working mom

End of Year Reflections in 2023

December 22, 2023 by Laura Schreiber

On Conferences:

This year I had the great joy of attending several conferences. I presented at OneVoice USA and at MAVO and I was an attendee of Johny Heller’s New England Narrator’s retreat. As a presenter at OneVoice, I sat on a Demos panel with some of the people I OVC Demos Panel look up to most in the industry, including Anne Ganguzza, Clif Zellman, and J. Michael Collins. In addition with being in such good company, I try to pick up public speaking tips as well. At MAVO, I attended sessions of other industry greats like Michael Scott, and I took note of his presentation style. I also spent a lot of time talking to Joe Cipriano, who I have looked up to for many years, and learned a tremendous amount from him.

At Johnny Heller’s workshop, as an attendee, I was able to spend all my time honing my narration skills. It was nice to be able to just participate and be amongst my peers. While I did also want to network with the publishers in attendance, my primary focus was learning about the different genres and developing my skill set. The time away from my booth felt like such an indulgence and I came away feeling inspired and like I did, indeed, learn a lot.

On Awards Nominations:

This year I was nominated for a Signal award for an ensemble podcast cast that I have been part of for several years for PJ library. I also personally only submitted to the OneVoice Awards. My demo partner, All Systems GO AV, and I were elated to snag a OVC Awards night nomination for one of the demos we did, an eLearning demo for the super talented Dallas based John Guccion. I also earned a nomination in the bloopers category which was good fun. While we didn’t take home any statues this year, I will say it really meant a lot to be in such good company and it was for sure a highlight of the year.

On Coaching:

My coaching business has continued to thrive. As a former teacher, I really love helping people work on the voice over skills and grow their businesses. I am very passionate about my coaching and often I wake up super early in the morning with enthusiasm for my lesson plans. A lot of the people I coach have met me at conferences, and it means a lot to get to work with them afterwards. I genuinely want to help each and every coaching student, so this aspect of my 2023 work has been very meaningful.

On Travel with VO Friends:

With Diana Birdsall, Michelle Blenker, me, Kim Handysides, and Dearbhla Trainor in Montreal This summer I got to go on a trip to Canada with the gals in my VO accountability group! We had been talking about going away together since before Covid. We had so many ideas, but really, the most important detail was that we were all included and beyond that everything else was secondary. To have this time together to bond and to reflect was so meaningful. We are all exceptionally close, and this trip was as wonderful as can be.

On Getting Sick and Working Through It:

Immediately after the Canada get away I got a really, really bad stomach bug. It started in late July and lasted until late October. I was profoundly ill and they did not realize that it was a food born bacterial infection until I had been suffering for several months. I was so sick when I went to OneVoice that I had to bring my son with me to help, and he was immensely helpful. I was frankly thankful I could get through my sessions. I missed uncle Roy’s BBQ which was so upsetting. I was a mess. By the time they figured out what it was I was beginning to worry I would never get better. Never was a girl so thankful for antibiotics!

On Working While Kids are in College

2023 marks the second year of working while my twins are away. While you would think I have unlimited time and could simply do as I please, having the twins in college presents new challenges. When they call I feel that I need to drop everything to tend to their immediate needs. I also certainly block days from my calendar to visit, whether it is a Friday print to parent’s weekend or a Monday post-conference. This time is precious and my fear is that it is fleeting. So while the day to day life may be freer, they certainly take up large chunks of time still. Also, when they are home, I do try to black my schedule and limit my coaching so that they have my undivided attention. I have also noticed I need to remind them of the “rules” when there are live sessions, as if they never new them. They seem to have forgotten about staying quiet or keeping away from the space over my studio. It’s funny how these things can be un-learned.

Over-all Reflections

I always to people thinking about voice over that it is a marathon not a sprint, and 2023 felt like I jus kept marching along, doing my thing. Do you remember the children’s board game Candyland? I lot of times I feel like that is my life, I’m just on this sweet ride, winding around the board, wondering where I’ll land next, trying to take a deep breath and actually enjoy the people I meet along the way and the ride that I am on!

Nutrition and Voice Over

October 24, 2022 by Laura Schreiber

Why Did I Commit to a LifeStyle Change?

Last May the reality sunk in that in June my twins were graduating from high school. In August they’d both be leaving, at once, for college. While for some they were not going terribly far, for me, the three hours they’d both be going to Lancaster, PA was really, really far. They might as well have been flying to California. As a working mom who works really long days, and often works quite a few hours on weekends, spending six hours in the car for a single visit felt daunting. The other important piece of the puzzle is that for my entire adult life, I always have said that my kids were my motivation. They have been my why. So with them leaving, I felt like the ground beneath me was shifting in a fairly seismic way.

It should also be noted that my weight has often fluctuated. I like to eat out and I’m a bit of a foodie. I have a hard time depriving my self of anything, whether it’s a latte or jeans I like, I believe life is short and I work hard so I enjoy indulging. When all of these “feelings” were hitting me in M ay, I was certainly at an upturn in my weight. I feared that if I didn’t get a grip on things, when the kids left I would be alone, laying on the couch, eating chocolate, and completely unable to record any voice over. I was essentially afraid I would fail to function. I needed to choose something better.

The Block Party

Around this time my neighbor across the street, Efi, organized a pretty amazing block party. It was great in all the ways a block party can be. Everyone showed up. Everyone was kind. And, the food was awesome. Efi happens to also be a working mom, an accountant who specializes in managing money for wealthy families. Another working mom was there too, my friend and neighbor Melanie who is a lawyer in NYC. Well, Melanie looked better than she had in all the years that I have known her. I was amazed. As I was gobbling handfuls of potato chips, I asked Melanie what she was doing. She began to tell me about her journey. I continued to munch on the chips while she elaborated.

Melanie shared that she too, like me, needed a change. Her mom has been ill and she could not sit down and weight for the same issues to come her way. She started working with nutritionists who, unlike anyone else I had ever worked with, also had an accountability aspect to their practice. This resonated with me as accountability has worked so well in my voice over practice thus far. In fact, it has been essential to my success. I got their information and decided to give it a whirl.

My Health Journey

I started working with the team at SugarSnapShift. Without betraying the terms of their NDA, I will tell you that I eagerly embraced their food recipes. While some might look at it as giving up a lot of food, I found that my diet prior to working with this brilliant team was so limited and backwards that I gained for more food than I eliminated. I loved their recipes and took comfort in them. I also learned to make better choices and to combine foods better. I learned about portion sizes too. As the weight and the inches came off every week, I noticed many things about myself:

I felt that I had more endurance in the booth which is crucial in long form narration.
I noticed that my sugar was stable so I didn’t feel like I need breaks or naps from work in the afternoon. I wasn’t having that crash in the 3pm hour.
I noticed that I was calmer and not as quick to react, whether with my kids or work scenarios.
I just felt better. I felt better in my own skin and I felt more balanced.
My headaches have been better. They are not gone but they are not worse.

Voice and Nutrition

I will say that I have avoided dairy for years, so this is not new for me. In general, dairy can cause inflammation and phlegm which is not ideal for recording. On this plan, I seem to be less phlegmy, which is overall a help. I’m not clear if it’s one change in particular or the total impact, but I can say that this change has been great for me. For example, is it that I make a daily effort to stay hydrated or that I have not had red meat since May, (which is difficult, because I have always loved it)? I’m not sure. It could be both, it could be one more than the other. I have also reduced my caffeine and sugar intake. So, I’m not clear exactly what is working, I’m just going to keep doing all of it.

Life as an Empty Nester

So you might be wondering, how I am getting along with my kids away? Well, it’s actually been alright. I miss them, of course. But when your kids are happy and thriving, it is a joy to hear about how well they are doing, and we celebrate their successes. I have been visiting regularly, and when they are home I try not to work at all. That is new for me and not so easy, but as every moment with them is precious, I now fiercely guard this sacred time. I feel, with certainty, that my wellness journey prepared me for their departure. I was mentally and physically ready because I gave myself the gift of self-help, support, and wellness before they left. Having a team of wellness experts around you sets you up for success. Within such a framework, I gave myself a chance to thrive. I gave me chance to reach some rather important goals and to see a bright light was possible for me. When I saw that, I saw that this would be a positive time for all of us.

Why I Never had Imposter Syndrome as a Voice Actor

December 9, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

In the Past Year I Learned a New Phrase

I’ve been a full time, professional voice over actor for quite a while now, but in the past year I started hearing for the first time a new term: imposter syndrome. I started hearing it on social media, on Clubhouse, and at conferences too. I found it surprising because in all my years in VO, I had never heard any other talents speak to this before. What I have learned is that this term refers to the feeling that one does not actually belong, or is not what they claim to be and is, instead, an imposter. Suddenly, in the past year, I am hearing about others feeling this way frequently. It is coming up often in conversation. Perhaps it is because many turned to voice over during covid. Perhaps it is because some start working or trying to work before they are actually prepared. For a multitude of reasons, suddenly I am hearing this all over the place. If you are interested in being a voice over actor, and you really want to succeed and do NOT want to feel like an imposter, perhaps consider my experience, as this has never been an issue for me.

Lots of Training

When I started working in voice over, really working, it was after no less than a year of working at getting into voiceover. In that year, I worked with 4 coaches and took advanced acting and improv at a local theater. I spent sic to eight hours A DAY studying and working on my craft. I worked on scripts. I practiced characters. I recorded. I edited. I submitted to my coaches. I listened back to my assignments. I did research and followed prominent voice actors to see what they were booking. I took multiple private lessons each week. I was in group classes with GVAA. I had practice partners. I met with those partners. I did homework for those partners too and I took each and every assignment so seriously, as if my life depended on it. So when I say I had lots of training, that is just when I started out. Since then I have continued to have lots of coaching. Have coaching is the foundation of all we do. I think by the time my website launched, I was so ready to work that it never occurred to me that I was not prepared to serve my clients.

Long Days

Both as a student of voice over and now as a professional, I have always put in extremely long days. From morning to night, often going back into my booth after dinner, my days are long and rigorous. Sometimes new talents ask me when they will start booking. They tell me they have submitted 50 auditions. I try to keep a straight face. I typically submit more than 30 auditions in a day, even now, so 50 auditions is in no way impressive to me. I have often heard of the rule of 10. I believe that Gaby Nistico has even made a video about it. If you work 10 hours a day more than 10 months a year for 10 years that is when you start making six figures… Well, I believe there is something to this. I have always had the luxury of being in voice over “full-time.” Well, let’s flesh this out. What exactly does “full-time mean? To me, it means I maintain standard business hours and I am in my booth al day every day to serve my clients. The more you are available and the more you record and submit, the more legitimate your business is.

Sure of My Identity

When my business launched, in audition to lots of coaching and sweat equity under my belt, my first website helped establish my identity. I never had doubts about my identity as a professional. I had been told by every coach I ever worked with that even at the start of my career, I should introduce myself as a professional. I did so with confidence. As I get clients under my belt and had testimonials, I felt more proud of what I was building, but it never came from a place of doubt. I was certain that I was building a great service business that would help my clients get what they need.

Wholly Committed

Another reason I think I never suffered from this imposter syndrome is that I was entirely committed from day 1. Basically, I bet the house on it. I built a high-end studio. I had an expensive microphone. I was working full time. It was never an option for it to not work. Success was my only possible outcome. It never occurred to me that I was not a voice actor. I set out to live this life and I did. Period. Sometimes we have choices in this world, but as a working mom, failure was not an outcome I was willing to explore. I only had one potential outcome for myself and my children, and that was for the business to take off.

A Day in the Life of a Voice Actor…

December 6, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

My jam

You might be thinking, hey- I wonder what it’s like to be a voice over actor? As a full-time, professional voice actor, sometimes my days can feel a little bit like Groundhogs Day, meaning that there is a certain rhythm to my days that tends to play and repeat. To be honest, as a working mom, I’ve come to count on this routine and structure and don’t mine it at all. I find this order and structure is really helpful and as my business has grown over the years, and I have expanded into coaching and demo production, I have carefully worked all of that into my schedule. There are some basic elements that are to be expected in every voice actor’s day:

Auditions:

I typically do these quite early, and I think my auditions serve as a great warm up for my actually paid work. Whether they are for pay to plays or for agents, I love running through the pace of auditions and feel that this helps me stay on my toes and understand the current industry trends for what is being sought after. Daily submissions are a must, and I typically submit early morning and late afternoon at a minimum. I like submitting, and relative to other talents I know, I regularly submit a lot. I think it depends on your specific goals, but auditioning is for sure a part of my daily routine.

Booked Work

Then I begin my booked work. Depending on what is do when, and how urgent some bookings are, I decide my order of events. Sometime the vocal age of the casting comes into play for me. For example, if I am required to sound young, I have a specific window when I sound really young during the day, so I make sure to record at that point. Conversely, if I need to sound like a mom, or a 40 something, I save those recordings for after lunch. Thus, I plan my day.

Website Updates

I am often doing website updates. From adding blogs like this one, to adding client logos, testimonials, new demos we have done for students, and samples of finished booked work, the like of website updates goes on and on. I try to do these regularly so they do not become insurmountable.

Marketing and Direct Outreach

Marketing is a constant it my daily routine. I think the only day of the month when I do not send any emails is the day my newsletter goes out. I have different groups of people I work on reaching out to, and I am always keeping in touch with current clients and reaching out to new ones. I also do all of my own social media work, so marketing is a daily constant.

Billing and Invoicing

I do this regularly. Every time I deliver finished audio to a client, I send their invoice along with it. I send regular reminders, and am very on top of my invoicing. After all, voice over is not a hobby!

Equipment

My gear is so important. It is the foundation of all of my work. Whether I am researching my next purchase or neatening my wires, I am doing something related to m studio gear every day. I also constantly watch YouTube videos about equipment and find tis very helpful.

Dog walking

A highlight of my day, throughout my day, are the breaks I take with my studio dogs Violet and Daisy. I love walking with the girls and taking these sporadic breaks every few hours is really good for me. It is so good to leave the studio and get actual fresh air. I occasionally run into neighbors and that is really nice too.

Workouts:pilates

In addition to walking, I do Pilates regularly and this is very much a part of my routine. I find that scheduling this time for my self is essential to my mental and physical wellness. I tend to do these reinvigorating workouts either early morning, before work, or mid-day on my lunch break.

Household Chores

As a wife and mother, my daily household chores are endless. From cooking and cleaning to laundry and homework help, the list goes on and on. This time of year, there are holiday chores too like gift wrapping and all of those cards!!

The Glimpse….

So a lot needs to happen to run a successful voiceover business. There are a lot of moving parts, and when something falls off of my radar, ultimately it means less work will come in. So, it’ on me to make sure that my work gets done, and all of my ducks are in a row.

As a Working Mom, What Does it Really Mean?

October 24, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

Emma’s Enthusiasm

As a working mom, I have always tried my best to give my kids a lot of time while still putting my heart into my small business. As a full-time professional voice over actor and coach, even when I’m not “working,” I do talk about my business and my business ideas a lot with my family, and have for many years. Well, I am now realizing what a huge impact that has had. This week we had amazing news. My daughter was accepted to her dream college: a six year doctoral program in Occupational Therapy at Elizabethtown College. Besides celebrating this glorius achievement, Emma has countless ideas about how she intends to use her degree. She keeps coming into the kitchen and saying, “Mom, I was thinking…” and then shares her latest vision for a potential future career path. This is not just exciting, this is the result of a being surrounded by women chatting about goals, brain storming, and planning for how small businesses grow.

The Precedent We Set

What We give our kids — My sister Julie Levin and I give my twins so much love. In addition, we are both small business owners so they see what goes into making a business work.

As mothers and working women, our children hear and see the examples we set. For years, my children have either been in the room or been in the room adjacent to my accountability group meetings. They understand the importance of setting goals as a small business owner, having a plan, and follow-through. They not only hear me talking, they have heard my industry friends (well, more like voice over family) for years. They have been exposed to what it takes to grow and maintain a small business. They understand that hard work and perseverance are essential, and that follow-through is everything. They have always been around my meetings, and I have always discussed ideas with them. My children watched me build my business from the ground up. The result is that they not only see what is possible, they actually understand how it is done.

Getting Your Kids Involved

As solopreneurs, we actually have the luxury of getting our kids involved and having them take an active role in our business. Many voice actors have their children actually doing voice over work. Last summer, my son Jack had a recurring gig as an eLearning narrator. This was extremely fulfilling to him. Not only did he learn about how to interact with clients and gain greater insight into the industry, but he learned about taking direction and leaving his emotions outside of the booth.

Another great way to get your kids involved is to hire them as assistants or interns when they are old enough. Last summer, both of my twins worked for me. I had my son doing research for direct marketing and sending cold emails. He learned so much about the process and follow through. I had my daughter doing all of my social media, with a focus on my instagram and instagram stories. She actually organically doubled my following. They did an outstanding job and were delightful. We used a google spreadsheet to coordinate our tasks and stay on the same page. They learned about team work, collaboration, and the ins and outs of my voiceover business.

What Values You Want to Instill

Precedent and Values — Everything that I have in me comes from my mother.

When I think about why I work so hard as a voice actor, I want my children to understand so much. Beyond the income I generate that our family depends on, I want them to see that voice over is a unique industry because we are a group of people who come together to lift each other up. I also want me kids to see that if you work hard all day, every day, you can have great success. I want my twins to see that you can make your dreams happen. And if my voice over business has showed them anything, it’s that you never wait for someone else to bring you happiness and your happiness is not dependent on others. In order to succeed in voice over and in many other industries, you have to have thick skin and listen to your gut. You must be able to tune out all the negativity and you have to be very selective about who you accept guidance from. My prayer for my children is that they have been surrounded by strong women and all of this has been planted deep within them. As a working mom, I hope that their internal compass is so strong, nothing can sway them from their path.

My Emma has so many ideas already. I hope that as her years in her program go on, her ideas become more defined, and her dreams are well-within her grasp. I can’t wait to see What Emma does with her degree!

So, when I ask the question, as a working mom, what does it really mean? It means that if I can not only pay the bills, but follow my passions, AND teach my kids by doing to follow theirs, and in doing so instill a set of core values, I believe it is a worth while endeavor indeed.

Chatting with Voice Actor Katie Flamman

August 15, 2021 by Laura Schreiber

A Lovely Talk

For 10 weeks now, fellow voice over coach and professional voice over actor Diana Birdsall and I have been hosting a weekly Clubhouse. It fascinates me how the energy of every panel is so different. It’s great that every week the guests in our room comment and asks questions, but depending on who are special guest is, the tone and the vibe is so different.

Katie Flamman and Diana Birdsall at the SOVAS awards in Hollywood — Katie Flamman and our very own Diana Birdsall at the SOVAS awards in Hollywood, from Katie’s instagram feed!

This week we were lucky to have the amazing British voice over actor Katie Flamman. Katie lives in a village south of London and like me was a stay at home mom for years and came into voiceover at the moment when it made sense for herself and for her kids. Katie has an academic background in English Literature from Cambridge University and a professional background in broadcast journalism, all things that serve her well as a voice talent. What made this week’s panel so unique, I think, is that even though Diana and I had a planned set if questions that primarily revolved around marketing and business, the genuine conversation kept shifting back to acting technique and the actual craft of being a working actor. I felt like chatting with Katie and the other guests we had fed me soul and it wad great fun.

Katie’s Take on Marketing

When speaking with Katie, what struck me was how genuine and authentic she is. I’ve been spending a lot of time this week working on keywords on my pay to plays, and these words seem to accurately describe Katie. While so many of us strategize and plan, Katie really is all about making genuine connections with people,

Katie's Clever Posts — Katie’s posts are clever and authentic, and always make me feel inspired.

both industry friends and clients alike. And the timing could not be more perfect, as she actually has an article out this week in Buzz Magazine put out by the Voice Over Network. Katie shared with us that when she first got started in VO, she was in a group called media parents. One of the other women in the group looked at her resume, and helped her find a common thread, and that was storytelling. Katie has worked story telling into all of her branding.

Beyond that, Katie says that when she has something that she things is funny or interesting, she shares it. Beyond that, she does not have a grand plan or strategy. Katie has had the opportunity to travel to the United States for the SOVAS awards and has been able to meet and connect with many people who she finds to be inspiring, and knowing her audience helps shapes her marketing and outreach. She always tries to share information about herself that is authentic and clever, and she uses hashtags as a vehicle to drive her audience connections.

The Work Katie Does

Since Katie had acting experience as a student, and then went into journalism, when she first went into voice over years go she was only doing corporate and commercial work. While for some that may be hard to book, with Katie’s skill set and talent she settled into those genres with ease. For Katie, while she was glad to book that, she still wanted to do character work. She studies with Dave Fennoy and even won a SOVAS for her video game demo. When she won, she thought the job opportunities would pour in, but they did not. She got feedback that she needed to put more physicality into her roles, and she needed to “become the character.” She began to study Alexander technique and started doing a physical warmup before each recording session. She even had her coach come to her studio to evaluate how she stood in front of her mic. I was particularly fascinated by this and now when my twins start back to school may give it a go. Katie has also gotten training in MoCap and PCap. She is really excited about how all of her efforts are helping her pursue work in the genres she is quite passionate about.

What She Wishes She had Known

One of our guests asked Katie what she wish she had known. I always LOVE this question because I think there are so few barriers to entry in our field, that sometimes folks jump into voiceover and are not always realistic about their expectations. Katie said she wished she knew about how to run a business and more about accounting. I loved this answer because anyone getting int VO needs to understand that as a working creative, while our art is part of it, we are running a business. In order to succeed it has to be treated like a business from day one. You need a CRM, you need to track outreach, invoices, expenses, and bookings. You need to pay quarterly taxes (at least in the US). And most importantly, you need to carry yourself like a professional. At the end of the day, being a voice talent is about many things, and our voice is just a small bit. Having Katie on was such a joy, and the chat could have gone on much longer. We are so thankful for her time, especially across time zones!