The meme below is humorous, but it comes with caveats. And I feel exactly this way at times. There is so much faulty information out there. One needs to be really careful when choosing a voice teacher, so as not to find themselves in a situation wherein they are learning detrimental, damaging and just plain poor technique, which can ruin a voice.
Things to consider: Is the person in question a voice teacher or are they a vocal coach? (There is a huge difference.) Both have their purposes, but vocal coaches do not teach technique, i.e., vocal mechanics, which is what is needed to strengthen, beautify and most important, protect the voice. Do they know their subject matter from an anatomical perspective? To quote my own teacher, David Jones, “We learn very little through sound. We learn through physical coordination of the body. Then the correct healthy sound can be fully realized.” Do they know how to diagnose vocal issues? Do they teach with kindness, and compassion? Some teachers can, unfortunately, be abusive both to the body and to the spirit, and thus, harm their student's voice and undermine their self-confidence. Do they have multiple solutions to address your unique needs? One solution does not fit all students. These are important things to consider when choosing a teacher.
In regard to the other half of the equation ... You will be called upon to fulfill your side of the bargain. In other words, you will have to work if you want to get anywhere in your training. Are you willing to do what it takes? The best teacher in the world can be ineffective if the student doesn't dive in and do the work.
Additionally, are you willing to be taught? Sometimes students come to a teacher with all sorts of ideas that they have gleaned from the internet, and try to override their own teacher's instructions with something that they read in a book or heard in a video on YouTube. If you have been blessed to find an excellent teacher, you need to trust what they are teaching you. That doesn't mean that you can't ask questions. However, just because you saw it on the internet does not make it true, and students can harm themselves - and delay their own progress - by going off on tangents.
