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Small Shifts for a Stronger Voice

Stories of speakers who stopped playing small and started speaking with strength

Vocal Health

Stage performance

Public speaking

Katie

Barnard Wong

Enrollment Advisor, Voice Faculty

minute read

Published on

December 1, 2025

Alumni stretch and activate their most important tool—their voice—during a vocal warm-up at HEROIC Campus.

Most vocal health problems can be avoided with proper vocal hygiene: getting enough sleep, staying hydrated, maintaining a healthy diet, and giving your voice frequent rest periods.

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If you add regular vocal warm-ups to that list, you’re well on your way to keeping your most important tool in tip-top condition.

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However, over the course of your professional speaking journey, there may be moments when your instrument needs a bit of fine-tuning.

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Just like a piano that can go out of tune because of humidity, heavy use, and age, your vocal production can weaken or shift for a myriad of reasons. That’s why professional speakers benefit immensely from regular vocal check-ups.

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Even if you’re taking care of your voice and adhering to the vocal health basics, professional vocal coaches can help you harness your most powerful vocal sound as a speaker. With the right guidance and small adjustments, you’ll be able to confidently, consistently, and safely use your authentic voice.

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Like the notes of a majestic grand piano on center stage, your voice will ring out in the hearts and minds of your audience as you deliver your message with power, poise, and precision.

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What It Takes to Find Your Authentic Sound

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Over the years, as a vocal instructor and HEROIC Voice Faculty, I’ve worked with many professional speakers. I’ve seen how small shifts can make a huge impact, both for a speaker’s confidence and vocal production.

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Some speakers start vocal coaching because they’re experiencing serious vocal issues, while others simply feel stuck and need an outside ear to help them discover areas of improvement.

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Vocal coaches are trained ears that can hear the behind-the-scenes clues your voice emits. We hone this empathetic-hearing ability to be able to feel and associate your speaking with muscle habits, psychological blockers, and vocal issues that may be holding you back.

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Basically, we run diagnostics for your instrument. When we know what’s happening with your voice and why, we can help you fix it and find your strongest voice.

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Having an extra set of ears to listen for the arrival of (or the recurrence of) vocal issues is invaluable. Vocal coaches will look out for the health of your instrument above all else, and alert you if extra help or more intensive care is needed.

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Success Stories of Professional Speakers Who Chose Vocal Coaching

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The anecdotes below are real-life examples of speakers who struggled with different vocal issues.

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Whether you have experienced something similar or wrestle with a different aspect of vocal production, these insights can help you protect and fine-tune your instrument—and access your most powerful voice.

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A Fitness Speaker Finds the Voice That Fills the Room

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Not too long ago, I worked with a speaker who was also a highly trained fitness professional. (The type who could bench press a small car, then deliver a life-changing keynote, all without breaking a sweat.)

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But those biceps came with an unexpected side effect: since his muscles were extremely developed and very tight, it was actually inhibiting his ability to project his voice loud enough for everyone in a room to hear him.

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So we experimented. We incorporated vocal work into physical warm-ups. By pairing sound with movement and using an exercise that included vocalizing while stretching, it allowed him to associate loose muscles with phonation.

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Now he uses this simple vocal stretching warm-up before every gig. (And it’s made all the difference.) It helps him loosen and relax his sound-production muscles, and speak with a voice that powerfully fills the room.

Full Transcript

Don't

view occasional vocal coaching as a replacement for regular vocal exercises and warm-ups.

try to perform daily vocal warm-ups and exercises, especially in the weeks leading up to a gig.

Just like working with a personal trainer keeps you slim and fit (or muscular, if that’s your vibe), working with a vocal coach helps keep your voice healthy and on track.

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This is especially important if you know that you’re someone who doesn’t feel motivated to do vocal warm-ups every day. A session with a vocal coach (who you’ve worked with before and knows your voice well) now and again helps you maintain your voice, receive important feedback, and avoid more serious vocal issues.

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Clear, Authentic, and 100% You: Advice for Bilingual Speakers

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If English isn’t your first language and you’d like to improve your clarity and diction when delivering your speech in English, vocal coaches can help. Accent reduction can help you improve your pronunciation and intonation so you can transmit your message more clearly.

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But remember: this is not accent elimination. We want you to sound like you. The goal with accent reduction is to increase speaking clarity—so your audience can effortlessly understand your message.

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Vocal coaches suggest simple, small adjustments that enhance your clarity. When I work with students who struggle with accent reduction, we try to find relatable and equivalent sounds in their native language. This helps improve delivery and makes producing those sounds much easier.

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Quite honestly, this is transformational work for a bilingual speaker’s sense of self as well. You aren’t two different people or personalities who speak two different languages—all your lived experiences, languages, and cultures are part of who you are.

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And all of the sounds you produce are valuable, usable, and worthy of being in your toolbox.

Don't

set a goal to eliminate your accent; it’s part of who you are as a bilingual speaker.

focus on small, simple adjustments to improve your vocal clarity and sound production.

Overcoming Common Vocal Changes Due to Menopause

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Vocal problems are scary—especially for speakers and leaders. After all, your voice is your most powerful tool. If you can’t properly express yourself, you won’t be able to get your message across or impact the people you’re meant to serve.

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When a speaker came to me recently because she was experiencing vocal issues due to menopause, the first thing I did was assure her she wasn’t alone. What she was experiencing was completely normal.

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In fact, according to one study, 46% of women experience vocal changes at menopause. Hormonal changes can affect the larynx, change sound production, and lead to increased mucus on the vocal cords.

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For voices experiencing changes due to menopause, there’s often a decrease in flexibility, range, and hydration, and an increase in mucus, tension, and instability. Here are a few techniques that can help:

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Strategically increasing water intake.
Shorter rehearsal periods.
Exercises that maintain or stabilize the flexibility of the voice (like breath work, humming, and gentle range-extension exercises).

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Using these recommended exercises, additional methods, and vocal health products (like hydration tools and over-the-counter medications), this speaker was able to regain confidence and manage the hormonal and vocal shifts she was experiencing.

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If you’re experiencing something similar, be patient with yourself. Understand that your voice is adapting—and that this is completely normal. Your voice actually changes every seven years or so. Vocal changes during menopause can feel extreme, but are completely manageable.

Don't

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Goodbye, Vocal Fry

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If you feel like you’re constantly losing your voice, if you’ve had vocal issues in the past, or if you start to feel discomfort when you speak, a vocal coach can help you regain your confidence and vocal health (more often than not, in just a few sessions).

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One of the most common problems speakers face is vocal fry. This happens when the vocal folds are under-engaged and vibrate sluggishly, producing a low, creaky sound. The result is a tone that often feels flat or disengaged, resonating primarily in the back of the throat. To your audience, it can convey disinterest, tension, or lack of clarity.

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This problem can be solved by adjusting your vocal placement to fully engage your vocal folds for maximum vibration. A vocal coach can give you specific exercises to facilitate this, as well as help you unpack the deeper psychological reasons behind this vocal issue.

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You see, vocal fry is often related to a subconscious feeling of unworthiness or imposter syndrome, self-consciousness when commanding a space, or an unconscious imitation of others. By diving into the deeper reasons behind your vocal issues, you’ll be able to address the root cause and achieve authentic sound.

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How This Speaker Recovered From Feedback Groundhog Day

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When you just keep getting the same feedback—over and over and over again—it might be time to see a vocal coach.

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Ever been told you talk too fast?

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Or that you end your sentences with a question?

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Maybe that you’re “too throaty,” “too nasally,” or “too aggressive” in your speech?

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All of these things can be adjusted and improved with vocal instruction. A voice coach can help you notice patterns and habits in your speaking and give you mindset-shift suggestions and muscular exercises to transform your vocal habits.

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(Of course, a rude, one-off comment isn’t a reason to renovate your voice. But if you consistently get the same feedback about your sound, you might want to explore more.)

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One student I worked with was stuck vocally. She was feeling “robotic” and monotone and just couldn’t figure out how to eliminate the mechanical tone and free herself from getting the same feedback, gig after gig.

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Through the coaching process we discovered that she wasn’t allowing herself to truly experience, remember, and connect with the emotional side of her material. As a result, her speech felt like a mathematical equation, rather than a deep emotional experience.

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When she was able to tune into her emotional reality, her sound transformed completely. She focused on her emotions and memories and eventually found a variety of colors and tones that brought her words to life.

Don't

assume that common vocal habits are ingrained into your being and persona as a speaker. You can correct and improve even deep-rooted vocal patterns.

pay attention to the repetitive feedback you receive—it can help you see things you might otherwise miss.

Daily vocal warm-ups and practice are essential for voice maintenance. Pair that with regular voice “check-ups,” and you’re absolutely golden.

Unlocking Confidence Through Authentic Vocal Expression

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One speaker I met had been lowering the pitch of her voice for years to sound “more serious” in the board room. The result? Strained and worn-out vocal cords.

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During our vocal coaching sessions, the mindset shift led to the vocal shift. When she realized she didn’t need to shove her voice down into a low tone to be taken seriously, she was able to shift her resonance into a higher and more natural tone—her "normal" voice. We used both anatomical cues and imagination work to help her speak with more ease and comfort.

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She was able to find power in her natural tone, shift her voice to live in a healthier place, and avoid that all-too-common vocal fatigue. This change didn’t just revolutionize her vocal sound, it revolutionized the way she showed up.

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When she returned to the following session of GRAD | Stage Performance Mastery, these adjustments made her stand out onstage. The feedback she got on her performance was extremely enthusiastic—this was a massive breakthrough.

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No more lowering. No more pretending. Just newfound confidence, strength, and power. Because she didn’t need to change her voice, her sound, or herself to command a room—she just needed to show up as her authentic self.

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Voice Work Is Transformational, Both Inside and Out

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The truth is, the human voice can be really emotional. There are often many underlying, subconscious imprints that affect our sound production. Each individual’s personal vocal roadblocks are different.

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If you’re in a situation of stress or anxiety, vocal work can be challenging and it can draw out a lot of emotions. When you are willing to dive into the sometimes difficult work of unlocking your truest voice, you’ll be able to bravely and powerfully share it with the world.

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Having a vocal coach to support you and guide you can make all the difference. It’s simply another tool to have in your professional speaker’s toolbox. It’s another helpful team member to cheer you on and support your needs.

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You don’t have to do it alone. Your gigs don’t have to pause because of complicated life events. A vocal coach can help you navigate through it all and let your true sound—your signature sound—shine through.

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Thank you! Your submission has been received!

Oops! Something went wrong while submitting the form.

Just like working with a personal trainer keeps you slim and fit (or muscular, if that’s your vibe), working with a vocal coach helps keep your voice healthy and on track.

‍

Clear, Authentic, and 100% You: Advice for Bilingual Speakers

‍

And all of the sounds you produce are valuable, usable, and worthy of being in your toolbox.

Dont

set a goal to eliminate your accent; it’s part of who you are as a bilingual speaker.

focus on small, simple adjustments to improve your vocal clarity and sound production.

Overcoming Common Vocal Changes Due to Menopause

‍

Strategically increasing water intake.
Shorter rehearsal periods.
Exercises that maintain or stabilize the flexibility of the voice (like breath work, humming, and gentle range-extension exercises).

‍

Don't

Goodbye, Vocal Fry

‍

How This Speaker Recovered From Feedback Groundhog Day

‍

When you just keep getting the same feedback—over and over and over again—it might be time to see a vocal coach.

‍

Ever been told you talk too fast?

‍

Or that you end your sentences with a question?

‍

Maybe that you’re “too throaty,” “too nasally,” or “too aggressive” in your speech?

‍

(Of course, a rude, one-off comment isn’t a reason to renovate your voice. But if you consistently get the same feedback about your sound, you might want to explore more.)

‍

Don't

assume that common vocal habits are ingrained into your being and persona as a speaker. You can correct and improve even deep-rooted vocal patterns.

pay attention to the repetitive feedback you receive—it can help you see things you might otherwise miss.

Unlocking Confidence Through Authentic Vocal Expression

‍

One speaker I met had been lowering the pitch of her voice for years to sound “more serious” in the board room. The result? Strained and worn-out vocal cords.

‍