It Starts at Home

Your child will sound like you sound to her as she grows up.

If you get tense emotionally (don't blame PMS, your husband or your child) your voice will tighten up and probably get strident, which usually means UGLY!

She's watching you and listening to you to see how you react to life.

She'll do pretty much the same things you do so...

Do her a favor (not to mention yourself) and learn simple techniques to control how you sound to her:

• Tune out what's causing you to get upset


• Focus on a point on the wall in front of you


• Take a deep breath


• Let it out slowly, like a slow leaky tire whose air is directed at the point on the wall


• Do it again but smile this time


• Do it until she smiles


• Twirl around 3 times and laugh at yourself!

Go back to what you were doing and remember this blog!

Morning Sounds

Adding beauty to the morning sunrise that still managed to show up today in spite of Southern California's current inferno, I spoke softly and gently to Michael about the importance of how we use our voices when we communicate with one another.

As a large coal-colored crow and squirrel vied for dominance over the branched territory of trees that have been smacking the windows because of the Santa Ana winds that emblazoned and emboldened the fires, I realized something crucial about the significance of SingBabySing^TM.

A curious goose-bumpy feeling burned this truth into me:

We must set an example of vocal excellence in our day-to-day communications or we won't help anyone else. And if we succeed, we'll have the opportunity to lead the way to a better world, a world that has learned to control the fire of its negative passions so that the power of its positive ones can prevail.

If not us, who?

And if not you, who?

Control Your Voice

Yesterday I wrote about how to control your voice when someone provokes you without cause. Today I'm telling you why it's important to control your voice:

• It's like putting water on a fire that's raging out of control instead of giving the fire more fuel, which means less people get burned
  
• It keeps the noise levels down so that you can be heard, which means you don't have to shout and hurt your vocal cords
  
• It keeps the door of communication open for a future time when the person might (maybe they will, maybe they won't) become more rational, which means the possibility of letting in more light

Besides all that, you get healthy sleep at night because your conscience is clear, which means you won't be adding negative energy to the mess in the world.

Sleep well!

Ugly Voice

This week a close family member really challenged my ability to use my voice in a healthy manner.

I managed to succeed without getting ugly even though he, without any provocation, behaved in an unbelievably ugly way towards me.

So try these voice tips when you're tempted to fight back with your voice:

• When someone shouts at you don't shout back
  
• Instead, take a deep breath and release it slowly without letting them hearing you
  
• Focus into the "tunnel" of your voice that's out in front of you and keep breathing deeply and slowly
  
• Find something about them that you appreciate and express it to them in a soothing way
  
• That'll throw them off long enough for you to take another deep breath while they continue to rant at you
  
• Do it again
  
• Take another deep breath and don't let their ugly words reach your soul
  
• Speak without stressing out your vocal cords by slowing your words way down
  and speaking more softly than usual
  
• If they won't back down, politely excuse yourself, get off the phone, leave the scene or whatever allows you to "disconnect" from them
  
• Go and do the "Silly Spinning Siren" somewhere out of their earshot
  
• Of course you could always do the "Silly Spinning Siren" within their earshot, although I don't often use this tip myself!