Warm up your voice before an important talk
A public speaker says no engine runs well cold, and neither does a voice before high stakes speaking.
TED · How to Speak So That People Want to Listen | Julian Treasure | TEDJulian Treasure, a public speaker, does the same six vocal exercises before every talk he gives, treating his voice like an engine that will not work well cold.
He says the routine matters most before the moments when speaking really counts, like giving a stage talk, asking someone to marry you, asking a boss for more pay, or making a wedding speech. Any time you are about to talk to somebody important, he says, do the exercises in advance.
Start with breath. Raise your arms, breathe in fully, then release a long sigh with an ahhhh. He repeats it once.
Next come the lips. Repeat ba, ba, ba, ba several times, then blow a long brrrr, the shivery sound children make. The lips, he says, should be coming alive by then.
Then work the tongue with an exaggerated la, la, la, la, repeated over and over, followed by a rolled R, rrrrrr. He calls that roll champagne for the tongue.
If there is time for only one exercise, he picks the last one. Professionals call it the siren. Start high on wee and slide down low to aw, making a weeeaawww sound, and repeat it.
Treasure teaches the whole set standing up, and asks people to try it with him. For your own big conversation, find a private spot beforehand, stand up, and start with your arms in the air.
Questions people ask
How long does the whole warmup take?
As a rough estimate, it takes about one to two minutes once you know the order. Each sound takes only a few seconds. Running through breath, lips, tongue, and siren in order is what makes it feel complete.
Do I have to stand up to do it?
He asks the audience to stand for the routine, so standing is how he teaches it. You can still make the sounds seated if you need to. Standing simply gives you more room to raise your arms for the opening sigh.
What if I feel silly doing this at work?
People often do it somewhere private before a big talk. Try a bathroom, stairwell, empty conference room, or short walk outside. Even a quiet run-through loosens the mouth and breath.
If I have only 30 seconds, which part should I keep?
Keep the siren. He says if he can do only one exercise, he picks that glide from high wee to low aw. It moves the voice through its range in a few seconds.