Kerri Ho’s confidence-building-list has not only helped singers across the world – it is a list that helped her to move beyond her own fears to become an internationally known singing teacher.
Kerri points out that these are not ways to achieve confidence forever. For, confidence – like singing itself – is not a “thing” that can be obtained and frozen in time. Rather, these are steps that singers commit to day after day, on their path to becoming the singers they want to be…enjoying their singing and sharing it with others along the way. This is what makes Kerri’s insights so refreshing: seasoned singers as well as fledgling vocalists are all in need of working on aspects of her list.
Kerri is one of the Singing Instructors you’ll find at Singdaptive.com. In fact, her 10 steps are the basis of her course on Singing Confidence. If you are interested in taking this course, then you can head over to Singdaptive, take our singing survey and get started!
Kerri Ho’s List for Singing Confidence
1.Accept Fear as Normal
Fear is not something we simply can “get over”. Whenever we take a step toward something that is important to us, fear is normal. That’s why, Kerri says, we should never interpret the presence of fear as indicating we should give up. Each of the next steps are aimed at dealing with fear.
2. Discover Your “Why”
One powerful way to deal with fear is to remind ourselves why we are singing. Kerri recommends getting out a piece of paper and writing down a list of reasons that you sing. Then, try to summarise your list in one powerful sentence, phrase or word. You might post this on a wall to remind yourself every day.
3. Get “I’m Not Good Enough” Out of Your Singing Vocabulary
Negative self-talk feeds fear. However, simply banishing these words from our minds or lips won’t be enough. Kerri says that we need to replace this phrase with balanced truth. An example of healthy thinking is, “I know I still have weaknesses in my vocal technique, but I’m working to improve my voice, but every time I practice, I am getting better.”
4. Strive for Progress Not Perfection
All too often singers think that if they can’t do something perfectly, they shouldn’t do it at all. We need to remember that this way of thinking deprives us of the (i) opportunity to improve and (ii) the opportunity for others to be blessed by our voice! It would be helpful to think that progress – any progress – is perfection!
5. Start Small with Your Singing and Just Do It
There’s nothing wrong with having a big dream for our singing. But when we become obsessed with that dream, we forget our “why” and stop enjoying ourselves. This leads to exhaustion and disappointment – and a loss of singing confidence. The way to get our energy back is to take a small step toward the big dream. So, determine a small and realistic step that can be taken immediately!
6. Get Comfortable with Messing Up
When you start taking small steps, you will most definitely mess up -says Kerri (remember, there’s no such thing as perfection!). No one wants to fail, of course, but failures lead to learning – and failing fast means learning and growing quickly. Learning to laugh at ourselves (and our “diva” personality) is a fantastic way to cope.
7. Work Hard at Improving Your Singing Craft
At the heart of singing is a singer who has committed to the “un-sexy” task of daily practice. It’s important, says Kerri, that the technique that singers learn centres on the solid foundation of vocally healthy singing. So, get out there and find some great teaching to build into your life. You might want to see Singdaptive’s special article on Improving Your Singing as you grow in your singing confidence.
8. Get Help and Support to Improve Singing Confidence
Life is much easier when we are surrounded by people who love and support us! This includes fellow singers and mentors who are willing to remind us of our goals and hold us accountable when we stray from them.
9. Recognize Who You Are
We can bring unnecessary suffering to ourselves when we interpret a singing mistake or a failure to reach our singing goals as a judgement about our own worth as a human being. Kerri reminds singers that we are more than our voice – we need to remember that our identity extends beyond our singing.
10. Do It for Love
The number one factor robbing singers of confidence is fear. When feelings of fear descend upon us, we need to counteract fear with its opposite. It may surprise you, says Kerri, that the opposite of fear is not courage, but love. The path to greater confidence is to focus on our love for the song and our love for the audience.
More about Kerri Ho
Kerri Ho is a singing teacher reaching out to singers across the world. She has trained in every technique imaginable, including Bell Canto, Speech Level Singing, Estill Technique, Opera, Musical Theatre, Jazz and Contemporary Pop. Prior to her current work as a creator of educational content for singers, her many roles have included facilitating music education programs for kids in pre-schools, teaching piano and voice programs in primary schools, one on one singing coaching and workshops for adults, founding and conducting a cappella groups and choirs, directing music/creative departments in large contemporary churches, and above all, being completely obsessed over studying and teaching voice. See Kerri Ho’s Bio Page on Singdaptive.
Singdaptive is the new way to learn singing and reach your singing goals. You’ll receive personal one-on-one coaching through video exchanges with a lead instructor who is supported by a multidisciplinary instructor team. You will do this at your own time and pace. Because we have a diverse team, you can work on any singing-related goals from technique, to performance, recording, vocal health, vocal effects, promotion and more…
