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The Professional Speaker’s Vocal Toolkit

Warm-ups and care tips to keep your voice in pristine condition for your next gig

Public speaking

Stage performance

Katie

Barnard Wong

Enrollment Advisor, Voice Faculty

minute read

Published on

November 17, 2025

Achieve your true sound by keeping your voice healthy and strong with these basic vocal techniques.

The human voice is a reflection of the self. Caring for your instrument as a speaker takes more than just a quick vocal warm-up and a few lozenges before stepping onstage. It’s about identifying your personal vocal roadblocks and finding your signature sound.

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You see, your voice is like a tapestry of your life experiences. Whatever you’re experiencing in life can affect the strength, clarity, and wellness of your voice. It’s affected by physical stressors (like what you ate for lunch, how hydrated you are, and how well you slept last night) and emotional stressors (like worrying about a loved one, feeling anxious, or dealing with conflict).

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Often, your voice is most deeply affected by hidden subconscious imprints in your emotional memory.

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Constantly being asked to lower your voice in elementary school. An offhand comment that the Board of Directors won’t take you seriously if you “sound like a little girl.” An embarrassing voice crack during choir—and the subsequent laughter and pointing fingers.

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Experiences like these live in our vocal memory and affect how we produce sound.

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Vocal Basics: What Every Professional Speaker Should Know

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In my experience as a professional vocal coach, I’ve helped both vocalists and speakers unlock their true voice so they can boldly, comfortably, and, most importantly, safely share it with the world.

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Taking care of your voice begins with allowing the body to make the sound it was designed to make, while doing whatever we can to support the body in doing that. You can start today by putting these three simple, science-backed tips into practice:

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#1 Hydrate the Day Before

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Staying hydrated is one of the easiest ways to protect your vocal cords. It can mean the difference between a clear, seamless, and comfortable speech and one riddled with dryness, throat clearing, and voice cracking. Research supports this: “systemic hydration is the easiest and most cost-effective solution to improve voice quality.”

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But you need to hydrate in advance—not the morning of the gig. It takes 24 hours for the water you drink to actually reach and hydrate your vocal folds.

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What happens if you forget to hydrate the day before? To hydrate your vocal folds immediately, steaming works like a charm. Stand in a hot shower and breathe in through your mouth. After even just five or ten minutes, your voice will be smoother, more stable, and ready for the mic.

Full Transcript

Don't

expect the water you drink the morning of the gig to hydrate your vocal folds.

drink plenty of water in the days leading up to the gig.

#2 Avoid These Foods and Drinks

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You probably have already heard of the famous foods and drinks you shouldn’t have before your performance:

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Dairy: Creates phlegm and can lead to a froggy speech for even the strongest voice.
Alcohol: Dries out your vocal folds. (Want to have a glass of wine? Just make sure to match ounces of alcohol to ounces of water.)
Spicy and Fried Foods: Trigger acid reflux and irritate your vocal cords.
Excessive Caffeine: Dehydrates and dries out your vocal folds.

‍

As a general rule of thumb, if it could give you heartburn, avoid it. Foods like these create phlegm and lead to vocal issues.

Don't

drink anything that’s too hot or too cold. Extreme temperatures can limit vocal flexibility by creating muscular tension.

make sure your beverages are room temperature.

#3 Limit Vocal Use Leading Up to the Gig

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This one seems obvious, but I’ll mention it anyway: if your big keynote speech is on Tuesday, maybe don’t go to that rock concert on Saturday.

Exerting your voice—even for just 15 to 20 minutes (while singing bad karaoke, cheering at a sporting event, or loudly talking with friends at a noisy restaurant)—will raise your larynx and can lead to tension and vocal-fold swelling that can last for days.

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Interestingly enough, just being in a loud environment, even if you stay silent, can raise your larynx. Why? Because your body subconsciously primes your vocal instrument to prepare it for speaking over the exterior noise.

Don't

strain your voice by shouting, singing, or speaking excessively before the gig.

avoid loud environments like bars, noisy restaurants, concerts, sporting events, and amusement parks in the days leading up to the gig.

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“My biggest breakthrough moment was during the vocal-exercise class. I've always had a soft voice and it was difficult for me to speak up. After the vocal exercises, for the first time, I felt like I could easily speak loudly and clearly, without yelling.”

Heather Shafter

Co-author of Life of Libby: Chasing Peace & Justice with Humor, Guts, & Passion

Common Vocal Complications Speakers Encounter

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Now, even if you follow these vocal basics to the T, you still might encounter some common vocal complications. After all, your job is to speak, and your schedule is packed with rehearsal sessions, podcast appearances, back-to-back gigs, and mixing and mingling galore.

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Here’s what you can do to mitigate the effects of the most common vocal issues.

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Got mucus? Try this.

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If you’re recovering from a cold or worried about extra phlegm in your throat, try gargling with salt water. Mix half a teaspoon of salt into a glass of warm water and gargle the water in the back of your throat.

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You can also try steaming to reduce inflammation in your throat (and loosen the gunk that’s lurking in the shadows). Take a hot shower or simply lean over a pot of steaming water and breathe deeply through your mouth. Give your vocal folds and throat the spa treatment they deserve.

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Make yourself a cup of warm tea. Soothing herbal flavors like licorice root, fennel, chamomile, or ginger can help your voice. Just make sure to avoid flavors that dry out your throat (like peppermint) and ones that might cause irritation (like caffeine-based teas, milk teas, or sweetened teas).

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If all else fails, try drinking fresh pineapple juice. Pineapple is packed with bromelain, a powerful proteolytic enzyme that can thin mucus and reduce phlegm. More than a few speakers and vocalists say this handy home remedy has helped clear out their throats before a presentation.

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While these techniques won’t instantly eliminate all mucus from your throat, they can help thin it out for a bit so you can give your keynote with a clear throat and less irritation. To eliminate mucus for good, you may have to give your voice a rest or see a doctor for medical intervention.

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Losing your voice? Here’s what to do.

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The care tips and techniques shared here are designed to help prevent voice loss (after all, prevention is the best medicine). However, if you start to feel like you’re losing your voice and have a gig coming up soon, these three things can help:

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#1 Closed-Mouth Exercises

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Closed-mouth exercises are ones that gently block sound from fully escaping your body. By closing your lips or covering your mouth with your hand, you will create a gentle air and vibration massage for your vocal cords that can eliminate inflammation and relieve irritation.

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Here are a few you can try:

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Humming. Karaoke is a big no-no, but humming along to your favorite tunes? Yes! Gently humming with a limited range of pitch can help soothe your vocal folds.
Siren Sounds. Open your mouth slightly, cover your lips with your hand, and make siren noises at a medium volume. This is also a safe way to check on your voice. As you make siren sounds pay attention to where your voice strains and how difficult this exercise feels on your vocal instrument.
The Straw Trick. This really works like magic: fill a cup with less than an inch of warm water, grab a straw, and blow bubbles while humming for about 30 seconds. (I usually recommend humming “Happy Birthday,” but any song will do.) This creates the best massage for your vocal cords while reducing inflammation and muscular tension.

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These closed-mouth exercises have an immediate effect on your vocal sound. Try speaking before and after and you’ll notice a stark difference in your voice’s power and clarity. It’s magical.

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(Even if your voice is healthy, you can use these exercises as a warm-up. Doing a few backstage before your gig can help reduce tension and prepare your vocal cords to perform at the highest level.)

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#2 Steam

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Steaming is extremely soothing and healing for a tired voice. Even just three minutes of steaming can help hydrate your vocal folds, release tension, and prepare your voice for the stage.

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#3 Silence

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Finally, the only fool-proof way to heal an unhappy voice is absolute, complete, utter silence. Give your voice a rest and don’t make a peep. And especially don’t whisper—this is a vocal extreme that actually is worse for your voice than speaking at a normal volume.

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Whispering actually takes more breath support and muscular activity than we realize, so it doesn't actually let your instrument rest. Soft sounds are effortful for the voice. It’s much better for your vocal health to try to talk at a normal volume, but it’s best to be totally silent.

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If you need to communicate with your spouse, co-workers, or kids, grab a white board and write it out (yes, like a true diva). This really makes a massive difference. Even just 24 hours of complete silence can make a hugely positive impact on your vocal health.

Don't

Don’t Use Lozenges!

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Be very careful when it comes to lozenges. While they might seem like an easy way to soothe a sore throat, many include ingredients (like menthol, anesthetics, and eucalyptus) that are designed to numb your throat, which can lead to accidental vocal damage.

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Look for lozenges that have glycerin, pectin, honey, or slippery elm. Ingredients like these soothe and hydrate your throat without numbing it (Grether’s Pastilles check all the boxes, and they’re the most popular choice among high-level performers).

A Word of Warning

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If you feel like you’re constantly losing your voice after almost every gig you perform, something might be wrong with your vocal production. It’s not normal that after every hour-long keynote you need a week (or more) to recover vocally.

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The truth is, many speakers were never taught how to properly project their voice and align it with their breathing. The result? Unnecessary stress on the vocal folds—stress that can quickly wear out your voice and lead to the common issues mentioned above.

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Thankfully, improving your vocal production isn’t complicated and doesn’t take long. Vocal coaches (like the ones here at HEROIC) are trained to discern what’s happening with your vocal production and show you how to fix it, so you can access your true sound when you need it most.

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Often, after just a few sessions with a vocal coach, you’ll be able to feel and hear a notable difference in your voice. You’ll be more comfortable speaking and better prepared to share your voice on any and every stage.

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Cultivate a Voice as Eloquent as Your Message

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Finding your true voice has as much to do with achieving full expression as a performer as it does with caring for and protecting your physical instrument. Both go hand in hand.

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As you make big choices onstage and your confidence in your unique voice grows, you’ll be able to powerfully share your voice with more and more people. Take care of your most valuable tool as a speaker—your voice—with these valuable vocal tips and techniques.

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Doing your best to prevent vocal issues and dealing with them promptly and thoroughly when they arise will help you feel your best and perform your best under the spotlight.

Don't

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#2 Avoid These Foods and Drinks

‍

You probably have already heard of the famous foods and drinks you shouldn’t have before your performance:

‍

Dairy: Creates phlegm and can lead to a froggy speech for even the strongest voice.
Alcohol: Dries out your vocal folds. (Want to have a glass of wine? Just make sure to match ounces of alcohol to ounces of water.)
Spicy and Fried Foods: Trigger acid reflux and irritate your vocal cords.
Excessive Caffeine: Dehydrates and dries out your vocal folds.

‍

As a general rule of thumb, if it could give you heartburn, avoid it. Foods like these create phlegm and lead to vocal issues.

Dont

drink anything that’s too hot or too cold. Extreme temperatures can limit vocal flexibility by creating muscular tension.

make sure your beverages are room temperature.

#3 Limit Vocal Use Leading Up to the Gig

‍

This one seems obvious, but I’ll mention it anyway: if your big keynote speech is on Tuesday, maybe don’t go to that rock concert on Saturday.

‍

Don't

strain your voice by shouting, singing, or speaking excessively before the gig.

avoid loud environments like bars, noisy restaurants, concerts, sporting events, and amusement parks in the days leading up to the gig.

Heather Shafter

Co-author of Life of Libby: Chasing Peace & Justice with Humor, Guts, & Passion

Common Vocal Complications Speakers Encounter

‍

Here’s what you can do to mitigate the effects of the most common vocal issues.

‍

Got mucus? Try this.

‍

Losing your voice? Here’s what to do.

‍

#1 Closed-Mouth Exercises

‍

Here are a few you can try:

‍

Humming. Karaoke is a big no-no, but humming along to your favorite tunes? Yes! Gently humming with a limited range of pitch can help soothe your vocal folds.
Siren Sounds. Open your mouth slightly, cover your lips with your hand, and make siren noises at a medium volume. This is also a safe way to check on your voice. As you make siren sounds pay attention to where your voice strains and how difficult this exercise feels on your vocal instrument.
The Straw Trick. This really works like magic: fill a cup with less than an inch of warm water, grab a straw, and blow bubbles while humming for about 30 seconds. (I usually recommend humming “Happy Birthday,” but any song will do.) This creates the best massage for your vocal cords while reducing inflammation and muscular tension.

‍

#2 Steam

‍

Steaming is extremely soothing and healing for a tired voice. Even just three minutes of steaming can help hydrate your vocal folds, release tension, and prepare your voice for the stage.

‍

#3 Silence

‍

Don't

A Word of Warning

‍

Cultivate a Voice as Eloquent as Your Message

‍

Finding your true voice has as much to do with achieving full expression as a performer as it does with caring for and protecting your physical instrument. Both go hand in hand.

‍

Doing your best to prevent vocal issues and dealing with them promptly and thoroughly when they arise will help you feel your best and perform your best under the spotlight.

Don't