancelling headphones to ensure quiet. Without adequate sleep it won’t take long until you begin to unravel vocally.

​If I had a buck for every time I hesitated moving forward with a creative project due to imposter syndrome, well I’d have many more cats and tattoos by now. I have decades of experience, decades of knowledge, training, performing, writing, teaching, you name it… and still sometimes I feel like a fraud.
 
But what is Imposter Syndrome?
 
Imposter Syndrome is a term used to describe when you feel like a ‘fake’ or ‘phony’ despite any knowledge and successes you may have had. It is a feeling that one day you will be ‘found out’ and people will realise you are a fraud. It can be absolutely debilitating at worst and annoying at best and it can strike anyone,
 
“I have written 11 books, but each time I think, ‘uh oh, they’re going to find me out now. I’ve run a game on everybody, and they’re going to find me out.’” Maya Angelou
 
As a singer, or someone who might be considering taking some singing lessons, you might feel like it isn’t a step you are ‘allowed’ to take. Maybe someone has told you can’t sing (they’re wrong), or that they don’t like your voice (who cares?), or they might think you are wasting your time (you’re not).
 
Maybe you believed them?
 
Maybe you want to act, or write, or perform in some way, but again who are you to do that? Well, you are YOU and there is only one you. There is only one person in the world with your knowledge, your expression, your voice, your passion, your dreams, your way of connecting.
 
There is only one you! And you are freaking awesome.  
 
If you think everyone who is showing up, putting themselves out there and moving forward with their passion thinks they are all that, well, let me let you in on a little secret. Nine times out of ten they don’t, they are bluffing.

But what they ARE also doing is showing up, they ‘feel the fear and do it anyway’. That’s the trick, you keep going, you take the next step, you quieten the voice nagging you in your head (or is that just me?) and you just do it.

HOW TO OVERCOME IMPOSTER SYNDROME

I don't think Imposter Syndrome ever goes away but there are some steps you can take to quieten that voice a little.

• ​IGNORE THE NAYSAYERS - They aren't the one putting themselves out there.
• BREATHE- Sounds simple but taking some deep breaths and relaxing your body can help you deal with any stress you may be feeling.
• HUM - Humming activates the Vagus Nerve (the main nerve of the parasympathetic nervous system) Breathing does this too!
• FOCUS ON FACTS - Is your brain telling you the truth? or have you achieved more than you give yourself credit for.
• FIND A MENTOR OR COACH - Have someone positively reinforcing the steps you are taking and encouraging you keep moving forward. 
• CELEBRATE YOUR WINS! - Reward yourself, celebrate when things go well, or even when they don't. Just keep moving in the direction of where you want to be.

Remember, even the most outwardly confident of artists can suffer imposter syndrome... even Lady Gaga!
​
​‘I still sometimes feel like a loser kid in high school and I just have to pick myself up and tell myself that I’m a superstar every morning so that I can get through this day and be for my fans what they need for me to be.'

​

Now if she can feel it, anyone can, so don’t beat yourself up about it, and don’t let it stop you either. Remember, you don’t have to be Lady Gaga, you just need to be you.

I’m here to remind you and give you permission if you need it, to follow your creative heart wherever it may lead you. Enrol in the acting class, the art class, start writing that novel, pick up the guitar, or even book a singing lesson!