Career Advice

Harlan Hogan is a voice actor with a long and distinguished career. Whether you recognize his name for the moment isn’t critically important, because if you click through on the link I’ll give you in a moment, you’ll find out everything you need to know about Harlan, and more.

I mention his name today because he’s about to launch a class on the business of voiceover. No performance evaluations. Just business. And of all the people I’ve meet in voiceover work Harlan is, in my estimation, at the very top in his understanding of the business of voiceover. The classes are going to take place 2 nights each week in the month of May 2009.

You’ll find all the details at The Voiceover Class site.

By the way, if you decide to join me in signing up for this course, and you put a comment in the “comments box” of the registration form mentioning that you learned about the course from me, I will receive a commission. Your price doesn’t change one penny. And of course, if you don’t want me to get the commission, don’t mention me in the comment box of the registration form. Either way, I think this class is going to be tremendously valuable.

Again the web site to learn all about and sign up for this 4 week, 8 session class on the business of voiceover taught by Harlan Hogan is The Voiceover Class.

I’ve just learned that in May of this year Harlan Hogan is planning to conduct a 4 week (two 2-hour lessons per week) teleseminar series called “Starting Your Voiceover Business: Everything you need to know to turn your sideline into a full-time career.” It’s going to be totally focused on the business/career side of the equation. No performance coaching.

That’s about all I know at the moment, but I’ll be sure to pass along more details as I learn them.

(edited to fix typos)

With recent discussions of downturn and a flurry of fear in the swirl these days, it is all too easy to feel helpless.
When that feeling pounces, I have 3 points of advice:
BE GRATEFUL, TAKE RESPONSIBILITY, GET PRODUCTIVELY PROACTIVE 

• Be grateful this business has changed to allow those with top skills the power to access to national and international job opportunities without having to move to the pricey major markets. Honor your foresight – you have chosen to pursue a career that is moving forward with technology, not being replaced by it.

• Take responsibility: Whenever I got in scuffles with friends as a kid, and I’d whine, “Yeah, well SHE started it!” my mom would yell back, “I don’t care who started it, YOU FINISH IT.” Maybe you got yourself in over your head with a house you couldn’t afford, maybe, like me, you are horrible at playing the stock market, or maybe unfortunate things have befallen you or your family that were beyond your control.  Now is the time to BAIL OUT YOURSELF.  It’s hard to strategize a life plan in the midst of demanding tasks that need to be done for someone ELSE’S company.  Now might be the first quiet moment you’ve had in years to be thankful for the lack of distraction so you can focus on creating a new map for a new career and invest in developing a BETTER YOU.

• ARE YOU PROCRASTINATING OR ADDING VALUE?
Have you written your “25 Things” on Facebook but not a list of 25 Tangible Goals To Achieve by June 1?
Have you been Friend Requesting other VO talents but not UPDATING YOUR SKILLS?
With all the talk of failed financial investments, I’ve never before seen such an abundance of wasted time.
Time is the most precious and irreplaceable thing we have, and wasting it is worse than wasting money.
And investing smartly in your time can yield amazing financial returns.

This teleseminar on February 25, 2009 aims to help you do just that.

Join Nancy Wolfson and Anna Vocino on February 25th 9pm Eastern/6pm Pacific for Acting for Advertising Part 8. 

This is not a sequel.  Each of these Teleseminars reveals a chapter from Nancy’s core curriculum, useful Q and A from your peers, plus more marketing and business tips that you can put to use immediately.

Each moment offers unique “behind the velvet rope of the agency/casting scene” advice not available anywhere else.

60 minute lecture, 15 min QandA…so bring your questions and notebooks!

Just $39 gets you on the call. Go to www.breakintovoiceover.com to sign up.

Dan O’Day is going to do a free teleseminar with Harlan Hogan and Jeffrey Fisher to answer your questions about how you can setup for and record voiceovers at home or while you’re traveling. The web page with the form to ask your question and sign-up for the free teleseminar is here.

By the way, if you’re wondering why you would want to ask Harlan or Jeffrey these questions, it’s because of this excellent book that they’ve written together.

So, put your question in the form, sign up to attend. It should be an excellent (and free!) resource that will be well worth your time.

My friend Karen Commins has a voiceover blog you really should be reading regularly. I especially want to call your attention to her recent post about cold calling. Excellent stuff, Karen. Thank you.