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November/December 2011 Spirituality
Your Authentic Voice: Speaking with Power

by Linda Brice

Watch Watch a video on how you can find your authentic voice.

Spiritually aware individuals are increasingly called to speak about issues that are important to them. These “spiritual warriors” fully comprehend that our time on this Earth is short and that a well-lived life is one that is deeply committed to effecting the necessary change that the world is crying out for.

Whatever worthy work you are asked to do for the world (either professionally or on a volunteer basis), we live in times when we know that remaining silent ensures the status quo. The speaking voice is therefore the primary weapon of the spiritual warrior to successfully effect change.

In spite of our courage and commitment to speak up on behalf of change, the fear of speaking to power can be paralyzing (and for good reason). No one can claim that it will ever be safe to speak to power. History demonstrates that doing so can get you burned at the stake, stoned, banished or financially ruined.

Fear of Public Speaking

Linda Brice

Understanding that this fear is logical and universal, though comforting, doesn’t necessarily render you better able to act on your convictions or feel more confident that you are effective in doing so.

Unfortunately, we are constrained by our own physiological wiring. As fear increases, the “fight or flight” response degenerates into a state of “freeze,” in which the muscles of respiration lock tight and disengage our voices from the source of energy — the breath, nearly universally associated with Source — that ensures our effectiveness.

In such a moment, a speaker experiences an enormous inner struggle, as the desire to allow the voice to be used as a vehicle for change is held hostage by primal, self-protective instincts. To the horror of the speaker, the voice — a perfect mirror of your true inner nature —reflects fear to the world, rather than the speaker’s conviction, courage and integral message so needed by the world.

Spiritual warriors who understand that they have chosen to risk everything by speaking up on behalf of what they believe, should know that there are time-tested methods that help sharpen the vocal weaponry.

Surprisingly, these methods were first articulated not by spiritual warriors, but by artistic ones — Italian opera singers and their teachers of the 17th century — who utilized the power of the breath to enable their voices to soar effortlessly and powerfully through some of the most glorious and athletically rigorous music ever written. These methods have been handed down from teacher to student over hundreds of years in an oral tradition. They free the human voice to flow out of the body like a river and perfectly reflect the intent of the vocalist.

Vocal Toolkit

By understanding that the speaking voice and singing voice are unified and emanate from Source through the flow of breath, you have the basis for a set of tools that can help you to communicate freely, powerfully and authentically. Combining the tools from the culture of great singing with the techniques for breath-initiated meditation from Eastern spiritual traditions, you are fully armed with a comprehensive toolkit for the speaking voice.

This toolkit enables a speaker to discover and unleash the voice of their personal power. It enables you to transcend your fear, and speak authentically and powerfully. The voice that seamlessly emerges also perfectly mirrors the intent of the mind and heart, and enables you to become an agent of ethical influence and change in the world.

These skills are very simple. Learning them challenges you to confront your fear and your resistance to being simple. This process initiates enormous personal transformation and thus further prepares the spiritual warrior for work in the world.

Here are simple steps to finding your powerful voice:

• Cultivating body awareness and communication.
• Experiencing how fear affects breathing.
• Embodying the mechanics of correct breathing.
• Focusing the mind on breath flow in the presence of fear.
• Creating resonance legitimately from the breath.
• Projecting this resonance as a gift for the listener.
• Slowing down.
• Engaging silence.

You can apply these tools by thinking about them while speaking any text or collection of words and sentences, remembering that words themselves have energy so select text carefully.

It is a good idea to initially practice breathing by lying down on your back and feeling the abdominal wall rise and fall with the breath as you speak.

Most people speak from the throat instead of the breath, which is experienced as gravel in the vocal sound and tightness, tickling or outright pain in the throat. This type of speech can also quickly lead to hoarseness with a resulting lack of resonance and power.

Working together with friends in a small group also is beneficial, as group members can mirror each other, provide feedback, and take advantage of the group energy to deepen learning.

Together, these tools unleash the authentic voice. The authentic voice is a critical component of your self-identity and is as unique as your DNA. You will know it when it emerges, and your listeners will be riveted. The authentic voice is the perfect vehicle to deliver your own personal message to the world, thus changing the world one voice at a time.

Linda Brice is the founder and artistic director of the Transformational Voice Institute, which offers classes on cultivating the voice of leadership starting on January 10. Visit www.transformvoice.com.

Where do you need to speak out in your life and share your truth? Share your thoughts with other New Connexion readers on Facebook.