A big reason that I started teaching singing and set up Confidence in Singing is due to the confidence I’ve gained by taking a spiritual journey of my own.
In 2014, I started meditating regularly. And because of meditation, I started taking responsibility for myself in a new way. I also started to acknowledge my own value and stopped being so hard on myself, while also acknowledging my mistakes and trying to change my behaviours and habits for the better.
Acknowledging our own value not just as singers but as people has become an important part of my work. Also helping my students to acknowledge the value of singing for the sake of just enjoying it. The point isn’t necessarily to be able to sing for others and be admired for it but to enjoy singing for yourself. To embrace the JOY of singing!
Singing can also help us to deepen our connection to ourselves. We see the songs we are attracted to and notice why those songs matter to us. What does our song choice say about us? We might notice the mental or emotional blocks we have – sometimes it’s self confidence or lack of the self love.
I love helping singers to become more self aware while doing something fun, singing!
It’s interesting because my brother, when he saw the clip that featured me and my classes on national television in Ireland, he said, “Oh, I didn’t know you did a therapy.”
He spotted the depth of what I was doing straightaway, back then. But I never really described my work as a type of therapy. Though I do explain to people that I studied psychology and that I’m interested in personal development.
Recently I started to explain what I do differently. I’m acknowledging the holistic side of my teaching. And I want to be more open about it – that it’s singing to connect to yourself. And that does mean valuing yourself. And it also means being responsible for yourself and not being hard on yourself. A little bit of self love goes a very long way.
I love to work with people who want to explore who they are, through finding their voice and deepening their connection to themselves. And from that self to acknowledge the value of their voice and the value of their own unique message in the world.
We choose the songs we sing because the song resonates with the message that we have for the world.
We all have to find some meaning in the world. And the world wants that too. When we do connect with our own emotions and message and we sing about that meaning it is quite a deep experience and it can be very emotional and raw.
When you see someone singing from experience and you share that experience in the song, it feels profound and real. And it reveals a raw part of ourselves that we probably need to see in ourselves. To acknowledge, transcend and sometimes heal those emotions within us.