Perhaps you're looking for a coach to help you as a professional speaker. Perhaps it's to advance your career in acting or other performing arts. In either case, you want to find the right person for this task - someone who understands your goals and has the right background to help you achieve them.

First, recognize that there's no "one way" to teach vocal technique or theory, and there's a difference between the two. A voice technique teacher explains how to sing or speak whereas the voice coach teaches what to choose. Basically it's the practicum vs. the medium.

To complicate things further, your voice is unique. How much support it needs, and what type of training can best help you will vary. What does this mean? It means that finding an accredited teacher, alone, may not be a solution. Likewise, finding a great singer doesn't mean that person can teach! So here are some good tips on finding a vocal coach with whom you can be successful:

1. Find someone that you can talk to comfortably, but who still "feels" like a teacher - meaning you can respect their knowledge and methods.

2. Check the person's background. If they claim to have graduated X school - it's not a bad idea to call and confirm that. If they have "references" - verify them, especially previous students.

3. Ask them about their approach. Is this a "lecture" or a practical approach where you can discern your strengths and support your weaknesses? Also, do you feel that the teacher is open to your input - you know your body better than anyone else. If a coach doesn't listen, they're not a good teacher.

4. If someone assures you that they can teach you proper breathing and singing, be alert. There are NO assurances. Another warning sign is a teacher who focuses only on one gender. If you can teach, you can teach anyone regardless of them being male or female.

5. What kind of information does the teacher seem to provide? Do they understand about the physical aspects of talking and singing - i.e. how vocal chords work? If not, they're going to have difficulty giving any advice as to how you can fix problems.

6. How well does the teacher communicate? Vagueness isn't going to help you. Additionally talking and singing are COMMUNICATION forms. You cannot teach what you do not know.

7. Does the teacher approach talking and singing multi-dimensionally? When you speak or sing, you're trying to convey a message. That means your body language, posturing, eyes, etc. all have to connect with that message. It's more than just words.

8. Finally, and perhaps most importantly do you like being around this person? If not, you're likely to avoid the training, or minimally never do as well as you could with a coach with whom you connect.