Voice · rank 5 of 5 · speaking up

Stage time

Get on stage. Sing a line, join karaoke, or get the mic for one sentence.

Free. Nothing to download. Always take no for an answer.

Why it works

The stage is the hardest place to be seen. Survive it once and every bar gets smaller.

You get on a stage or a mic for at least one line, in front of people, on purpose. Quality doesn't count. Showing up does.

You can't get stage time tonight. Ask the host when you could. Asking is rank 5 practice too.

1
Before
Rate your nerves from 1 (panicking) to 10 (at ease), and guess how it will go.
2
Do it
Play the card. A no counts. A bail counts. Walking up to the moment is most of the rep.
3
After
Rate your nerves again and say what actually happened. The gap between the two numbers is the workout.

The Voice suit · speaking up

Too big for tonight? Start at rank 4, The toast. This is the top of the suit.

1

Down-shift

For 10 minutes, end every sentence on a downward inflection. No uptalk.
2

The order, slowly

Order a drink 30% slower and 20% louder than feels natural. Pause once mid-order and don't fill the silence.
3

Song request, broadcast

Get the band's attention between songs and make a request loud enough that people nearby turn around.
4

The toast

Stand and give a 20-second toast to people you just met. Full commitment, no half-standing.
5

Stage time

Get on stage. Sing a line, join karaoke, or get the mic for one sentence.

The worst case is a stranger saying no, and you'll live.