The first morning after I placed it, I checked my email and discovered 23 very good packages.
That evening, it was up to 47.Next day, I had 71!
By that time, I started to realize what an uphill battle for this one job these folks were facing.
To begin with, I sent along a quick acknowledgement stating that I got their submission, would send it to the client PD who had the opening and promised to keep it in A&O's file for future possibilities. But, by the time I had forwarded 90 pretty good resumes and air checks to my client, it was hitting me that just one person was going to get this gig, assuming someone fit with the needs I tried to outline in my ad.
So, now that we're up to 114 responses to one ad, I have taken to letting folks who are now sending materials that the PD originally intended to go through the more than 100 he had received by that first weekend, so it's possible that he already has a short list from those and may be contacting potential hires, so their odds are long at this point.
In reply to that email, I got this one:
"It still amazes me how much you can be driven to a career that can break your heart so much. I think its similar to a drug honestly. You get so much of the rush, the perks, the highs, and when the lows of the business creep in, you forget them as soon as you get another chance at the action."
Talk to any actor or comedian. It's the same for them. And, at the end of the day, the joys when you're on mic outweigh all the difficulties and disappointments. Anything worth doing is worth competing as hard as you can to be able to do it.
Nobody ever said this job would be easy, easy to get or easy on the ego, but it's especially difficult right now.
Just don't tell me that it's hard to find good people.
They are out there, trying to stand out and not lose hope as they attempt to figure out how to make the most of their one in a hundred odds.
1 comment:
Hey Jaye -
One of the most relevant things about being an air personality in this business was said by Joan Rivers on an episode of the FX show "Louie" last season. She was referring to being a comedian--but as you noted, they are similar professions/addictions in many ways:
"I wish I could tell it gets better. but it doesn’t get better. You get better. I’ve gone up, I’ve gone down. I’ve been bankrupt. But you do it. And you do it because…because we love it more than anything else. That’s why you’re doing it. You want a real job, honey, there’s a million things you can do. But what we do is not a job…what we do…is a calling,my dear. We make people happy. It’s a calling."
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