{
  "schema_version": "1.0",
  "id": "CC-047",
  "title": "How did I learn to speak in loud places?",
  "topic": "Anticipation, preparation and the listener",
  "author": {
    "name": "Craig Coffee",
    "id": "https://usedtostutter.com/craig-coffee#person"
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  "source_markdown": "# How did I learn to speak in loud places?\n\nBy [Craig Coffee](/craig-coffee)\n\nSpeaking in a loud place was a skill I had to learn. I didn't have much experience using a strong voice without feeling as though I was yelling. I would speak, and somebody would say, “What? I can't hear you.” Then I had to say it again.\n\nIn the July conversation, Don said a loud restaurant or bar was still hard for him. There was so much going on that it felt like overload. I told him this was a hard thing for me too.\n\n## I had to learn to use enough voice for the place\n\nThe practical problem was that the person needed to hear me. I could be speaking in a voice that was too quiet for the room. I had to learn what it felt like to speak loudly in that setting.\n\nI said there had been places loud enough that I had yelled and nobody told me I was too loud. They just talked back. That was an experience I had while figuring this out for myself.\n\nThe tonality mattered as well. I didn't have much experience talking loudly without a yell. If I was saying something friendly, I wanted it to sound friendly. I gave the example of telling someone she was beautiful with a smile on my face.\n\n## What I heard when Don tried a different voice\n\nEarlier in that call, I had asked Don to speak enthusiastically about his girlfriend. When he said “the kindest,” I picked out that first delivery. I heard a loud, confident voice without anger.\n\nI asked him to try another example using that voice. After another attempt, he asked whether it sounded salesy or theatrical. I said that was what enthusiasm sounded like, and that becoming comfortable with the feeling was part of it.\n\nDon described more energy, tonality, rhythm and free flow. He said he wasn't trying to speak so quietly and perfectly or disguise mistakes. That was his description during the exercise.\n\nWe weren't testing the exercise in a crowded bar. But [the exchange about enthusiasm](/enthusiasm-and-speaking-confidence) shows the particular distinction I wanted him to hear: a voice can have energy and confidence without anger.\n\n## It was another part of speaking I needed experience with\n\nI called the loud setting advanced because improving in some situations did not mean I had already learned every way to use my voice. The next time I had to speak loudly could still feel unfamiliar.\n\nI had to work on the volume, the tone and the feeling of using that voice in the place itself. It was part of why I kept bringing the work into real environments.\n\nI wanted to be able to go out and talk. [The crowd](/talking-in-crowds-when-you-stutter) could give me something to discuss, and the noise could require a different amount of voice. Those were both parts of the situation I was learning to handle.\n\n## Being heard without straining\n\nMy experience of speaking up in a noisy place needs a limit. There is such a thing as too loud. Move closer or choose a quieter place rather than keep raising your voice over the noise. Rest a voice that feels painful, hoarse, or strained; persistent problems deserve professional attention. [Voice-care guidance from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders](https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/taking-care-your-voice) supports those limits.\n\n## Related answers\n\n- [How did I learn to feel more confident before speaking?](/confidence-before-speaking)\n- [How did I practice talking in a crowd?](/talking-in-crowds-when-you-stutter)\n\n[Find your question](/questions)\n",
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      "source_markdown": "Speaking in a loud place was a skill I had to learn. I didn't have much experience using a strong voice without feeling as though I was yelling. I would speak, and somebody would say, “What? I can't hear you.” Then I had to say it again.\n\nIn the July conversation, Don said a loud restaurant or bar was still hard for him. There was so much going on that it felt like overload. I told him this was a hard thing for me too.\n\n",
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      "heading": "I had to learn to use enough voice for the place",
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      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/speaking-in-loud-places#i-had-to-learn-to-use-enough-voice-for-the-place",
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      "source_markdown": "## I had to learn to use enough voice for the place\n\nThe practical problem was that the person needed to hear me. I could be speaking in a voice that was too quiet for the room. I had to learn what it felt like to speak loudly in that setting.\n\nI said there had been places loud enough that I had yelled and nobody told me I was too loud. They just talked back. That was an experience I had while figuring this out for myself.\n\nThe tonality mattered as well. I didn't have much experience talking loudly without a yell. If I was saying something friendly, I wanted it to sound friendly. I gave the example of telling someone she was beautiful with a smile on my face.\n\n",
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      "heading": "What I heard when Don tried a different voice",
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      "role": "source_context",
      "source_markdown": "## What I heard when Don tried a different voice\n\nEarlier in that call, I had asked Don to speak enthusiastically about his girlfriend. When he said “the kindest,” I picked out that first delivery. I heard a loud, confident voice without anger.\n\nI asked him to try another example using that voice. After another attempt, he asked whether it sounded salesy or theatrical. I said that was what enthusiasm sounded like, and that becoming comfortable with the feeling was part of it.\n\nDon described more energy, tonality, rhythm and free flow. He said he wasn't trying to speak so quietly and perfectly or disguise mistakes. That was his description during the exercise.\n\nWe weren't testing the exercise in a crowded bar. But [the exchange about enthusiasm](/enthusiasm-and-speaking-confidence) shows the particular distinction I wanted him to hear: a voice can have energy and confidence without anger.\n\n",
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      "source_markdown": "## It was another part of speaking I needed experience with\n\nI called the loud setting advanced because improving in some situations did not mean I had already learned every way to use my voice. The next time I had to speak loudly could still feel unfamiliar.\n\nI had to work on the volume, the tone and the feeling of using that voice in the place itself. It was part of why I kept bringing the work into real environments.\n\nI wanted to be able to go out and talk. [The crowd](/talking-in-crowds-when-you-stutter) could give me something to discuss, and the noise could require a different amount of voice. Those were both parts of the situation I was learning to handle.\n\n",
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      "source_markdown": "## Being heard without straining\n\nMy experience of speaking up in a noisy place needs a limit. There is such a thing as too loud. Move closer or choose a quieter place rather than keep raising your voice over the noise. Rest a voice that feels painful, hoarse, or strained; persistent problems deserve professional attention. [Voice-care guidance from the National Institute on Deafness and Other Communication Disorders](https://www.nidcd.nih.gov/health/taking-care-your-voice) supports those limits.\n\n",
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      "heading_level": 2,
      "citation_url": "https://usedtostutter.com/speaking-in-loud-places#related-answers",
      "role": "navigation",
      "source_markdown": "## Related answers\n\n- [How did I learn to feel more confident before speaking?](/confidence-before-speaking)\n- [How did I practice talking in a crowd?](/talking-in-crowds-when-you-stutter)\n",
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      "id": "enthusiasm-is-contagious",
      "title": "ENTHUSIASM IS CONTAGIOUS",
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