3 HARD FACTS for Freelancers & Voice Actors - Straight Truth

If I asked a hundred voice actors, what do you do for a living? How many do you think out of that 100 would include the word freelance? Probably zero. And yet, if you're a voice actor, you're a freelancer.

We get so down in the weeds with all things voice actory, and sometimes we forget that we are freelancers first, and that many of the issues and problems and challenges and obstacles that we face are not at all unique to voiceover.

Freelancing is literally exploding in this country, and there's some evidence to show that it is around the world as well. And as voice actors, we are part of the freelance community.

Today, I'm going to break down three hard freelancing facts for you if you're a voice actor or, more importantly, a freelancer.

freelancing, professional development, businessPaul SchmidtFebruary 1, 2024Freelance, freelancerComment

8 Strategies To Vet Reputable Coaching & Demo Production

Well, now we've got a problem. At the time we're filming this, there are allegations against a specific coach and demo producer that are not pretty.

Now, the concerning part about these allegations is that they're being made against someone who formerly had a sterling reputation in this business, a very highly accomplished voice actor and a trusted coach and demo producer.

That's scary and quite frankly, sad stuff. And it's nightmare fuel for new or newer voice actors who are trying to figure out who in the hell can I trust in this business?

How do I know? How do I go about finding out?

So today I'm going to attempt to give you eight strategies and a process to vet coaches, to vet demo producers, to vet really any service providers so that you minimize the chances of being taken down the road by someone who is dishonest or sheisty.

professional development, the vo industryPaul SchmidtJanuary 11, 2024coachingComment

Wanna Grow Your Voice Over Business? CUT the Crap!

This time of year, early January, everybody's fired up about their New Year's resolutions. I hate them, but I understand them.

Typically, New Year's Eve resolutions mean setting new goals, which means breaking those down into new added behaviors. It's the psychology of achieving more by doing more and I myself subscribed to it for a very long time.

What we don't talk about is the fact that still, even in this new year, there are still only 24 hours in a day and seven days a week. But every year, we add all these new behaviors to the days and weeks that are already crammed full with existing behaviors. And by Valentine's Day, your brand new treadmill is used for drying clothes.

So why are some voice actors, some freelancers, some people successful and others aren't?

Your 6-Point Plan to ROCK VOICE OVER and LIFE in 2024

You have a choice. You can decide right now that you're going to keep doing what you've been doing and keep getting what you've been getting.

Or, you can decide right now that you're done with excuses, done with kidding yourself, and done with half-assing your career and your life.

I said in last week's episode, there are two kinds of people in the world: those that make excuses and those that make it happen. And the fact of the matter is, you can't make it happen without a plan.

Decide. Right now. You're either going to rock the coming year or it's going to rock you.

You already know without me even having to ask you if you executed in the past year or not. If you kept the promises you made to yourself or not. If you were consistent or not.

Now, doing the same things next year as you did this year only makes sense if you made significant progress this year. If you didn't make significant progress this year and you've decided you're done making excuses and you're ready to make it happen, then listen up.

Today, I'm going to give you a six-point plan for killing in the coming year.

The 6 BIG Reasons YOU'LL QUIT VO

If you are a professional voice actor or audiobook narrator, you have one job, and that is to stay in the game as long as possible. Voice over is not a long game. It's an infinite game.

Author Simon Sinek says that in finite games like football or chess, the players are known, the rules are fixed and the end point is clear. The winners and losers are easily identified.

But in infinite games like business or yeah, voiceover or even life itself, the players come and go. The rules are changeable and there is no clearly defined endpoint.

In VO we know this. The players come and go all the time. People every day are coming into and going out of this business. The rules of voiceover are changing all the time. This audition wants natural and authentic. This one wants a classic announcer. Yet, this third one wants quirky and offbeat and on and on and on and on.

And of course, in voiceover, as in all business, there is no clearly defined endpoint. That's why you hear it often referred to as a journey. There is no destination. Again, your job as a video pro is to stay in the game as long as possible.

So, what are the biggest threats to staying in the game? I'm so glad you asked, because that's exactly we're going to talk about today.

Here are the six reasons you'll quit voice over.

GRATEFUL for AI?!? SURELY YOU MUST BE JOKING!

I've been getting a little discouraged lately about the voiceover business.

We are hearing stories of lots of people potentially being allegedly hornswoggled by a particular coach. People are making up Zoom calls with celebrities that probably didn't happen. There's La Niña and war and unrest on the world stage and I'm feeling it all heavier in a way that I probably haven't since maybe 2016.

So when that happens, one of the best strategies I've found to manage it myself is to go hard in the paint on my gratitude practice.

Consistently practicing gratitude does a world of good for my mental well-being. It boosts my overall mood, it lowers my anxiety and my depression. And it's not just about feeling good. It improves my relationships, my sleep. It's good for the immune system. Lots of good stuff there.

So, as we head into Thanksgiving week here in the States, I thought it would be a great time to remind myself and count down the top five things I'm grateful for in the voiceover business.

AI/TTS, conferences/conventions, professional development, rates, sag-aftra, the vo industryPaul SchmidtNovember 16, 2023SAG-AFTRA, GVAA, NAVA, AIComment

A Voice Over MASS EXODUS? Will 80% of Voice Actors Be OUT?

Music Radio Creative’s Izabela Russell recently said on their channel that she sees a mass exodus happening in the voice over industry. And while Izabela’s take is stark, and blunt, it’s not new.

Do I agree with her? Yes. And no. I’ll get to that.

I agree, and I’ve said this for years, that AI will obliterate the bottom end of the industry where price is and always has been the primary driver. And I think that’s a good thing because for those of us who have taken the time and effort to get the training, build our businesses, and command pro rates, AI will take clients who don’t care about quality in the first place off the table. It will give them a better solution to their problem, and it will eliminate or at least minimize the garbage work out there for human voice actors.

And for those who haven’t taken that time and effort, I do think there is a reckoning coming.

So, what do we do? As voice actors? Push is in fact coming to shove, so what do we do when the robots can do what most voice actors can do?

The 5 Biggest LIES in Voice Over & the REAL TRUTHS BEHIND THEM

One of the biggest problems that folks new to the business coming into voiceover run into as new voice actors is how to separate, how to sort out the good information from the bad.

In fact, it's one reason I started this channel because there is a substantial amount of factually incorrect garbage going on in our business that's floating around out there and the only way to fight that is with real facts and honest truth.

Now, is truth in the eye of the beholder. Largely, yes. But again, there's stuff out there that is just factually garbage and has to be called out as such.

So, today we're going to do just that. We're going to talk about the five biggest lies in the voiceover industry, what the source of those lies are and the corresponding truths that you need to know to be a successful voice actor.

casting sites, marketing, professional development, the vo industryPaul SchmidtOctober 19, 2023lies, fiverr, upworkComment

Should I Get into Voice Over? 9 CRUCIAL Questions

Several times a week, people reach out to me, and I'm sure I'm certainly not the only one and say, “People say, I have a nice voice. Should I get into voice acting?”

My answer used to be, “Sure. This is a great business, and it's the best job I've ever had. And second isn't even close. Come on in!”

And while that's still true as much as it ever was, my answer has changed.

Voice over and voice acting isn't for everyone.

Some don't have the talent. Some don't have the drive. Most think it's something it's not - and that is a quick way to easy money with no experience.

So how do I answer the question? Should I get into voice over truth fully when I know little to nothing about the person answering the question?

Today I'm going to do just that. So, if you're considering getting into the voiceover field, if you're wondering if you're cut out to be a professional voice actor, I have nine questions for you that will help you answer that question.

acting, business, mindset, professional development, tech/gearPaul SchmidtOctober 13, 2023marketing, training, mindsetComment

This Rate "Guide" Is RIDICULOUS! DO NOT USE IT!

I recently posted on social media a great guide from the website of a well-known coach in this business.

And today I call bullsh*t. I'm going to break down exactly why I think this entire rate guide is a crap sandwich and be specific about the damage it does to voice actors and the industry as a whole.

You may want to put on coveralls. This is going to get messy.

I want to make it clear that this is not an attack on this coach personally, but it is an opposition to his teachings and practices in this rate guide which I believe are harmful to the careers of voice actors who put this right guide into practice and damaging to the industry as a whole.

business, casting sites, professional development, rates, sag-aftra, the vo industry, working with a VOPaul SchmidtSeptember 14, 2023rates, bad rates, bad dealsComment

The TOP 7 REAL Reasons You’re Not Booking VO Jobs

It's no secret. Actors historically are notoriously bad business people. We just are.

And statistically, we're even bad at booking work, something that we're supposed to be able to do as part of the job.

Even elite voice actors book maybe 5 to 10 out of every 100 auditions they do. And chances are you're booking way less than that. And today I'm going to teach you why.

Top 7 Myths About Becoming a Pro Voice Actor

Let's face it. There's a lot of B.S. and myths out there about becoming a voice over actor, a professional VO actor, and about the voiceover industry in general. And sadly, a lot of this bullshit is put out by snake oil salesman, so-called coaches in this business who will fleece you from your money or pick your pocket. And I'm not being disingenuous.

So today we're going to bust the top seven myths about becoming a pro voice actor. And we're going to set the record straight.

business, casting sites, mindset, professional development, the vo industryPaul SchmidtAugust 31, 2023myths, getting started, becoming, mindsetComment

9 VO Lessons I Learned in the Gym

When you think about it, the gym and the VO booth have more similarities than you might think, and I think the gym is a great metaphor for the booth. Both are dedicated spaces where you’re focusing on self-improvement, on learning new skills, on getting uncomfortable and stretching and literally growing. In both you have tools for feedback – in the gym it’s a mirror, in the booth, it’s your headphones and studio monitors. Both have coaches or trainers to help guide us.

So, let's dive into the 9 voiceover lessons I've picked up from an unlikely place - the gym.

mental health, mindset, personal development, professional developmentPaul SchmidtAugust 3, 2023gym, consistencyComment

NEW! VO Pro – A Private Global Community JUST for Voice Actors

There are a million voice over Facebook groups and most of them are great, but let’s face it, Facebook itself is a toilet and all the groups are largely the same thing – it’s an online forum and that’s mostly it. Discord is powerful but looks like Slack on meth and has a big learning curve.

So the question has been how do we leverage the power of community to help educate, connect, and support voice actors in a way that we currently haven’t been able to reach.

How do we bring together growth-minded, driven voice actors who are committed to their craft, along with top coaches, the best educational tools in the business, and help them more deeply connect with each other, learn from each other, and support one another?

Well, I have an answer: VO Pro.

The ONE Thing that Changes EVERYTHING in VO and LIFE

There's one hack, one great secret. One thing you can do for your growing your voiceover business. And it's so powerful that it works for not just growing your video business, but for improving your physical fitness, your mental fitness, and your emotional intelligence. It works for improving your relationships.

It's the difference between setting goals and achieving them. Between a dream and reality.

And it's so simple to understand that even a sixth grader can get it. And when I say what it is, you will kick yourself because you already know it to be true.

So what is this cheat code to all good things in your life?

Two words…

marketing, mindset, professional development, personal developmentPaul SchmidtJune 22, 2023consistency, perfectionismComment

Contracts: To Use, or Not To Use... THAT Is the Question...?

Today, we're talking about the importance of using contracts for voice actors and outline the benefits and protections they offer. This video emphasizes the need for clear expectations, protection of rights, payment security, scope management, liability limitations, professionalism, and dispute resolution.

While formal contracts are generally recommended, I also mention situations where email communication may be acceptable as a substitute, such as for informal or small-scale projects with trusted clients or established working relationships.

However, the acceptance and validity of using email as a substitute may vary depending on jurisdiction and I advise seeking legal advice.

We wrap up by providing resources, including a book on voiceover legal matters, an AI and Synthetic Voices rider for contract addendum, a recommended entertainment lawyer, and a link to my own policies page for setting clear expectations.

business, professional development, the vo industry, working with a VOPaul SchmidtJune 8, 2023contracts, emailComment

Surviving in VO – Growing Relationships & Income Streams

Alright, let's take voice over out of it for a minute, okay? One in four jobs in the next five years. This is not just voice over. This is globally. One in four jobs is set to change because of factors like artificial intelligence, global supply chain issues, green energy and digitization.

One in four. That's not just voice over. That's the world over.

But it's clear in the next 5 to 10 years, maybe longer, that the ways that we go about finding work and generating personal income will change rapidly. But stick around because while there's a lot of not-so-great news, there's also a lot of great news for voice actors and freelancers who can learn to navigate this brave new world.

Voices.ai Is Here - IS the AI Voices Sky Falling?

David Ciccerelli and Voices have finally launched their AI product called unshockingly, Voices dot ai. It’s here kids. It’s like the lump of coal you’ve been waiting to get in your stocking for years now. Except Santa-relli has been telling you all along what a good little girl you are. And somehow the whole time you knew the coal car was gonna be backing up with a big black nugget with your name on it.

It's here. Let’s break it down.

business, professional development, the vo industry, AI/TTSPaul SchmidtApril 27, 2023ai, ai voices, TTS, text to speech, Voices.com, voicesComment

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