Being On Time
I NEVER EVER EVER EVER EVER thought I'd be writing anything about the importance of being on time. EVER! Here it is, though.
What do having a career, a job, a hobby, a steady relationship, a self-improvement, ambitions, hopes, dreams, or goals have in common?
You have to show up or else the world will keep spinning and life will keep happening without you.
In radio, showing up on time isn't an option, it's a necessity!
Here's the deal... Before I worked at WHO, I had a terrible time with being late. I still don't have a perfect track record for social engagements, but I learned FAST that to be the best radio producer I can be, I've got to be there!
Well, duh. Isn't that how all jobs work?
Not exactly. You see, with radio, everything runs on clocks. EVERYTHING. It's not uncommon for a show to start at 6-minutes past the top of the hour. If my shift starts at 10 o'clock, and I know that the show doesn't start until 10:06 then that means I have 6 minutes of "wiggle room" right?! WRONG! In order for the station to keep broadcasting, ads need to get played at certain times. It's the responsibility of the producer or board op to trigger those ads. If the ads don't play, the station doesn't make any money. If the station doesn't make any money, I don't have a job.
Well, can't the guy before you just "cover" for you?
1. That's a real jerk mentality to have ... and 2. It's not "covering" if they don't have the option to say "no". Do that a few times without notifying whoever is "covering" for you, and that's a sure fire way to drive your colleagues crazy -and consequently burn any bridge there was to begin with.
So... It comes down to ads? That's it -Just ads?
Nope again! Making sure the ads air is VERY important. I work in talk radio, though, so that means that the show WILL start whether I'm there or not. If I'm not there for the show that I'm responsible for, it'll sound like a train wreck (a strange mess of ads, promos, weather, traffic, more promos, weird silences, etc.) but the show WILL go on! When Simon's show starts, it's not just me and him. NOPE! It's Simon, it's the news reporter, the traffic reporter, me, the program director, the board op(s) that we're networking to, the traffic director (creates the logs for the ads), the promo designer(s) -THE WORKS! It's a full team, man! They all play a crucial part in the show happening. If one of them just doesn't show up, it throws a weird wrench in the works that will sound cringeworthy to a listener. RADIO PRO TIP: If it sounds cringeworthy to the listener, they're going to turn the radio OFF.
"The show WILL go on!"
All of that being said, if you're involved with any kind of live show on the radio, you don't get the option to be late or not show up.
This might sound a bit heavy handed, but chances are good that if you have a bad habit of not notifying people about where you are when you aren't where you're supposed to be, you won't be invited to come back to the station. Reliability is CRUCIAL for success of your team in order for live radio to happen.
As I'm taking on a second job, I've noticed how the "radio mentality" of timeliness has affected me. It doesn't even cross my mind that being late for work is an option anymore -it's actually a laughable concept to me now.
If you want to be successful at ANYTHING, remember that if you show up -and show up on time- it will NOT go unnoticed.
Until next time,
-T.