Over the weekend I went to a baby shower. The baby was already born (and adorable) so it wasn’t just a ladies only-type event. There were couples and friends and co-workers so it was cool.
While there I had a pleasant conversation with a lovely young woman. Let’s call her Lisa. During our chat, I asked her what she does for a living. She’s a family practice doctor at a clinic in Brooklyn. She ballroom dances as a hobby, loves living in New York, all that good stuff. Sounds like a great life, right?
She asks me what I do for a living. I tell her I’m a voice talent. She gets excited and asks what that entails. I explain as succinctly as I can. When I finish, she cocks her head, looks down at the floor, and sighs. That sigh was the, “your life seems so much fun and mine isn’t” sigh.
This is why I don’t like talking about myself anymore.
For a long time I loved telling people what I do for a living. My career is exciting, lucrative, and a nice big ego rub when people told me how impressed they were by it. Now it just sucks.
It sucks because now I see how envious some people are and that’s not fair to them. Lisa has a great life, but I could see her comparing it to mine while I was talking to her and how her demeanor changed. I felt bad. Yes, I know that’s not my problem but I’ve grown more uncomfortable lately.
I’m actually considering not telling people I meet that I’m a voice talent. I write comic books and sell them so technically I’m a professional writer. Do you think the envy levels would drop if they think I’m a writer?
TIP OF THE WEEK
A friend once told me if you’re at a party, networking event, conference setting, etc. you should never tell someone if you’re doing better than them. It makes them feel bad about their lot in life and make you look like a jerk. I’m not sure if I entirely agree in practice, but it makes sense in principle. Of course you shouldn’t lie and say you’re not doing well when you are, but you could say things like, “Paying the bills” or “Getting by”.
My point is that it’s easy to be excited about what’s going in your life and want to share it; just be aware of how it could make other people feel.
NEWS AND NOTES!
I will be a guest of the Voice Over Body Shop! Tune in to www.VOBS.tv on Monday, February 15th @9PM EST. We’ll talk about social media and marketing tips. If you have a question you’d like me to answer during the show, email it to theguys@nullvobs.tv. I hope to see you there!
I’m heading to Vegas, baby! I will be attending WOVOCon 3 April 15-17 in Las Vegas. I haven’t figured out what seminar I’ll be running but I’ll let you know. Are YOU going…?
Audible is looking for tech and design professionals with five years’ experience in mobile, UX, software or product development. There will be a recruiting event for those interested in learning more about these positions on February 4th at 6pm in Jersey City – please see this link for more info and to RSVP: https://startyournextchapter.splashthat.com/referral
HAPPY HAPPYS!
Happy Hedgehog Day and Ice Cream for Breakfast Day!
QUOTE OF THE WEEK
We do have control over what we do and if you compromise, you will be compromised. Denzel Washington
From my village to yours; this is Tom Dheere, GKN News…
Tom Dheere is a 20-year veteran of the voice over industry who has narrated thousands of projects for clients in over a dozen countries. He is also a coach at Edge Studio, voiceover business consultant known as the Voice Over Strategist, and is currently writing & producing the comic book “Agent 1.22”.