And you say you are a serious voiceover professional… but how serious is serious? You should be so serious that you should allow yourself to break norms… or dismiss expert advice.
Monday morning (or any day of the week). Time to face the most dreaded task, the ball and chain – THE EMAIL INBOX! It is common for workers to feel burdened when faced with a ton of emails. The time spent on checking and replying can drag on for hours, but to dismiss them may mean not being productive or not tending to responsibilities. So the worker ends up setting up notifications, downloading email phone apps, and constantly checking every ping or ding known to the email world just to keep up. However, experts say checking emails too frequently can lead to a diminished productivity.
But a voiceover artist is unlike any other worker. You thrive on emails. The more emails you get, the more business doors (and windows) open. A serious voiceover professional is EMAIL EARNEST!
Breaking the Expert Advice
Time management expert Julie Morgenstern’s advice is – Never Check Email in the Morning. Morgenstern said that people feel “they are complete slaves to email.” “They can’t control their knee-jerk response to check and it absolutely impairs their productivity,” added Morgenstern.
A client may happily hire an average talent who communicated well and fast over a more talented artist who did not. A client may not wait for your morning to be over – especially if they are on a different time zone. Checking emails in the morning should be part of your routine, as it helps you plan the rest of your day.
A productivity expert Elizabeth Grace Saunders subscribes to a morning email check routine. She agrees that spending one to two hours in the morning to check her emails helps her formulate a game plan for the day. However she does not check on her emails the rest of the day to allow her to focus on her projects.
A voice talent should never be out touch on hours end. Online 16 hours a day… asleep for the rest. Is it too much? Interestingly, the most common problem voice seekers have with online voice talents is not related to the talent or skill of the artist, but communication, or rather the lack of it. In an industry gearing towards online work and faster turn-around, being vigilant with your email keeps you on top of all opportunities that may come your way. But don’t get us wrong. You don’t have to be a slave to your email. Being email earnest is also learning how to take control and knowing when to turn off. But when you do take a long break from the email grind, make sure to turn off completely – set your profiles to UNAVAILABLE, turn on your Out of Office notification.
Another productivity expert once said, “When it comes to email, ignorance is bliss. That’s why if you’ve got something important you want to make progress on, I have these four words for you: Don’t check your email.” Sid Savara added, “Any new information you get can cause you to get distracted. I can’t control everything, but I can control my own self-made distractions.”
There is some truth that emails can be a distraction, but it is a good distraction to have. Client Relationship is important part of keeping your voiceover business successful. And anyone who works from home needs to maintain a healthy email relationship whether you deal directly with your clients or through agents (virtual or otherwise). So don’t miss out on opportunities to interact as it shows professionalism on your end, and also breeds client loyalty on the other. The idea of being email earnest is keeping all stakeholders well-informed and that includes you as the owner of your voiceover business – so ignorance is never bliss, it is loss of business.
So go ahead and set up those notifications. Download that email app on your phone and tablet. Check every ping or ding you hear. Be online 16 hours daily. Because checking your email frequently and staying online gives you the productivity you need. Staying on top of your email is staying on top of your business.
How about you… are you EMAIL EARNEST? What’s your email routine?
