Thoughts on speaking your lines:
• We are not our behaviors.
• When you are speaking, it is “the world according to you”—act like that when you are speaking in public.
• Perform artistically in life. When the red light goes on, tell the story powerfully.
• Don’t be self-conscious. Be conscious of self.
• It is not a speech; it is a performance.
• Voice is the most intimate of art sources. You can only feel voice.
• Despite the fact that many people list public speaking as their greatest fear, public speaking is not the greatest fear—the greatest fear is that someone else will have power over us.
• Only 8% of all communication is language based. 37% of all communication is delivered by the sound of your voice. 55% is delivered by your body language.
• On radio or voice over, 92% of communication is based on the sound of your voice.
• Stand in Stature. Sit up, back off of chair, shoulders back—Be 6’2” tall, even if you’re 5’1”.
• While the producer gives you “markers” (counts down 3,2,1…) breathe a “loving breath” silently for the three seconds before you speak your lines.
• Relax. Think a thankful thought. Your body immediately relaxes when thinking kind thoughts.
• Use rituals—athletes have rituals that comfort them. Speakers should, too.
• Breathe (thankfully) and let go.
• Warm up your voice. Make is NASAL for warm-ups; that warms up your larynx and “mouth box.”
• Keep your head up.
• Rest your tongue on the back of your bottom teeth. Put two fingers under your tongue to make it relax. Don’t let it retract. Then say, “New York’s Attorney General.”
• Use the voice that you laugh with.
• When reading your lines, you are storytelling.
• Slow down. It is not how fast you communicate, but how effectively. If you are too fast, everything is lost.
• Always listen to yourself. Don’t speak faster than you can hold your thoughts together.
• When you tell a story, you must create TRANSITIONS for the listener by pausing.
• Punctuation is crucial to any verbal communication. SEE the comma. SEE the period. Circle commas or periods to remind your self to pause. Use exclamation points for emphasis in your notes. Put an ellipsis in place of the period or comma when you need to emphasize the pause.
• Each breath is “gas in the tank.” You must breathe before you speak. Sustain your breath throughout your line.
• Note cards are not just transcripts of your speech. Transcripts are for people who weren’t there to hear you.
• Use rhythm (down beats). Place accent marks at the beginning of words on your note cards.
• Accent the beginning of the words.
• Pay attention to the difference between “voiced” and “unvoiced” consonants. G, V and Z are “voiced” consonants with a great deal of vibration. J, F, S and C have less vibration. “duh,” “tuh,” “buh” and “puh” have little vibration.
• Dipthongs are REALLY IMPORTANT. Pronounce them properly. A is really “A+E.” I is really “I+E.” O is really “O+oo.” That’s very important.