Just as those who age search for the elusive ‘Fountain Of Youth’, those who toil in the profession of voiceover search for the elusive ‘Formula’ for a successful and lucrative career. I’ve got news for ya, Chris Columbus, you can search the ocean blue, but you’re not discovering either!
But let’s say, for the sake of argument (I’m also an attorney, so that’s what I do), you could put a word, or phrase, in the blank: ________ = Voiceover Success. A word that, while not a magical formula, would help you to achieve success in your voiceover endeavor. What word or phrase would you use?
Here’s a hint to my answer from a tweet I sent last weekend…
PERSEVERANCE is defined as…continued effort to do or achieve something despite difficulties, failure, or opposition.
To me, the two most important words in this definition are “continued effort”. It’s inevitable that everyone in this business faces difficulties, failures and disappointment:
- How many auditions do you send before you get the gig?
- How many agents do you approach before you’re represented?
- How many cold calls do you make before you convince a potential client just what you can do for their business?
- How many years do you put 40 hours a week into your ‘day job’ while you continue to chase your VO dream in the remaining hours of your day?
All of these aspects of being a voice talent cause frustration, anxiety, and stress. And this is by no means the complete list! But how do you handle it? Realistically you have two choices.
- Give up.
- Let the fire and passion inside you be the driving force that propels you to continue the effort to achieve your dreams and desires.
If you choose #2, which I hope you do, it means you keep making those cold calls. Keep auditioning. Keep sending demos to agents. Keep plugging away, doing all of the non-glamorous parts of the VO biz that drive a lot of ‘would-be’ talent away, all because things get frustrating, difficult and disappointing. Your Perseverance WILL pay off!!
Want a case-in-point on how this works? Read the post my VO-Faffcon friend, Justin Barrett, shared yesterday about the fire inside that’s leading him on a new journey.
YOU have the choice today, and everyday, to…1) Give up, or 2) PERSEVERE. What’s it going to be??
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