How to breathe

Think of a wind instrument such as a tuba, and imagine the weak, erratic sound it would emit in the hands of an inexperienced musician. Now imagine the rich music that a skilled player could produce with the same tuba. Our bodies work in a similar way to wind instruments - we take in air, swirl it around inside us, push it through our vocal chords and shape it with our mouths before releasing it.

Age and experience should make us experts at using our voices. However, the reverse is often true. New parents are always astonished at the volume, clarity and freedom of a tiny baby's cry. As children we are urged to be quiet, as teenagers we become acutely aware of our affect on others, and by adulthood our voices are shaped by a combination of social pressures and life experiences. Only occasionally do we forget our inhibitions and give a deep laugh, cry unrestrainedly, or shout at the tops of our voices.

Most of the time we exchange conversation without thinking. It's only when we are asked to speak in public or into a microphone that we become self-conscious, and the tension that results can prevent us from displaying our voices as we would like to.

So what can we do? A skilled voice trainer will show you different breathing techniques, and ways to develop your voice, but there's nothing to stop you exploring on your own.

The key skill to learn is diaphragmatic breathing.

To try this, wear loose clothing, especially around your waistline, and lie on your back on the floor. Put one hand on your chest, and the other on your lower tummy. Take a deep breath in, allowing your body to rise and expand as the air fills it, and note which hand moves the most. For most people, it will be the one on the chest. This is perfectly normal, as that's how most of us breathe on a day-to-day basis, but leads to problems when we are make greater demands on our voice. Nervousness can cause our chests and necks tend to seize up, restricting breathing and reducing voice power. Note the volume of breath your chest cavity can contain.

Next, take in a new breath, but try and keep your chest still, and breathe instead into the lower half of your body. This will allow you to take in far more air, and bypasses the problem of tension in our chests. The extra air literally gives you more to work with, and when handled correctly, brings power and control.

Now we must learn to control the release of that breath, so we have plenty to call on when we need it. Try breathing in for a count of three, and out for a count of five. Then extend that to ten, fifteen and twenty counts. Eventually you'll find longer sentences much easier to cope with, and the flow of your speech will be smoother.

None of this will come naturally at first - you'll need to practise over a period of weeks to really feel and hear the benefit. Try it during moments of rest, as you wait for the kettle to boil, at the bus stop, the traffic lights, and especially in bed at night - it's great to help you relax. Once it becomes a habit, your body will automatically use it when you need it.

Who are you talking to?

Another technique to improve delivery involves putting yourself in the mind of your listener. Often when we have something important to say, we focus on our own needs and priorities. After all, we wouldn't be saying it if it didn't matter to us.

Our message will be far more effective though, if it's targeted at the audience we are trying to reach. Work out first who your audience is meant to be, and build up a mental profile of the person or people you are talking to. Are they male or female? How old are they? What are the priorities in their lives? What are they doing as they listen to you? How will your message impact on them? What emotional response is it likely to provoke? The audience may be very real in front of you, but if you're working in radio, it can help to find a photo or magazine picture of your typical listener, and prop it up in front of you as you speak. Then your speech will sound more like a natural conversation than a prepared message.

If you're presenting a speech, radio programme or news bulletin, try to structure it as a writer structures a book or a film. You need a dramatic opening to hook the listener in, and an emotional high or low to leave them with. In between come the peaks and troughs - the useful plot devices, and the odd car chase or twist. Never give the audience the chance to get bored.

Intonation

Most people are shocked when they hear a recording of their voice for the first time, and here's where broadcasters have a huge advantage over everyone else. Not only do they hear themselves as others do, but they have the opportunity to adjust their voices to reflect aspects of their personality they are happiest with. Sounding as you wish to sound is very satisfying.

One of the most common weaknesses is sounding monotonous. We need to put more energy into prepared speech than we imagine, in order to achieve a natural sound. One of my best training tools is a children's story book. Try reading Noddy or something similar out loud, and you will lift and emphasise far more than you would with a "serious" speech. This is partly because the content is fun and easy to read, and partly because you know you have to work hard to gain and retain children's attention. Adults are only grown-up children, and reading a serious speech with a little more intonation does no harm.

Pitch

A frequent request from my trainees is to drop the pitch of their voices. Along with correct breathing, it can be a good way to increase the sense of authority. Again, a voice trainer will show you how to do this most effectively, but don't be afraid to play with your own voice. See how low it will go, and then see how far back up you have to lift it to speak comfortably.

Pace

How fast or slowly do you speak? We all vary in natural conversation, and speaking professionally can cause us to speed up or slow down erratically, often without realising. Our aim should be to emulate natural conversation. A good trick to practise this is to find a newsreader or radio presenter whose flow we enjoy. This can vary from the slow measured tones of the BBC World Service, to hard-hitting commercial radio. Once you've found someone you like the sound of, simply read along with them, just as you would sing along to a song. You won't know the words of course, but just trying to match the flow of your voice to the person's on the radio will teach you volumes about your own speech pattern. When I first started reading news bulletins I realised I was terribly slow, and used to take the time to listen to a punchy competitor just before going into the studio to read my own bulletin, just to force myself to perk up.

Care of the voice

Don't forget to take care of your voice. Warm it up before you use it, and exercise it regularly - chewing gum is great to get your mouth moving. Life is too short to cut out tea, coffee and alcohol completely, but try to cut down, especially around the time you need to speak professionally, and drink room-temperature water to keep lubricated. Avoid mucus-producing dairy foods before you speak too. Never strain your voice - don't shout or cough unless you absolutely have to, and pamper your colds. Avoid smoking: it might make you sound husky when you're young, but you'll pay for it with a croak later in life.

If you have specific voice problems, or feel unsure of how to move forward with your voice, do seek help from a voice expert - it's all too easy to make things worse or even cause damage. Above all though, have fun with your voice. Learn to play the instrument that is your body, and enjoy the results.