Brain Warp are currently running an IndieGoGo campaign for their latest IP – OOG! Clan of the Caveman. The campaign has just over 24 hours left, so please jump in and show your support.

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The last episode was particularly transferrable to multiple professions. Jordan Reed, Chris Tihor and myself discussed productivity and accountability. Like an earlier blog post I wrote in January, we thought that it would be a good way to start the podcast episodes for 2013. Don’t worry, there is very little overlap so if you read my blog, you will still hopefully find some value in listening to the podcast.

You can subscribe to the podcast in iTunes, PocketCasts and directly download here.

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I’ve only ever seen the U.S. mountains from Canada, until I took a trip to Port Angeles, WA this week. It was an incredible experience to be right in the neighbourhood of this magnificent mountain range, after gazing over the water at it for so long. It was foggy when I arrived Monday evening, but I managed to snap a picture Tuesday morning from the ferry. Ripper!

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However, when I was asked to voice a clever explainer video about Faff Camp, that certainly helped me to feel that little bit more connected with the event.

How is Faff Camp different to Faffcon, you say??

I’m glad you asked…

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Welcome to 2013. An unlucky number that gave us just enough luck to make through the Mayan end of the world!

Usually I’ll avoid posting duplicate content, but I’ve got some stuff that’s too good not to share, mostly passed on to me by my friends. So if you have already read this via my newsletter, I apologise for any double-ups.

Workflowy. Workflowy, Workflowy, WORKFLOWY. I owe my pal Amy Snively infinite thanks and possibly several organs for directing me to this incredible task management and list creation tool. Ok, perhaps I’m a little over-enthusiastic but as a self-employed person I can get excited about this stuff. Workflowy’s genius is in its simplicity.

Last week my friend Andy Bush shared a great tool to keep your business and personal life separate (particularly if you don’t work in an office environment). Again, the theme is simplicity and it’s a case of creating multiple user accounts. I do this on the Mac and it works a treat but if you’re on Windows I’m sure there’s a similar workaround.

Sticking with productivity and focus, I’ll also mention Rescuetime, which I’ve been using for about 2 years. Rescuetime is a very powerful app which grades your activity from very distracting (-2) to very productive (+2). You can also adjust those settings. I think the website is valuable in that it will help you zero in on your least productive times and perhaps see what behaviour leads you to them. In addition, if you have employees you can have them sign in to see how much time they are spending on specific tasks. If required, you can then figure out how to help them be more efficient.

I’ll finish off by sharing a website suggested to me by my friend and colleague Debbie Irwin. IFTTT.com (If This Then That). IFTTT is a tool that helps you to automate processes, create reminders and basically save a whole heap of time so that you can do more of the stuff that requires your personal finesse. We all love that, right?? Check it out and let me know if you come up with some awesome “recipes”.

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Yes, that’s right – I’m complaining about the year going fast because boy, has it flown.
I am trying to keep up with the blog updates here, but it’s been challenging to stick with it as there is a lot going on lately. I’ve some reflections about the recent Faffcon 5, which I’m looking forward to sharing in a future post.

Firstly, I’d like to share that I’m proud to be participating in Movember to raise funds for men’s health. We lost my grandfather to prostate cancer, so it’s something that is close to me, as I’m sure it is for many others. My donations have had a slow start – as of posting we’re at one donation (thanks heaps, Cliff Zellman!), so please chip in and support! Oh and my moustache falls under the insipid and seedy category that is hilariously embarrassing for everyone.

This past month some other cool things have happened, amongst a whole heap of time in the studio. I recently finished my level 1 improv workshop with the very talented Dave Morris. Amongst a bajillion other things, Dave is also part of Paper Street Theatre and they put on a wonderful performance that I also managed to get along to around the the time of Halloween. It was an improv show based on the works of H.P. Lovecraft. Spooky.

On the 1st of November, the 4th episode of LevelUp Radio (which I co-produce) was released. Jordan, Andy and I had a discussion about Innovation and Iteration and even touched on the Blue Ocean Strategy, which I find fascinating.

Finally and perhaps most significantly, I began meeting with my Stand Up! Group. I’m going to leave discussion about what goes on in our group to another post, for brevity’s sake. However, the goal of this group is achieving razor sharp focus as freelance voiceover artists and entrepreneurs. We sync up via Google Hangouts at 8 a.m. Pacific daily. At this point, let me just say that it has blown my productivity through the roof. Amazing.

I’ll leave it there for now. To finish off, I’d like to share a fun gig I completed recently for Reiwa.com through OzVoxMedia.

reiwa.com StickyBeaks TV Commercial from REIWA on Vimeo.

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In the constant search for ways to make the lives of my clients easier (and me, I guess), I thought that it might be valuable to post about working across different international time zones and encourage people to chime in and discuss.

Communication

The foundation of collaborating effectively internationally is most certainly communication. When you start working with a new client, don’t assume that they know the timezone you are based in. If they’re international, I try to let my contact know what sort of clock I operate on. I don’t worry too much about Eastern/Pacific unless it is absolutely necessary. Should I?

Make sure you refer to at least one time zone when you mention a date or time

For the love of GMT, make sure you in some way specify the time zone (UK time, “my” time, “your” time etc.) you are referring to when you tell someone that you will have a project or part of it delivered by a certain time.

Have like, 20 clocks on your wall

Nah, not really. Instead…

Use this website

Timeanddate.com is a fantastic resource for dealing with different timezones. Not only can you establish what time it is somewhere else at that very moment, but you can also type in a future time/date, and find out what time it will be for you or the other person.

Sign-off for the day

This isn’t always essential, but if you’re working with a client on a project and you’re leaving the studio or hitting the hay for the night, let them know that you’re done for the day. They may still have 5 working hours left. It’s a nice courtesy so that they know not to expect any work from you until tomorrow.

Yeah, communicate like crazy

If you have limits, make them known. It’s great if you are a 24/7 business and can help out your clients any time, but not everyone can do that. If you are only available until midday their time, let them know. It’s much better to be honest than to have someone assume that you can deliver at 4 a.m. I can, but only if I’m playing a zombie suffering from laryngitis.

So. What works for you?

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Not only will this eBook be a great read for those who are starting out in the voiceover industry, but those who are already established professionals.

Here’s an excerpt from Doug’s introduction:

“The truth is that there are no right answers. You see, everyone’s journey to voiceover success is different.

The challenge to find your way is as unique as your voice. And that’s exactly as it should be.

With that thought in mind, I decided to pose similar questions to some of our industry’s best. Their opinions represent a wide range of voiceover disciplines, including Commercials, Promos, Animation, Audiobooks, Live Announce and Narration.”

This book really does highlight the variety of paths to a successful career in voiceover. There is no one hard-and-fast rule. If you’re wondering how to dive in, why not start by reading this book? Then, build the skills and experience necessary to work as a voiceover artist and begin to discover your own path to a rewarding career.*

*Actual path not included

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Please check out the article here.

If you’re interested in finding out more regarding Rosemary’s work, check out her website. Rosemary has also written a book – 101 Success Tips and Strategies for Financial Advisors, which is available for purchase through the website.

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