The first extended radio broadcast of the human voice was transmitted through the air Christmas Eve 1906 from Brant Rock, Massachusetts. Reginald Fessenden was convinced that the “wireless telegraph”, which at the time carried only the beeps of Morse code, could carry the human voice.

An account by Fessenden’s wife reports her husband’s historic transmission, as sailors on ships across the Atlantic heard for the first time what they had only dreamed about - and never thought possible.

“…a human voice coming from their instruments - someone speaking. Then a women’s voice rose in song. It was uncanny! Many of the radio operators called their officers to come and listen; soon the wireless rooms were crowded. Next someone was heard reading a poem. Then there was a violin solo; then a man made a speech.”

Fessenden himself played his violin, read from the Christmas story from the Book of Luke, and played a recording of Handel’s “Largo.”

Can you imagine?

People gathered around a radio listening intently?

Now there’s a vision of the past that must apply to the future, to the future of radio.

From our families to yours, and from all our staff, we wish you a joyous and safe Christmas.

Being well liked is what most people want in relationships. The benefits are obvious. You will get the help you need at the time you need it. People will give you information about new opportunities you didn’t know before. Above all, they will really care and love you.

But how could you get other people to like you? How could you become a well liked person? There is actually just one simple rule to follow: you should like other people before they like you. When people realize that you like them, it’s very likely that they will also like you.

Regarding this, I believe that there is one and just one message you need to deliver in your relationships. Delivering this message is the key to strong relationships, and here it is:

You are important to me. That’s it. No more, no less. Not “your money” nor “your knowledge”, but “you” - as a person - are important to me. Anything you should do in relationships stems from this message. There more you succeed in delivering this message, the more people will like you.

So here I’d like to share 33 tips on how to deliver this message in your relationships. Consequently, these are also tips to become a well liked person. Here they are:

1. Give your contacts a big smile when you meet them. Make them feel that you are really happy to meet them.
2. Give your full attention to the people you converse with as if nothing else is important.
3. When they ask for your attention, leave whatever you are doing.
4. When they call you, greet them with enthusiasm as if you are longing for their call.
5. Don’t make them wait.
6. Print the list of your contacts and look at it in your spare time. It will remind you of whom to touch base.
7. Always reply your contacts’ emails and text messages.
8. Reply their emails and text messages in the first chance you get.
9. Shake their hands with enthusiasm.
10. Praise them sincerely when they do something good. Make them feel that you are proud of them.
11. Always return their calls.
12. Send a message to them on their birthdays. Even better, call them.
13. Drop your old contacts quick emails or text messages to ask how they are doing.
14. Remember their names and achievements.
15. Remember important facts about them, especially the things they really care about (you may want to write them down).
16. Introduce them to the people in your contact who may help them out.
17. Actively find the deepest needs they may have (without waiting for them to explicitly tell you).
18. Take initiative to give them the solutions they need.
19. Give thanks for them in your session of gratitude.
20. Mention their names in your prayer.
21. Talk with them about their life.
22. Ask them specific questions about things they care about. They will realize that you care enough to remember their facts.
23. Give them something precious you have. Time is a good candidate.
24. Go eat with them. Even better, treat them.
25. When you meet them, don’t look at your watch as if you have something more important to do.
26. When you talk to them, don’t look over their shoulder as if you are looking for someone more important to talk to.
27. Send them quick tips or articles you just found which may benefit them.
28. Message them encouraging words or quotes.
29. Lend them the best books or DVDs you have.
30. Talk to them about how you like your other friends. They will think that you may talk the same way about them.
31. Don’t talk negatively to them about how you don’t like your other friends. They will think that you may also talk the same way about them.
32. Occasionally mention their names in your conversation with them.
33. Be creative to give them small surprises every now and then.

A colleague passed along the following tips and I thought they were relevant for discussion…

For those interested in a short discussion on how much you might consider spending on Advertising your business, read on.

I’m doing this partially in light of all the people who are unhappy about the cost vs. benefits of a service like V123. This isn’t a discussion of how well Smartcast works. That’s been thoroughly covered. It’s just a little attempt to find some perspective.

Let’s say you want to have net take home pay of $60,000 per year. I’ll bet it’s a good average figure for those who are seriously in the VO business…many below, quite a few above. To get there you need about $100,000 in gross income. (Adjust for your particular dream or situation.)

Among businesses of all kinds a typical advertising budget is 2 to 5 percent of what you grossed last year. Pharmaceutical companies and Coca-Cola spend a lot more, but that’s their racket. Let’s say we’re in the middle and decide we should take 3.5 percent of our gross income and spend it on marketing ourselves.

That’s $3,500 for Ms. or Mr. Average VO. How do you spend it? How do we market? (I’m leaving agents’ commissions out of this as a different kind of business expense.)

A lot of what we do to advertise costs little or nothing such as phone calls, emails and networking. Websites, CD’s, postcards, business cards, banner ads on other sites, pens, calendars and other leave-behinds cost something. How much for you? How does $300 for V123 match up for you out of this example of a $3,500 budget? Or the other services that still charge
about $200 to belong?

How effective are these marketing items for you? Of course you have to audition for a paid bidding service, but you’ll send an audition to almost anyone else who asks for one, yes? You pay your agent 10 or 20% for the privilege of auditioning for many jobs to get one.

Side thought and not a criticism for those who audition a lot for paid services and get little result: Are you auditioning too much? Are you being selective, picking jobs that truly reflect your style, age and experience?

In summary, what’s most cost effective for you? A paid service, or 500 cold drink holdin’ Koozies with your name and number on them?

Here are a few tips to prepare and protect your voice while being a podcaster.

Before you do an interview or participate in any recordings of your voice, there are a few things that you would want to avoid:

• Stay away from dairy products (they coat your vocal cords and your voice is not as crisp).
• Don’t drinking anything carbonated (can cause little gurgles in your throat that create unattractive sound effects).
• Limit alcohol or caffeine intake
• Avoid screaming and shouting
• Stay away from smoke-filled environments.
• Eliminate constant clearing of the voice. Sip water, hum or use a mild throat lozenge.
• Don’t smoke!
• Keep your vocal cords well-hydrated by drinking plenty of water.
• Don’t whisper! Whispering puts extra stress on your vocal cords by forcing them together without them actually touching.
• Avoid excessive use of mouthwash (it has a high alcohol content)

And Drink! They’d die of dehydration blaming the cowboy because he didn’t scoop the water, cool the water, and bring it to the horses lips, where he would gently pour the water down the horses throat.

This exercise continues to prove one fact: Radio continues to kill itself by convincing reps that they sell advertising, when all they really sell are the minutes. WE create the advertising to fill the minutes.

That point is often left out.

Clients come and go. Sometimes we just need a little reality check and a little motivation.

Thanks to Andrew Frame for the insight.

This is a call a young lad made to a Christian radio station in Texas. My aplogies if you have seen it. But it’s very moving.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCdZwitrNoY[/youtube]

Want a little more perspective?

We had a listener e-mail us about their youngest child…

“I went to my youngest’s classroom today for their “holiday” party. A little girl named Brittany from our neighborhood - a little ragamuffin type, their family is broke and it shows, there’s some MAJOR issues there, her older sister has a mouth that would make a drunken sailor blush and has told me where to go and what to stick in and where when I get there and she’s 7. yowza. Anyway, Brittany is in Emilie’s class. I saw her today. Her smile can light up the room. Even though I know she suffers by having to follow her only sibling around the neighborhood and encurring the wrath of the kids that make fun of her or yell at her and her sister or whatever. I see her today, smiling, with a patch over her eye. Not a dark one. A clear bandage type one. Not knowing what happened, I simply went straightforward (after she ran up to me to give me a hug - this poor child sees comfort within myself and Holly whenever they drive around the neighborhood, she always stops…) and said “What happened to your eye, sweetie?” “It got sick, and I had surgery. They’re looking for one to match my other one.” WHAT? How does this happen? WHY does this happen? She’s able to smile through it. And, from the teacher I hear that it was CANCER. They found it - and they’re not out of the woods yet. UGH. It’s VERY possible that she’ll ultimately lose the other one. I wanted to hug her and not let go. I wanted to try to figure out how to explain to her that no matter how difficult life is, to be sure to check out the colors in things, the sunsets, the way the christmas lights reflect around the neighborhood and light up the sky. I wanted to let her know that life is going to be “okay”. That she won’t be picked on (any more than normal…kids are awful creatures sometimes…). That it’ll all work out. Of course, all I could do was hug her and tell her Merry Christmas, between teary eyes. After reading “The Polar Express” to her and the rest of the class, I found out from the teacher (who is a wonderful woman - and actually had my wife in her very first class…) that another of their classmates’ mother died. Suicide. Last week. Guess who found her and tried to get her to wake up?”

Yeah. It’s the most wonderful time of the year and stuff. But, man, be extra nice to folks, pick up a tab for a stranger, give to the Salvation Army kettles, whatever… but try to keep this giving spirit with you ALL YEAR, not just at Christmas. And certainly, give your spouse, loved one, life partner, rock, whatever… an extra hug tonight.

It may have been a rough year for you, but seeing what these two wonderful children are going through, I realize that my life is peaches and cream in comparison.

Justin Kaiser
Creative Identity Group