I always like to take a moment and reflect over the past year. Did we strive to do better this year? Yes. Were we successful? I believe so. Did we gain more clients and were they pleased with our services? I think so. Did we treat our client base with the same quality of service as they have become accustomed? Absolutely.

Building a business and continuing to super-serve your client base and new clients is an important task to do year in and year out. But that also is what separates the men from the boys. Have you raised your rates to increase your bottom line? No, not really, due to the economic landscape. But we did increase our client base all the way around as a way to increase our stake in the market and continue to raise our monetary bar.

The nature of our business is ever changing. Adaptability is the keyword in furthering ourselves. This topic came up during our Vincennes University Broadcasting Technology Advisory Board teleconference this past month. What is our industry expecting out of the students coming out of college today? Adaptability is so important since multi-tasking has become a way of life in radio, TV, advertising and media in general. You had better be prepared to know how to do more than just your chosen career expertise. Just think of the professors and department heads that need to be ahead of the curve and be ready to adapt to the ever-changing landscape of media. They certainly have their work cut out for them in order to stay ahead of the trends. Those of us out here in the industry have been asked what do we see as to what to expect down the road. The answers are time-sensitive. By the time colleges have re-tooled their curriculum’s, that previous trend may be over or moved into another lane on the “information super-highway.” Yeah, it may sound like a cop out, but it’s so true right now.

I have found that due to the changing times, many more voice talents are reaching out to each other via Faffcon, Voices2008 & 2010 and other Voice Mixers. There was a time when we worked quietly in our own studios and kept our resources and tools close to our vest. I’d say those days are beginning to fade. With so many changes and the advent of working at home, instead of trekking across town to go to an audition, we have inadvertently closed ourselves into becoming voice hermits. Talent WANT to get out and socialize and share info and learn what’s up & coming in a whole new world. And that’s a good thing.

2010 will go down as a transitional year… an adaptability year… a re-thinking of priorities year. Yes, I think in retrospect, we are growing in the right direction. It’s just that the learning curve continues to thrive.

BTW…we are registered to go to FaffCon2 this February in Atlanta. You just can’t ever stop learning.