A week ago I was in England for the weekend to visit with a number of voiceover people from the UK and to meet some of the other folks involved in voiceover work there at an event called VOX. It was great fun, but one of the things that stuck with me actually took place not during VOX, but on the way there and back. On my flight I had one of those little video displays attached to the back of the seat in front of me, which was rather nice. Since I knew I would sleep most of the way going to the UK (the flight is overnight and you arrive in the morning UK time) I set my display to the GPS setting, which showed a rotating set of images displaying where the plane was relative to both the airport we left (Philadelphia) and where we were going (Manchester, UK).
The thing that stuck with me is this: the fastest and most efficient route from the USA to the UK is not a straight line. And in fact, on the display that showed things really zoomed in, it was clear that there were little corrections being made all the way across; so not only wasn’t it a straight line, it wasn’t even a smoothly curved line.
My friend Pam Tierney has just written an excellent blog post that makes a similar point called Recalculating. Well worth a few minutes of your time.
Your life in voiceover is just about never going to proceed in a smooth, single direction. There will be loads of adjustments and sometimes even U-turns. The key is to remain calm, stay focused and keep moving ahead. Getting annoyed won’t help. There is real power in optimism. You have to believe you will succeed.
Bob… Your post serves as a nice little metaphor of the VO biz.
Lord knows, my life has not been a straight line so far. But I think I’ve been able to built upon my successes and learn from my failures. With just a little bit of belief in fate as well.
I don’t even see how a “straight line” in a creative person’s life could even be possible. When you deviate from a straight path you discover what you might have missed on the sidelines.
When I visited my brother a few years ago in Singapore where he was living, I set out each day with my camera and note pad. Each day I had a specific goal… a place to go to. Since most of my adventure was on foot, I was easily caught up in my surroundings along the way to my destination. I didn’t always get to where I had planned to be that day. But, oh, the things I photographed and experienced along the way were amazing. And well worth the sidelining.
Rick,
Thank you for these cogent and thoughtful comments.
Be well,
Bob