Stimulus - Sminulus...let me keep more of my money and I'll stimulate the economy.
Stay away from my doctors...unless Teddy Kennedy is willing to forgo his treatment thereby "accepting" the inevitable results of aging rather than burdening the health care system with his case.
It feels like we are surrounded...but I prefer Glenn Beck's take on it: "We surround them!"
This is not a political blog, but it's tough to sit by and watch this circus without shouting at someone.
Thursday, February 12, 2009
Monday, February 09, 2009
Music Rocks!
I had the opportunity to spend several hours in he car alone yesterday, and I used the time to crank up the radio to levels not reached since my teens (a long, long, long time ago).
Ahhh...music. What else has the power to move one? From classical to country to rock...moods may be elevated, depressed, and everything in between. There can be no doubt of the efficacy of music therapy...I self-prescribed yesterday.
I laughed and cried as the music and the words washed over me. I noticed the artists' voices had more impact upon me than did my own...hence the description "artist." I chose music for racing this summer as I felt myself running to the beat and saw my stride easy with quick turnover.
It was a great day.
Catharsis has a place and music is wonderful tool. On www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com I have an article I wrote regarding message-on-hold wherein I cautioned against choosing music for your message that might interfere with the message. The last thing you want is to have your customer on hold upset when the music is interrupted with a message...after all, it's the message you wish to be heard.
Be careful how you use music...it's powerful stuff.
Ahhh...music. What else has the power to move one? From classical to country to rock...moods may be elevated, depressed, and everything in between. There can be no doubt of the efficacy of music therapy...I self-prescribed yesterday.
I laughed and cried as the music and the words washed over me. I noticed the artists' voices had more impact upon me than did my own...hence the description "artist." I chose music for racing this summer as I felt myself running to the beat and saw my stride easy with quick turnover.
It was a great day.
Catharsis has a place and music is wonderful tool. On www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com I have an article I wrote regarding message-on-hold wherein I cautioned against choosing music for your message that might interfere with the message. The last thing you want is to have your customer on hold upset when the music is interrupted with a message...after all, it's the message you wish to be heard.
Be careful how you use music...it's powerful stuff.
Friday, February 06, 2009
This won't take long
The more I watch our new President, the more concerned (and by concerned I mean scared sh*tless) I become.
Thursday, February 05, 2009
It's the Little Things
You have got to be kidding! I just got a fax...that's not the news; it's what the fax said that has me really steamed, amazed, and saddened about the state of business today (especially in the current business environment).
I'm the chair for a conference in April that is bringing nearly 350 people together for a minimum of three days and two nights at a resort. The bill exceeds $500 per room (figuring two people) for the two evenings plus meals plus all the other costs a conference of this size incurs. Well, the planning group wanted to meet for a few hours this weekend at the hotel to discuss some details, see the meeting rooms, and have dinner. We figured about 15 people would attend the two hour discussion and then have dinner in the dining room.
The hotel just sent me a contract for $200 for the meeting room (for two hours?), and $5 per chair for all attending!
I know the resort (it's a golf resort in the summer...not so much in winter in a location suffering temperatures and wind chills well below zero) is not busy in February, but come on...$200 for two hours when I'm bringing more than 100 rooms plus loads of day guests in April?
How far we have come from the days when businesses tried to serve the customer and accommodate them to keep their patronage. It is an unwritten policy of www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com that I will always over-deliver. I will always try to provide any extra possible to increase my value to the client. I am not interested in making every possible dollar from one encounter with a client, I want to establish a relationship and have a client for life (or, at least, as long as I'm able to be of service and the client is able to pay).
It's too late to move the conference to a different venue for this year, but I'm sure going to suggest we never return to this place...and it's all because we wanted to sit down for two hours. This was not a big request but, as we all know, it's the little things that count.
I'm the chair for a conference in April that is bringing nearly 350 people together for a minimum of three days and two nights at a resort. The bill exceeds $500 per room (figuring two people) for the two evenings plus meals plus all the other costs a conference of this size incurs. Well, the planning group wanted to meet for a few hours this weekend at the hotel to discuss some details, see the meeting rooms, and have dinner. We figured about 15 people would attend the two hour discussion and then have dinner in the dining room.
The hotel just sent me a contract for $200 for the meeting room (for two hours?), and $5 per chair for all attending!
I know the resort (it's a golf resort in the summer...not so much in winter in a location suffering temperatures and wind chills well below zero) is not busy in February, but come on...$200 for two hours when I'm bringing more than 100 rooms plus loads of day guests in April?
How far we have come from the days when businesses tried to serve the customer and accommodate them to keep their patronage. It is an unwritten policy of www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com that I will always over-deliver. I will always try to provide any extra possible to increase my value to the client. I am not interested in making every possible dollar from one encounter with a client, I want to establish a relationship and have a client for life (or, at least, as long as I'm able to be of service and the client is able to pay).
It's too late to move the conference to a different venue for this year, but I'm sure going to suggest we never return to this place...and it's all because we wanted to sit down for two hours. This was not a big request but, as we all know, it's the little things that count.
Tuesday, February 03, 2009
Here We Go Again
I really like new things...I like learning new things, I like trying new things, I like finding new things. So, while this isn't entirely new to me, I'm about to launch a new component to www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com and Sharp Associates.
With the urging of Bill Millikin, wjmillikin@billandlou.com , I'm going to launch an Internet radio/podcast program on TalkShoe. While the format and details are still unsettled, I'm really looking forward to the new experience. Well...it's not really new, I was in radio during and shortly after college, and then again several years later.
The format on TalkShoe is, as the name implies, talk based with interviews and discussions on topics of my choosing. The fun I'm having right now is choosing a theme and putting together a list of guests I might interview.
I haven't done anything as far removed from my usual voiceover and message-on-hold business for a long time...it's a real kick to dream of what I want and then create same. So, get ready... may be calling upon you to participate.
When I told Lucia I was planning to try something new, all she could say was, "Here we go again!"
With the urging of Bill Millikin, wjmillikin@billandlou.com , I'm going to launch an Internet radio/podcast program on TalkShoe. While the format and details are still unsettled, I'm really looking forward to the new experience. Well...it's not really new, I was in radio during and shortly after college, and then again several years later.
The format on TalkShoe is, as the name implies, talk based with interviews and discussions on topics of my choosing. The fun I'm having right now is choosing a theme and putting together a list of guests I might interview.
I haven't done anything as far removed from my usual voiceover and message-on-hold business for a long time...it's a real kick to dream of what I want and then create same. So, get ready... may be calling upon you to participate.
When I told Lucia I was planning to try something new, all she could say was, "Here we go again!"
Monday, February 02, 2009
Made in America
I recently had a call from a production house for whom I do a fair amount of work. They had a script they needed me to voice, but didn't have time to get me into their studio. They asked if they might email the script to my studio, have me record it, and send it back to them for an edit in just a day or two.
www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com always aims at returning scripts to clients within 24 hours, so I said their deadline was very possible...uh huh. I received the script and began as soon as possible to record the six pages of copy. My voice wasn't cooperating...so I gave up for the day. The next day, I still didn't like what I heard, but completed the assignment to meet the client's deadline.
Bottom line, the production house was thrilled with what they received (who knew?). They complemented my studio, my microphone, me, and most members of my immediate family. Further, they indicated an intention to do more business through my studio rather than asking me to visit their facility.
I was feeling sheepish about the quality of the voiceover I was submitting...and they were really really happy with it! I can only guess I am, as I've always suspected, my most severe critic. But I think that's common in our profession. We have an image of the best sound or each job, and we'll work overtime to get that sound for our client. If we fall short of our imagined best, we're not happy...and no one can convince us that what we have done is "good enough."
I think that's a healthy attitude and reflective of the work ethic we all wish were the norm in today's world. There is nothing noble about our chosen profession (by a long shot), and I'm sure many others feel the same pride in their work (from assembly line workers to...shudder...attorneys). It is, after all, the private enterprise system and it's inherent rewards that make our country the only place one can achieve "the American dream," but we sure don't read, hear, or see much about it.
We need to collect examples of American pride so whenever someone expresses great surprise at our quality of work we can respond, "What's the surprise? It's made in America!"
www.smooth-male-voiceover-talent.com always aims at returning scripts to clients within 24 hours, so I said their deadline was very possible...uh huh. I received the script and began as soon as possible to record the six pages of copy. My voice wasn't cooperating...so I gave up for the day. The next day, I still didn't like what I heard, but completed the assignment to meet the client's deadline.
Bottom line, the production house was thrilled with what they received (who knew?). They complemented my studio, my microphone, me, and most members of my immediate family. Further, they indicated an intention to do more business through my studio rather than asking me to visit their facility.
I was feeling sheepish about the quality of the voiceover I was submitting...and they were really really happy with it! I can only guess I am, as I've always suspected, my most severe critic. But I think that's common in our profession. We have an image of the best sound or each job, and we'll work overtime to get that sound for our client. If we fall short of our imagined best, we're not happy...and no one can convince us that what we have done is "good enough."
I think that's a healthy attitude and reflective of the work ethic we all wish were the norm in today's world. There is nothing noble about our chosen profession (by a long shot), and I'm sure many others feel the same pride in their work (from assembly line workers to...shudder...attorneys). It is, after all, the private enterprise system and it's inherent rewards that make our country the only place one can achieve "the American dream," but we sure don't read, hear, or see much about it.
We need to collect examples of American pride so whenever someone expresses great surprise at our quality of work we can respond, "What's the surprise? It's made in America!"
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