Where Are The Opportunites?

Genuine question: If you are starting out in radio as a presenter...where do you get your experience?

I ask this because I posted a quote on my facebook page yesterday from a PD in California who puts her new talent on the midnight-3am shift. Then airchecks once a week.  Simple idea. Unfortunately very few stations still nurture like that.

So, if you are new - where do you go?
Community radio? College radio? Pirates?
So many stations automate evenings from 7pm, all weekend in some cases, even weekday blocks. The opportunities for live experince are less now than ever.

How, then, are you getting feedback?
Is there someone helping you find your way while teaching you how it really is inside the studio?
Studying radio and doing radio are two completely different animals. Nothing wrong with studying it (some courses like the Radio Kerry one in Ireland are really good) but it's like learning to drive - once you pass the test, you develop your style!

So, again - legit question: Where do you go to learn real world radio?

That 'Ratings' Feeling!

No matter how calm or casual you are - no matter how 'in control' you appear to others - I bet you experience this:
It's ratings day. You feel good. You've put in the work and the trends show upward momentum (tech speak!).
Everyone in the station is going about their business as usual...with one elephant sitting in the middle of the room.
The Ratings Meeting at 1 o'clock (or 2 or 3 or whenever).
Management have been in their offices, studying charts and spreadsheets - sleeves rolled up, coffee cups empty. You can see them behind the glass panels. Doors closed.

Then, the call comes.
"OK folks - if you all want to head into the boardroom for a bit, we can take a look at the numbers".

There's the feeling. In the pit of your stomach. Unsettled, uneasy, unsure.
Hey - everyone said the book would level out. No one is expecting an amazing result.
("Just don't let me be the only one to go down").
On the other hand - you fantasise about absolutely blowing the competition away and the CEO telling you "We've never seen figures as great as this...".

However it went for you - I hope you are happy in your job and get the time and trust to create.

As for ratings....they're so yesterday!

TXfm - Goodbye.

Have you ever been in a radio station on it's last day?
I don't mean the day before it flips format or morphs into something new.
I mean - the very last day.

Today is the final day for TXfm in Dublin. From tomorrow, 105.2 FM wll be silent.
The radio station was staffed by enthusiastic, knowledgeble, friendy, talented people.
That's what I will miss.
Yes, it was the only place in the market where you could catch the likes of Talking Heads, LCD Sound System or Catatonia...that was enough to make it unique. But the presenters truly sounded like they cared. They sounded honest and passionate. They sounded like a bunch of friends sharing their music with their other friends.
I know in this cut throat radio industry they probaby needed more friends to make it a viable business blah blah blah...doesn't change the fact that a radio station has to close.
And that's a shame.
Thanks Claire Beck for the story telling in the afternoon.
Thanks Phantom FM (and Spectrum) for making it possible.

Which Direction Do You Go?

There are two ways you can look at yourself and your radio career.

You can:
Look ahead with excitement at what is possible.
Or
Look ahead with trepidation at what is possible.

This is known as 'Working Towards' and 'Working Away From'.

One is fuelled by excitement and hope.
The other by fear and worry.

Radio presenters are creative people. We enjoy expressing our thoughts and ideas in original ways.
How you picture the result of those ideas can influence how you execute them on air.

If you 'Work Towards' a great link with desire and determination, you have a better chance of delivering the killer link than if you 'Work Away From'.
A series of great links becomes a great hour...great show..great week...

If you can learn how to craft and then trust your work, you will find this is a key part of being a great presenter because it gives you the freedom to express yourself with confidence (and support).

Then you can more naturally 'Work Towards'.

Hook Differently.

"Coming up..."
"On the way..."
"In a minute..."
"Next..."
"Right after this..."

You could say those in your sleep (you possibly do!)
It's not that easy coming up with NEW ways to say the same old things.
Sometimes you get a dose of inspiration, other times it just happens.

One of the great things about coaching a person regularly is you get to notice the little things - they're always the most important.
One presenter I work with hooked like this:
"I'll tell you more in two songs".

I love that.
Maybe you've heard that before - I hadn't.
It's simple, easy to understand and puts a time on an item without puttng a time on an item! Plus it highlghts that you play music (might sound obvious - but it's the little things).

Nothing worng with the other statements I used at the start....this one just sounded different.

Consulting V Coaching.

Consultants are great at a lot of things.
That's why I'm not a consultant.
I'm great at ONE thing: Coaching Radio Presenters.
That's what I do. So, I'm a Coach.

For programmers, here's an insight into how radio presenters work with consultants.
Consultant arrives every three months (maybe). 
Consultant sits down with presenter and tells presenter how to improve.
Presenter agrees to implement consultant's advice.
Presenter puts advice into practice...until consultant leaves.
Presenter returns to doing what he did before speaking with consultant.

I know. I 'worked' with consultants as a presenter for two decades.

The one aspect of helping a presenter be the best they can be on air is overlooked - and it's the most obvious: Let the presenter own the changes.

Presenters want to be great. No one ever went on air hoping to suck.
However, they need to do it on their terms.
Presenters are creative people and creative people need freedom to express their own individuality.
Your radio station plays the same music as others, has the same ads...so the presenters are what makes the difference.
A consultant telling your guys the same formula as he tells presenters in a dozen other markets is not allowing creativity to flourish.

That's what a coach does.
A coach works alongside the talent - nurturing, supporting, challenging and developing him/her, all under the station's parameters.
Everyone wins.

So, you can get your generic 'Tell it' consultant whose results last as long as they are in town.
Or get a coach who is committed to helping you and your on air talent develop a unique sound that belongs to them and your station.

That adds lasting value to you and your station.

What Will You Do With That Great Link?

I understand.
The gig you have right now is your ultimate gig...you'll never move. You'll never leave.
You love everything about your job, format and output. It's the greatest gig in the world.
However...should you ever decide you might like a change of scene or management feels like refreshing the schedule...it may be an idea to think ahead.

Let's say you have a great show tomorrow.  You're on fire...all systems are go. Listening back, you hear one link that hits all the right points.
Do yourself a favour: save it.
Then save one more, then one more until you have more than six.
Keep them.

I know you're not looking, but sometimes life can catch you unprepared.
Unless you're prepared :)

We Don't Hire Assholes.

When I landed an on air gig in Toronto a few years ago, at my first meeting with the CEO, I said what a pleasure it was to be there. His reply stuck with me. He said "I think you'll like it here. We don't hire assholes".
And you know what...he was right. It was as if each staff member was hand picked. Turns out - there were!
That off the cuff comment packed a lot of power.
Not hiring assholes means a creative, happy and fulfilling environment with supportive people pulling together. Not a group of individuals out for their own personal good.

Which leads me to a conversation I had yesterday with a well known presenter in Ireland. He was commenting about how he felt lucky to have a good relationship with his PD. He IS lucky. But he shouldn't be. It should be a given.
Good leaders create that atmosphere - you know the one, where you actually enjoy your job and the people you meet in it. Where you feel valued, important and appreciated.
You then take that energy into the studio with you and 'transmit' it on air. You can actually hear your happiness on air. The opposite is also true.

So, how do you get along with your PD or PC or Content Editor (terrible term)?

One way to make a work relationship great is to be the 'Class Act'. People react to that. You lead the way.

Or, just don't be an asshole.

Sho Time!

Have you ever been aware of a presenter...but not sure why or how?
Some presenters have a knack for getting noticed.

Lena Sho is the new host of mornings on 98Cool in Saskatoon, Canada. She's a talent who is very much involved with her social media. Facebook in particular. It's through her posts online that I notice her. The fact that I DO notice them among all the other noise, means they are working.
Take this post relating to a station promotion and how she makes it personal.

The promotion is for a trip to a Caribbean resort. The way to win - post a pic of you beside her poster.

Simple.

The fact that it's on her own page as well as the station's personalises it for me.

It shows that she is involved and it links her picture with the audience. It's a visible club now, instead of an anonymous group. 

I noticed it.

Her Post: "Have you seen the Gregger & Lena cutout around town? Take a selfie with us (just like Dena) and tag #sandalsdreaming. You'll be entered to win a sweet vacay to Jamaica from Sandals and Air Canada Vacations!"

Who Do You Listen To?

Working in the radio industry, it's sometimes tough to just ...'listen'.
Y'know, like a listener!
We put a radio station on and immediately start critiquing the imaging, the music rotation, the presentation. Whichever you go for.

That's not neccessarily a bad thing.

It most definitely helps as you learn how others do it. What it also does is help you find what and who you like to listen to...just for pleasure.
That's right! You can work in radio and still enjoy listening to radio !! ;)

I have three people I will switch on and just enjoy for their style, attitude, skills, genius...all of the things that atract you to a presenter.

Iain Lee in talkRADIO UK
Greg Beharrell at Live 105 San Francisco and
Robin Banks Hi-FM Oman.

Who do you enjoy listening to for pleasure?
Why?
What can you learn from them that you can possibly use (not copy - use)?

We all learn from eachother.

Visiting Time.

Do you get a lot of visitors to your studio?
Great to be popular isn't it?
Sales people with ten minutes to kill, office staff popping in to shoot the breeze.
They look in the studio and see you there staring into space and figure you're not busy. Chat, chat, chat.
In your studio. Your office.
Unscheduled visits to your office are a disruption. Plain and simple.
They distract you.
Yes, you're staring into space. That's what people do when they are thinking. Thinkng is a very important part of your job. Disturbing that, disturbs you and that disturbs the sound of 'you' on the radio station.
No one wins in that situation.
Life is a series of small events and decisions. The more there are, the bigger the impact. One sloppy link can become one sloppy hour/show/week...
You respect people in their offices. You let them do their job.
Let them know that you need to be allowed the space to work in yours. Your way.
No visitors.
It's your career.
Treat it well.

Get Ready for your Next Job Now.

Are you in your ultimate job right now?
Is this it? The pinnacle?
Probably not.
I mean, you could love your current gig and the people you work with - that's not the point.
The fact is, this will probably not be your final job. You'll move or (as Danny Baker puts it) the schedule will be 'refreshed' with the station going in a 'different direction'.
But while you're in this job, learn all you can from it. Take from all you hear and see everyday both on and off air.

Watch people, listen to their points and if you agree or disagree, form your own opinion on how radio should sound and how people in radio need to behave. Create your own code of conduct, for YOU.
And if someone in work is really challenging you - pay attention. You learn the most from them.

Then, when the next gig comes along - you'll recognise the same patterns and be able to handle them more comfortably.                    

Still Bored? Good!

I recently wrote a piece about being bored when on the air. That terrible taboo that presenters are not supposed to acknowledge!
Feedback was interestng. Some messages to me re-enforced the idea that if you're bored, you must be  "doing something wrong".
Well, y'see I don't look at it like that.
We're humans. Humans get bored.
You can be bored on holiday, at a concert on a date. Boredom strikes when it strikes. .
It's not the "wrong" holiday or concert or date.
The point about boredom is to acknowledge that it has happened.

The learning is - what to do about it.

When you're bored, it's nature's way of telling you that you need to make a change. Any change. Do something. This isn't workng anymore.
Boredom frees your mind to look for a solution. How can I 'cure' the boredom?
So when I talk about being bored on air, I mean it as somethng you can use to figure out a positive change. Maybe you need to re-think your links, your routine, your overall studio mindset. That's your call.

Instead of doing something wrong - I believe you are doing something right.
Listen to your boredom when it shows up.
It's telling you something about yourself.
Then try act upon it.

Can One Person Change a Radio Market?

The Irish radio awards (PPI) were held over the past weekend.
Having worked mostly outside the country in recent years, I haven't attended - but, it looked great on social media :)
One thing struck me as I followed the ceremony through twitter - a trend.
A trend towards one market.
Cork.
The city of Cork took awards for best presenter, talk show, breakfast show and overall station. Red FM and 96FM in the city battling it out on ratings day and now awards day.
How did this happen? Don't get me wrong, Cork has always been a vibrant radio town...it's just that now - it may be the MOST vibrant in the country.
Can one person be responsible?

When Keith Cunningham (KC) left national outlet TodayFM to return to his old stomping ground (Red FM), he returned not only as the morning guy but as Programme Director too. He immediately made a splash by poaching the main competitor's (96FM) number one asset - their talk show host.
New promotions, new attitude...all counted for ratings boosts.
96FM in response, re-branded their talk show and the recovery began.
It's been a very well mannered battle, but a battle none the less.
Now with award winning presenters, shows and station gongs - Cork has become 'the' place for creative radio minds in Ireland.
I believe one person kick started that.

What will YOU do to impact the radio industry?
  

Why Radio?

Why do you work on radio?
To make a living? There are plenty of ways to do that ...and countless amounts of them are way easier than radio.
If it's just to make a living, I'd suggest something else.
But, I reckon that's not the reason.
Only you know the reason.
Finding out the 'why' can help you figure out the 'how'.

Comedian Jeff Garlin has one piece of advice for stand up comedians: "What do you care about? Then tell me about it".
The same can work for your on air performance.
Do you want to play '5 Hits in A Row' forever? Do you want to file 20 second Celebrity reports for the next ten years?
Or do you have something to say?

Find out why you do what you do, figure out what you care about and then work out how to make that your career.

On air, you have silence to fill - might as well fill it with something uniquely 'you'.

 

Theatre of The Mind.

I bet you've heard that expression a thousand times.
But what does it really mean? Has it ever been explained why it works?
No one ever gave me a definitive explanation...so I went searching.

Here's the deal:
When I say a word, you automatically create an image of that word.
'City'.
What city did you picture...New York, Sydney, Oslo, your own city?
Was it an ariel or street view?
Day or night?
Quiet or busy?
The picture you create is based on your thoughts, memories and perceptions. YOURS. You decide what picture to create.

Let's do something now that ony humans can do.
I want you to change that city picture.
Let's set it in the 1940s - black and white and raining.
Now take it to the 1970s - colour and sunny.
Now to today - lots of traffic and it's windy.

Humans are the only species that can take a picture and change it like that. A dog can't picture a bone and change it into a cat to chase. Only we can change pictures. We create the drama in our heads. THAT'S the theatre part.

The pictures we choose are purely our own...NO ONE else's.
That's why the concept works.
Our pictures and our drama.

All from one word.
The power of radio.

Chemistry.

I was listening to morning radio in Belfast yesterday and stumbled upon a wonderful thing:
On Air chemistry.

That impossible to fake, wonder of human nature that is one person in complete sync with the other.

As individuals, they sounded great but together, even better.

Picking up on eachother's thoughts, teasing eachother, laughing, questioning...all the aspects of a relationship you have with someone special in your life.
Someone you genuinely like.

They didn't re-invent radio in the handful of links I heard - they didn't have to...but they did keep me with them because of their special bond.
I felt I had joined a couple of friends and that they were pleased I joined in.

I remember being told years ago, that was the goal of a morning show.
Well, goal achieved.

The station was QRadio and the on air duo were Stephen (Clements) and Cate (Conway).

Credit where it's due.

All You Shouldn't Do...!

Have you ever sold a contest or feature on air by saying "All you've got to do..."?

Sure you have. We ALL have!

In fact, I heard FIVE different presenters use that very phrase yesterday. That's an
industry crutch if ever there was one.

"Two weeks in the Bahamas...all you gotta do is head to our facebook page and yadda yadda yadda".

"Want to request your favourite song? All you've got to do..."

The thing is - it doesn't do you any favours.

The reason?

It sounds unnatural.

When have you ever said to a friend: "Want some toast? All you gotta do is get some bread and put it in the toaster"

Or: "I'm getting the bus into town. All you have to do is get the exact fare and sit down on the bus".

No one speaks like that.

Yet, on the radio we DO.

We use phrases that our listener doesn't use.

That's not really communicating.

Try think of a different way to describe a contest or feature action. A more natural way. Use words the listener uses in everyday life.

"It really is THAT easy..."!

Attention, Attention!!

Have you ever noticed how people react to the unexpected?
I don't mean positive or negative reactions...not opinions or emotions.
Physically.
I'll give you an example:
You're in the city. It's a quiet afternoon with a few cars and buses passing by. Lots of people walking in and out of shops. The sun is shining and the atmosphere is cheery.
Next, in the distance, you hear the unmistakable sound of an ambulance siren.
It gets closer very quickly.
Everyone can hear it now.
What do they do?
The one thing they don't do is ignore it.
Most people will react by stopping, turning and looking. Even for just a moment.
Some might halt their conversation to watch it go by.
They react.
They react to the siren and they each have an opinion on it's existence based on a personal memory and/or perseption.

You can 'turn heads' on air by occasionally using a 'headline' as your siren at the start of a link. Something unexpected to grab the attention.
Not all the time, but when you feel the need.

Bored on air?

What do you do if you become bored while on the air?

I mean, properly bored.

You're in the middle of another '10 in a Row NonStop' and your next link is in 18 minutes.

All the splitters and features are loaded in the system, you've tightened a few intros and read your prep for the 10th time.

Now...most consultants will say you should never be bored in studio. If you're bored then you're 'Doing something wrong'.

Well, in the real world - radio presenters can become bored. It's a fact. Playing nonstop hits (no matter how much you love it) can sometimes be an uninteresting way to spend an afternoon. Any consultant who tells you otherwise hasn't been in a studio for a lonnnnng time. It's not their job (or your PD's) to MAKE it interesting for you but it is their job to understand that it happens and not pretend it doesn't.

I have no doubt that you have been one of those presenters who has loitered outside the studio after hitting song number two in a sweep, just to break the monotony of the next twenty minutes.

The problem for the presenter is, boredom can be very real - but it is crucial to overcome it because it can influence your mood and therefore your on air performance. I know you might say that you are a professional and that you can easily 'fake' excitement or what ever emotion is required by your format, but the point here is that it is 'fake'.

Sure there's an element of acting every time you open the mic...it is a performance after all. But making it sound 'real' depends on your mood.

If you are bored, it's quite easy to over compensate that mood by going over the top on the excitement level and that never sounds good (a little thing called 'Trying Too Hard'). The opposite is complete apathy...if you're feeling that, then maybe you need a holiday (or change of career!).

Ever hear a presenter say "I'm here til six o'clock..." ? That's them watching the clock...literally telling the listener when they finish work today.

So what do you do?

How do you break the boredom...no matter how temporary it is?

Well...you tell me!

Seriously.

What do you do?

Do you sit up straight, lower the studio temperature, crank the music, re-arrange your prep...?

The point is:

Presenters get bored. It happens. It's not a bad thing, it's just a 'thing'. Acknowledge it.

Then do whatever YOU need to do to get through it.

I'm here til Friday !!