VampireS SUMO

Have you ever been knocked out of an online tournament wanting to literally hurt somebody in bad way? You set some chump up perfectly and he falls for a call, being way behind, only to suck out on the river. He doubled up. You are left struggling internally. Therein lies the essence of success in online tournaments. It is the fact that you must understand, cope with, and overcome these internal struggles, because more than anything else, your emotions will limit your success in poker.

Let me say that again more clearly. Your emotions will strictly limit your profit potential in tournament poker to the extent of your lack of control over them.

Compare this to sports like hockey, baseball and football, where emotions can propel a player to greatness, it can cripple your poker career. You can learn all the skills you want from the great poker books, DVD’s, and TV poker productions available to you. When it comes to real practice however, such skills are difficult to execute. For example, you are holding pocket 10’s in the cutoff with two limpers ahead of you, one is early. You raise 3 1/2 times the blind to try and get heads up. Surprisingly the big blind reraises you to 6 times the blind, approximately half his stack. Then the early position limper reraises again, all in. The other limper folds and it is back to you. Do you really have the power to fold here? What if you were holding Jacks, or even Queens? You see, knowledge is one thing, discipline is quite another.

Discipline and emotion often conflict. Tournament success will only happen when your discipline can effectively turn your opponent’s emotions against themselves. Since emotions control the majority of your opponent’s actions you will experience tremendous advantage in this regard, but only when you become a master of your emotions.

You will not earn money in each tournament entered, but each tournament entered will be profitable as a long term strategy. After studying and using my poker mind power, you will be going into each tournament as one of the favorites. Sun-Tzu in the Art of War is quoted as saying: While heeding the profit of my counsel, avail yourself also to any helpful circumstances over and beyond the ordinary rules. Hence, you may be a good player right now, even very well informed, but if your success is still limited, it is time now to look inside yourself and begin studying all over again.

Ming Yo is a professional online tournament poker player and writes for PokerStrategyArticles.com PokerStrategyArticles.com and also has a Poker Mind Power course available at Infonickel.com/1/ming_yo.htm Infonickel.com/1/ming_yo.htm

I don’t often read books twice. Not (just) because I have particuarly high standards, but because I am both blessed and cursed with in the word’s of another: “an elephantine memory”. Not so much for detail, but for the order and substance of experience. I have an ongoing internal chronologue of what happened when, why it happened, and more importantly how I felt about it.

More so in the past than in the now—a tangible blessing of my ongoing practise of meditation—is the ever more vivid emergence of the eternal now, the light of which obscures in increasing brightness the shadows of the forgettable then. In this respect I am more than cheerfully losing my mind!

With regard to books, for this is in fact a book review, I remember the reading experience too well to cheapen the author’s work by reliving their tale less than whole-heartedly at a premature date. *Shantaram*, however, by Gregory David Roberts, I would quite happily read twice and then again if but time did permit.

*It took me a long time and most of the world to learn what I know about love and fate and the choices we make, but the heart of it came to me in an instant, while I was chained to a wall and being tortured.*

Shantaram is the autobiographical novel of the author’s real life journey from bank robber and addict to prisoner and then fugitive, from Australia to India, and from only an actor in his own life to its’ playwright and author.

*Truth is the bully we all pretend to like.*

Beginning with armed robbery and Australian prison to the slums of Bombay and it’s mafia wars from battlefield gun-running to the fabulously surreal filmsets of Bollywood, the 933 pages of this book take place on a scale of experience vaster than just larger than life, and I am certain for some quite beyond belief.

I personally found no reason to doubt the author’s probity. To me it mattered not whether this book is verifiable fact. Even if it were only three quarters true, it is a tale of heart and not of fact, of life lived and felt rather than observed and described.

*Sometimes, you have to surrender before you win.*

A journey of several continents and more than ten years, it is really the story of intuition followed and dharma learnt. A man near lost in a maelstrom of his own making accepts the guidance of fate’s unseen hand and the certitude of the whisper within to find redemption and spiritual growth.

As chief protagonist as well as author, Gregory David Roberts is a warrior-poet of the modern age, a man familiar with the path of violence but adhering strictly to the code of honour and right, all the while recording on paper his thoughts and experiences for retelling at a later date.

*There is no heart like the Indian heart. It’s the heart that keeps us all together.*

Shantaram is a journey on two levels. Literally it is a journey to the heart of India, the land where in the author’s words “the heart is king″. Personally it is a journey of the heart through experience, from “Mr. Lindsay” of passport stolen to the affectionately nicknamed “Linbaba”, and finally to the name “Shantaram” (man of God’s peace)—the name given to the author by his adopted Indian family. It is a journey of who he was in his own eyes, has now become in the eyes′ of others, to who he himself seeks to be.

John Gillespie is a designer, web developer and video editor
who lives in Auckland, New Zealand. A member of the Sri Chinmoy Centre, he uses his practice of meditation as a source of energy and inspiration for his many creative activities. Amongst other activities he produces podcasts for srichinmoy.tv/ Sri Chinmoy TV

What is your piano playing style? Most likely when you first started to learn to play the piano you were stuck in the middle C position. While a nice position and most comfortable it does not lend itself to making the big full sounds we all long for. So now that you’ve been at it a few years or even months what has become the most likely way for you to play the piano?

Do you play piano by chords? Maybe both of your hands play simple triads and you have to transpose all of your music to the keys of C or F. Or maybe all you need is the hint of a chord symbol and you’re off and running with the more complex extended chords.

How about sheet music. Do you need it in order to play at the piano. Do you play the full grand staff as it is written, rarely veering from a single note? If not do you then take a few liberties and add some interesting notes and chords to give the piece your signature style?

What if you play by ear or using chords. What do you do with your left hand? Are you into octaves with an occasional note within (or out of) the scale mixed in? Or do you embellish with a left hand one fingered pattern running expertly around whichever scale may it be such as the pentatonic.

Maybe you’re more comfortable sticking with chords in the left hand and doing all the work in your right hand. Adding a chord on below the melody or doing fancy arpeggios with the all too easier to play right hand.

Whichever may be your piano playing style maybe this impromptu list will give you new ideas and inspiration for other ways of expanding your craft and increasing your technical skill.

K Quinn has been playing the piano for 10 years. She picked up the guitar 5 years ago and both for her church. Visit her website at strugglingchurchmusician.us www.strugglingchurchmusician.us for more church musician tools and tips.

Almost all of us celebrate our glorious Independence Day with food, fun and fireworks. Here are some of the notable Independence Day celebration occurrences, that were celebrated very much in the way that we celebrate today. But these celebrations are notable because they were different in some way or the other.

1776 Independence Day Celebration
In 1776 Independence Day was celebrated on different dates in different parts of United States. This is the most noticeable point that attracts our attention. The first 4th of July celebration occurred shortly after the Declaration of Independence was declared in various locales along the Eastern Seaboard.

The glorious Independence Day was celebrated very much in the way we celebrate today. There were sound and dazzling fireworks covering the black sky. Emotions and sentiments played very significant role in the celebration.

In Philadelphia the celebration did not occur until the 8th of July as the Declaration of Independence was read on that day and in Williamsburg, a grand celebration had occurred on July 25.

1776 Independence Day Celebration included the reading of the Declaration of Independence at the Courthouse, the Capitol and the Palace. The celebration also included firing of cannon and musketry followed by a military parade.

1777 Independence Day Celebration In Philadelphia
This is one of the most well organized and the first elaborate Independence Day celebrations we have ever witnessed. The celebration included all the inspirational events along with the demonstration of joy and festivity. The first anniversary of our Independence Day in Philadelphia was celebrated on the 4th of July with parade and firing of cannons, one round in the honor of each state of the union. The day was closed with the tolling of the bells and at the night there was a grand exhibition of fire works and the city was beautifully decorated with lights. Music, dinner and and other entertainments were parts of the celebration and everything was conducted with utmost decorum.

1826 Celebration of the Fourth
Referred to as the “Jubilee of Freedom” the 50th anniversary of our Independence Day was celebrated in 1826. It was in 1826 that our Independence Day was celebrated with the greatest procession of loyalists in Charleston. The city had witnessed such a beautiful procession after a long span of time. Our Nation was adorned with lights and the flags. The procession started from the Citadel green with an immense gathering of 10,000 men, women and children and the place was flooded with huge number of spectators. And the most interesting thing was that, during the entire length of their journey they sang:

“John Brown’s body lies a moulding in the grave,
John Brown’s body lies a moulding in the grave,
John Brown’s body lies a moulding in the grave,
His soul is marching on!
Glory! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
Glory! Glory! Glory! Hallelujah!
We go marching on!”

4th of July Celebration Around Skagit River in 1876
The first recorded community celebration of 4th of July was held at Fidalgo Island and March’s Point in the year 1876. This has been an ever memorable day for the early settlers of Fidalgo Island and March’s Point, although there was a small gathering of only 100 people on the William Munks’ farm for celebrating the nation’s centennial birthday anniversaries. This 4th of July celebration included full day festivities with lots of fireworks, foods and fun. They started the the day with an opening salute followed by three loud cheers in the honor of the nation’s birthday. Then there was music and marching, following which Hiram March (March’s Point) read the Declaration of Independence. Three cheers were also given to the “ladies of Fidalgo”. The celebration was enriched with oration, lots of toasts and numerous beautiful songs and finally a grand march to the table.

The amount of information on 4th of July is enormous and here are some of the never to be forgettable episodes. We can share all such information along with our heartfelt love with our friends and beloveds on this Independence Day. Let us share our feelings with all our American brothers and sisters by sending inspirational ecards along with great wishes and messages.

“Hallowed be the day, forever bright its memory in the heart of the Nation.
Sing to it, poets
shout to it, freemen
celebrate it with bonfires, parades, and triumphant assemblies″
(Daily Alta California, 4th of July 1855).

This memorable 4th of July celebrations article may be freely reprinted or distributed in its entirety in any ezine, newsletter, blog or website. The author’s name, bio and website links must remain intact and be included with every reproduction.

Julia Hayes is a freelance writer with a passion for ecards and getting connected with people through blogs and social networks. She writes blogs on fourthofjulywishes.blogspot.com Fourth of July Wishes and 123greetings.com Ecards.

Herm Edwards returns to the Meadowlands tonight (8:00 ET on FOX) as his new team, the Kansas City Chiefs, will play the New York Giants. The Chiefs are tied with the Colts for the longest active preseason losing streak, having dropped seven consecutive “practice games,” dating back to the team′s third game of the 2004 preseason. The Colts, who host the Seahawks on Sunday night (8:00 ET on NBC), are 2-5 ATS during their slump but the Chiefs are 0-7 ATS in theirs!

I do not have a free play for Thursday but do a a big day (and night) of action. I open with my 15* NL Getaway Day Game of the Month (won AL version on Aug 9) plus compliment that with my 15* Evening Clincher tonight. In football action, I’m looking to repeat my 2-0 sweep in last Thursday’s play (won on the Eagles and Colts) with another 15* NFLX Doubleheader.

The Giants are favored by three or 3 1/2 points in tonight’s contest and the total is 35. In other NFL preseason play tonight, the Eagles, who will be playing their third game in 12 days, visit the Ravens in Baltimore (also at 8:00 ET). The Ravens are favored by three points with a total of 34. Home teams went 11-5 SU (8-7-1 ATS) in Week 1 and 13 of the 17 games played so far (Week 1 plus the HOF game) have gone ‘under’ the total. We’ll see what happens this week.

The Dodgers took a six-game winning streak into their Wednesday afternoon game with the Marlins, as well as having won seventeen of their previous 18 games. However, the Marlins scored four runs in the top of the first and never looked back in a 15-4 rout. The Dodgers had outscored their opposition 99-42 over the last 18 games and their starters had gone 12-1 with a 2.55 ERA. LA’s Mark Hendrickson didn′t last long Wednesday, getting just seven outs and allowing five runs.

With LA’s loss, the A’s open the day with MLB’s longest active winning streak at six straight. Oakland beat Seattle 4-0 last night (15th straight win over the Mariners this year), giving them a 12-2 mark in August. The win allowed the A’s to matched the 1974 Atlanta Braves for the longest winning streak against a division opponent since divisional play started in 1969. The Braves won 15 straight versus the San Diego Padres that year.

As for the Mariners, they are 0-7 on their current 11-game road trip and have now lost 16 straight games to AL West opponents. With the Devil Rays beating the Blue Jays 8-3 last night and ending their seven-game losing streak, the Mariners open a four-game series with the Angels tonight (10:05 ET) as owners of MLB’s longest active losing streak.

The Red Sox salvaged the final game of their three-game series with the Tigers last night, winning 6-4. Boston is off on Thursday but opens a five-game weekend series with the Yankees tomorrow, playing a day/night doubleheader. The Yankees lead the Red Sox by two games in the East going into a day game this afternoon vs the Orioles (1:05 ET).

Two other notes from Wednesday have the Astros scoring in just two of 36 innings these last three days against the Cubs and Bronson Arroyo finally getting his 10th win of the year (on his 11th try), with a 7-2 win over the Cardinals. The Astros were shut out for the second time in three days (Carlos Zambrano beat them 3-0 Monday) and Houston went the final 21 innings of the series without a run.

Thursday’s schedule includes 12 games with eight of them involving daytime starts.The Phillies will attempt to complete a four-game sweep of the Mets in Philadelphia at 1:05 ET. Philly has shut out the Mets in two of the three games and has outscored them, 27-4. In San Diego, San Francisco will go for a four-game sweep of the Padres at 3:35 ET. The Giants have not swept an opponent in a four-game series since beating the Los Angeles Dodgers June 21-24, 2004.

More NFL and CFB notes tomorrow, plus don’t forget my special edition of Ness Notes Saturday and Sunday. I′ll examine some of CFB’s most notable turnarounds (both good and bad) since 2000, as well as offer some thoughts on possible surprise teams and flops in 2006.

Ness Notes is available Monday through Friday by 1:00 ET.

Larry Ness is a documented member of the Professional Handicappers League.
Read all of his articles at procappers.com/Larry_Ness.htm procappers.com/Larry_Ness.htm

When anyone wants to take in the best show of their life, they should check out Kid Rock tickets. They will have a great time and enjoy the different varieties of music that he sings. There will be something for everyone. Kid Rock sings rock, country, and rap. That is right even rap. He is one of the best white rap artists that ever came to be. You will see that if you give him a shot.

Kid Rock tickets would be the perfect gift for any person that enjoys rap music. You may not think by looking at him, but Kid Rock is awesome at rapping. He can get down with the best of them and his lyrics are unbelievable. He has power and emotion to his music and he brings in all type of people to listen to his music.

Rappers tell stories of how they live or want things to be. This is also true for Kid Rock. He sends his message to his fans and anyone that listens to his music. He has a story to tell and he expresses that through his lyrics. That is why it is a great opportunity to have Kid Rock tickets so that you can take in one of his amazing shows.

There is no better way to have a night full of entertainment than to go to one of Kid Rock’s shows. When you see that there are Kid Rock tickets for sale, you should jump at the idea. You will have the best time of your life and not regret one minute of it at all.

Kid Rock tickets can be bought online or at the ticket booth of the place where he is playing. You can get great deals at either one and you should do your research to find the best seats and prices for your budget. You can find all different priced tickets to buy and you will be able to sit wherever you want. You should consider getting your tickets early as they do sell out quickly and you will have missed your chance to see the best live performance you could.

There is lip-syncing to worry about when you go to a Kid Rock show. You will have the best live music that you can get and not have to worry about anything fake. You will be getting the real thing and defiantly get exactly what you are expecting and so much more.

There is no better way to experience all the different sounds and entertainment that Kid Rock has to offer than to get yourself some Kid Rock tickets and see his fantastic show.

About the author:
Magne Bjorklund kid-rock-concert-tickets.info/ kid-rock-concert-tickets.info/

Also visit:
child-bedding.biz/ child-bedding.biz/
slim-thug.info/ slim-thug.info/

1. You don’t have to be an expert.

Create music the best you can, just get it recorded and
polish it up later. Rough tracks are not always a bad
thing. They can be an excellent starting point for a great
song. Many people can appreciate raw music and may even
want to collaborate with you to make your music even better.
Putting together music that isn’t perfect is better than
keeping the music inside of you and not sharing your
creativity and talents with others.

2. You can create quality recordings without going to a
professional recording studio.

There is excellent home recording software and recording
devices available. Reading a manual, contacting customer
support, and visiting chat rooms can go a long ways in
helping you improve your recording skills. Don’t be
intimidated. Play around with your recording device, or
recording software. If you are patient with yourself, you
can have a lot of fun, learn a lot, and your recordings can
really start to come together.

Also consider hanging out in a music store occasionally to
learn some great tips from other musicians. Sales reps are
normally more than happy to help you out and even share
their personal experiences they have had with a product. If
they don’t have experience with the product you are looking
for, chances are they can find someone in the store who has
experience, or can direct you to the right place.

3. Home is your sanctuary, when you relax get your
inspiration from your environment then capture your
creativity in your recording. When you create music from
the comfort of your home your creativity can be limitless.

You can create, record, and sell music from home while
you’re in your pajamas. Nothing wrong with that! A lot of
good creativity can happen at home…channel that into a cool
new song, and record it so you’ll remember it for years to
come. You can mess up a thousand times, and no one has to
know. Practice to your hearts content, then record your
tunes as many times as you need to until you get the sound
that makes you happy.

You may also be able to tune out negative influences at
home, so that’s a good place to foster your creativity.
Your home is a great place to kick back and relax, and when
you’re relaxed and feeling good, or bad, this is a great
time to go play some music and/or lay down a couple of
tracks of music. You are free to work at your own pace with
no one looking over your shoulder, so that can be great time
to be creative and come up with some music ideas. Work in
the comfort of your home, be comfortable and relaxed, be
creative and show how unique you can be through your music.

4. You can create music as fast or slow as you want…go at
your own pace.

There doesn′t have to be anyone pressuring you to lay down
your tracks at warp speed. You can record a track, go eat
some lunch, workout, then record another track if you
choose. You can lock yourself in your music room for as
long as you want if that works for you, and really make some
great progress on working out some licks, writing some
tunes, or even recording music. You don′t have to pay for an
expensive recording studio, so you can take your time
creating your music.

5. Home recording trends are growing, and you can easily
take advantage of new technologies developed for musicians
just like you who want to record their music at home.

Resources are available to easily record music at home at a
very reasonable price, so no more excuses. Thousands of
people are recording their own music from home. They have
all different skill levels. There is a place for you out
there too…go get yours!

6. What you don’t know you can learn from home using your
computer and some great online resources.

You can instantly download music lessons and work at your
own pace. You can join forums full of people just like you,
who are working on making their own music from home, and you
can share tips with each other. There are resources where
you get video demonstrations that walk you through different
processes e.g. playing a guitar…step by step.

7. The internet has endless possibilities and reaches
millions of people…get your good music in front of more
people on the internet and you can have more music sales.

You can sell your music right off of your website. You can
sell your music from an online music store. There are free
advertising resources available where you can get your music
in front of other musicians and prospective customers.
There are online communities for musicians who want to get
their music heard by others…you can offer support for other
musicians, and they can do the same for you. This can lead
to more CD and Ṃ sales too. You can get your own online
radio station to play your music, or get your music played
on other online radio stations to increase your exposure.
The possibilities for getting your music heard are endless
if you take advantage of the power of the internet.

8. You have full control over how your music turns out.

You are creating, producing, and selling your own music. No
one should stand in your way. You can keep 100% of your
hard earned profits if you choose.

9. You can have a huge sense of accomplishments by creating
your music from scratch, producing it, and selling your own
music.

You are responsible for the music you create. A lot of
satisfaction can come with that…taking action will show you
that you can do it, like you always knew you could!

10. Don’t underestimate your abilities. You may be a better
musician than you think. You can get your music out to the
public to let others experience your unique creativity.

You may not think your good enough to sell your own music,
but how do you know if you don’t even try? Get your music
in front of others and let them appreciate all of your
creativity and efforts. For every person you think won’t
like your music, there may be 10 others that do. Fear is
natural, but don’t let it stand in the way of you achieving
greatness that may be within you.

There are some great recordings, and a lot of rough
recordings out there that may get some great buzz because
they are getting their music out there. Why can’t you do
the same? Taking action is the first step. You may be a
better musician than you think.

Your music may sound pretty good to you, but get your music
in front of others, and they may be amazed on what you can
do. That interest, and/or amazement with your music can be a
great tool for fostering your motivation and creativity too!
Remember, you never know what you can do until you try. No
more excuses…you CAN Create, Produce, and Sell your music
from home. You have nothing to lose, so get started today!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:
Traci Crowley provides resources that help
you Create, Produce, and Sell your music from home.
Visit her website at:
indie-musicnetwork.com indie-musicnetwork.com

When Socrates asks Euthyphro for the first time what pious is and is not, Euthyphro responds with a confident definition. Euthyphro is confident in his answer and further strengthens his argument with the example of the god, Zeus. His answer is “black and white” and does not seem to leave room for debate, but this is only because he has not argued and expanded on the issue, and is only getting warmed up. Euthyphro’s “black and white” answer is that piety is bringing a wrongdoer to justice, with no consideration for who he is, what he’s done in the past, how rich, famous, popular he is, or what degree of social standing he is. Zeus condemned his own father for unjust behavior, just as Euthyphro did. Likewise, to not bring a wrongdoer to justice is equally impious.

When confronted again by Socrates with the question of piety, Euthyphro is to explain in what form the pious is always pious and impious always impious. This time Euthyphro tells Socrates that the judgment of piety and impiety comes directly from the gods themselves. Euthyphro states, “what is dear to the gods is pious, what is not is impious” (7a). So here, Euthyphro’s answer goes a little deeper in saying that an unjust act is impious because it goes against the law and also because it is not “dear to” the gods, or is “unloved by” the gods.

After Euthyphro’s second claim to what piety is, Socrates succeeds in contradicting him, showing how, since the gods are at war with each other, they do not agree on what is just. So, in saying that piety is what is loved by the gods, Euthyphro’s statement is not supported. He is then later asked this by Socrates, “Is the pious being loved by the gods because it is pious, or is it pious because it is being loved by the gods?” (10a). Euthyphro’s answer ends up being a contradiction because he says that the pious is loved by the gods because it is pious, but that the god-loved is so because it is loved by the gods. Since Euthyphro earlier said that the pious is what is dear, or loved by, the gods, then we have an incomplete and contradicted answer.

Increasingly in today’s society l find myself becoming disheartened by the publics prejudice behaviour that mocks individuals who deviate from our perception of what is normal and acceptable. I witness, on a daily basis, people walk by one another, competitively scrutinizing each other. Women, children, men and boys are all guilty of this judgemental behaviour that occurs most commonly in groups and is responsible for the growing number of people suffering from an inferiority complex in modern day society. I have been, for no valid reason, myself subjected to this form of public ridicule that is rife today and it isn’t a pleasant experience. Girls mocking each others clothes, the older criticizing the young, the ’hip’ chastising the ‘nerd’. Nobody escapes this rivalry for the very reason we exhibit this behaviour in the first place: because we are all different, unique and this is strength we should all be celebrating not trying to eradicate.

Racism and class prejudice is a taboo subject which, if merely uttered by someone out of context is berated as unacceptable. So why then do we plaster pictures of celebrities in vulnerable states of emotional or physical frailty over pages of glossy magazine to allow others to relish in humiliating. I find it disturbing and highly unsettling. In a mufti racial and cultural society surely we should be working our way towards becoming more accommodating of difference and understanding how broadening our horizons and learning to look past the surface level detail of someone’s initial appearance is food for the soul. It should not be an armour we can put on to deflect out own fears of self-doubt and insecurity. It doesn’t work in theory, if you laugh at someone for their differences, you can be equally subjected to similar humiliation for being different to that person’s idea of normal, so it won’t work in practise.

I genuinely hope that if people read this they will take into account the message I’m trying to communicate to society. We all bear responsibility for this behaviour. We all mock, judge and laugh at others. But to identify a weakness in someone hold it up and openly humiliate them because of our own narrow mindedness only shrinks our little worlds to bear only those who resemble us, and what a boring, fascist kind of life does that entail?

My name is Camilla McMahon. I’m 21 years old at Kingston University in London, surrey. I am studying journalism and sociology and am a BBC young news reporter for Blast. My other work is available for display on news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5224270.stm news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/5224270.stm I am passionate about writing and am aspiring to be a war correspondent.

There are many myths surrounding the art of singing. Many people believe that only “special” people can sing, that you have to be “born” with the ability or that it is “too late” for them to learn. However, almost all vocal coaches agree that anyone, yes anyone, can learn to sing!

Expensive lessons are not necessarily the best way to learn to sing. Not every singer who becomes famous took expensive singing lessons early on in their careers. Mimicry and self confidence can often help the most.

Don’t be intimidated by what you see on pop culture television. Remember that shows such as American Idol are cleverly produced for shock value. Many of the terrible candidates you see trying out are the worst case examples of people who have no control of pitch or volume. They were selected purely for entertainment; most of them could learn to sing properly if they applied themselves and spent some time on vocal training exercises.

To dispel another singing myth, very few people are really “tone-deaf”. It’s a term often used to identify someone who sings badly off key, off pitch or with too much volume. The reality is less than 2% of the population is tone deaf. People who cannot sing on pitch simply need ear training. This can be done with the help of a qualified vocal coach or by investing in a good quality learn-to-sing program.

Anyone can learn to sing but not every voice is suited for all kinds of music. The human voice is an instrument, much like any other musical instrument and part of studying singing is learning about your unique instrument and what it is ideally suited for.

When you start your singing career you might not have any of your own songs. That’s fine but remember,if you do not sing your own material, it is important to choose the right songs for your voice. If you have a gentle voice if would not be wise to sing the hugely powered vocals of a Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston song as you could end up damaging your voice!

Sing within your ability but be passionate about your work. The tone of your voice is much more important than the range. People will love or hate your voice based on its sound character, not how many notes you can hit. Never sacrifice tone for range (stay inside your range). There are instances of professional, commercially successful singers with only a single octave range (Billie Holiday and Johnny Mathis).

The only standard for what makes a professional or commercially-viable singer is the ability to sing in pitch and to be unique. Do not simply copy your favourite singer’s voice. It takes a lot more than voice if you are interested in becoming a professional singer. You need to have a unique style about you and your voice is just one extension of that style.

Singing well is a skill, improved upon with proper breathing coordination. It is an extension of speech. To become a “good” singer you must be able to breathe properly, sing with power (resonance) and sing in pitch. To become a “great” singer you’ll need to add dynamics and develop a style that’s all your own.

Find the joy in singing. There’s nothing like watching someone performing in their “element.” If you love singing, then it’ll show no matter how well you sing. Believe and trust in yourself and don′t assume that you know it all. It takes time to develop your sound AND your voice. Sing proudly, no matter what your level of expertise or experience, and remember that learning to sing should be an enjoyable experience. Smile and have fun whenever you sing!

Sophie Curran is a singer and chief editor at “The Sing Studio.com” where you can find more free singing tips, breathing and vocal exercises and advice on how to start your singing career, how to promote yourself and sell your music online. To learn more visit thesingstudio.com thesingstudio.com