When I started my daily missives in a blog back in 2007, I had no idea what I was doing. I’m not even sure I saved any screen captures of those pages.
I knew writing was something I could do when I was still iffy about exactly how much or how well I could manage my voiceover business.
Maybe, just maybe – I thought – if I think “out loud” on my blog, I could use it as a sort of journal of my VO journey…a repository of all I knew or thought I knew about voice-acting, then it might just amount to something eventually.
Now I know from my subscribers, by the comments, by the feedback, that my “thinking out loud” serves a purpose. And it still fulfills my desire to journal about voice-acting.
Today, I can safely say that I have at least five VO lessons to share from my 10 years of blogging. I could bore you with more than five, but this is the essence of it…blogging lessons that you can apply to your VO business too.
#1 Discipline
People ask how I do it. How I make time. Where in a busy day do I write new, genuine, authentic thoughts for all to see? I made a decision, and I stuck to it. I told myself, if I can’t do this, I don’t deserve to do voice-acting. I made it a priority. I brooked no failure. I was tenacious and dedicated about it. Simple thing. A blog. Success each day in one thing told me I could find success with other things. What one thing can you do for your VO business today (every day) that you know will give you a win?
#2 Immersion
#1 is the how. #2 is the why. Passion. I dunked myself in the VO community, and absorbed everything I could like a sponge from day one. The blog was me analyzing and repurposing it back out through the lens of my understanding of the way things are/should be/could be. How else can you expect to be successful in ANY endeavour unless you immerse yourself in its essence, and swim around for its secrets? Have you refrained from knowing any one portion of this business for any reason?
#3 Community
People may think they can do it, go it, achieve it, enjoy it – alone – but they never really can. Someone else is always involved, will help, can benefit, should know, or will collaborate. My best blogs included contributions of word or ideas from someone. Humans are always in relationship whether they want it or know it. It’s how we’re wired, so why not embrace it? The outcome is 99.99% of the time worth it or better in some way. I know our culture is divided and polarized now, but thankfully, the VO community is still very helpful. When is the last time you sought a way to help the VO community succeed?
#4 Creativity
Being original. Anyone can copy, paraphrase, repeat, link-to or borrow ideas. True content is genuinely original, authentic, and new in some way. My ideas are my ideas and the way I present them are unique. If you want to see them you have to come to my blog…not Facebook where every idea is shared to death ad nauseum. I get inspiration from ALL that I immerse myself in, then I share it uniquely. This is who I am. No one has walked in my shoes, knows what *I* know, can relate the way I can relate. The blog reflects that originality. Remember all the VO coaches who ask you to bring the REAL YOU to the booth?
#5 Audacity
…and no I don’t mean the DAW (Digital Audio Workstation). I mean chutzpah, hustle, boldness…taking a chance. You will just spin your wheels without it. No great advance are made being safe. Be fearless. Fail. Many’s the blog where I got it wrong, didn’t check the facts, forgot to get permission, or got ahead of myself. That taught me a lot. Over the years, I learned to be honest, transparent, a little audacious, and maybe even controversial. That’s not my nature, so I’ve had to work on it. You should too. How “safe” are your auditions? Are you taking a chance sometimes?
CourVO