working mom

I’m Back Baby!

November 28, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

What’s so great about spin anyway

As a busy working mom, if I am going to leave my kids and miss time away from either the family or my work schedule, then whatever it is had better be worth it. Yesterday when I stepped back into Flywheel Millburn after a FIVE year hiatus because of medical issues, I can tell you with absolute certainty it was worth every second. You can feel the pulsating energy as soon as you step into the studio space. There is an intensity there that makes you want to do your best. Gina, the instructor for this ride, is incredible.. There is stadium seating in the studio and the lights go out. As soon as I clicked my cleats into the bike I felt like I had come home. The music started, my legs went, and I was back. I felt like a part of myself had been missing, like the party was going on without me all those years and I was all too aware. It was not just that I was dealing with GI problems, a bad fall that has permanently injured my back, and the struggle of gaining and losing and gaining the same 20 pounds; it is really that I have always loved spin, especially at Flywheel and I profoundly missed doing something I love. Now, there is another element to my fitness quest: as a professional female voiceover actor, it is essential that I maintain my instrument by staying in top physical form.

Other Strong Women

As a voiceover artist, I work like a dog. I work long hours and it is hard balancing my personal life and my business. I think, like a lot of other small business owners, I also struggle with boundary issues. There are so many times I leave my family and go down to the booth on a Saturday or late at night to do something for a client. So more than ever at this point in my life I need strong female role models! The spin instructors are unbelievable. The youngest ones I take class with are my age; however, most are about 8-10 years older than I am. They have very positive energy. It is not about what their bodies look like, it is about the way they have chosen to live their lives. They are extremely strong and fit and they have a “can do” spirit that is just fantastic to be around. It makes me feel that everything will be ok when I am around powerful ladies like this. Gina, Jill, and Candee rock my world and I bring that enthusiasm back into the booth with me. When I took Gina’s class yesterday just to be in the same space as her was so exciting. When she called out her age, 10 years older than mine, I was so inspired. I hope in 10 years we are both still riding passionately!

It’s good to leave the booth and see people!

I work very long hours in a padded foam booth. Granted it’s a particularly awesome booth with broadcast-ready equipment of which I am really proud, but at the end of the day it is still a padded foam booth and is quite isolating. When you walk into a workout place like Flywheel, and everyone there greets you, and you have friends who are also working out, it means so so much. You feel part of something bigger than yourself. This welness community is great on good days and bad days alike and trust me, we all have both, so it’s really important to have people. Whether it’s a gym friend you’ve known for years or just a kind sweaty guy on the bike next to you who is also doing his best to push through, feeling like you are not in the struggle of life alone is really special. As someone who was never talented enough to play team sports, I have learned to find my own team and to be thankful for it. We are lucky enough to live in the age of social media, so that support sytem can extend beyond the studio too which I really love!

It feels great…..

Sometimes working in voiceover is more sedentary than others. If I am doing a high energy commercial or an active character I might be moving around my booth a lot. If I am doing a corporate narration or a long eLearning module, in truth I am not moving so much and I have to struggle to keep my posture good so that my diaphragm is nice and open. Going back to spin yesterday felt amazing!! Moving, and moving fast, and really working up a sweat felt great. First, it was pleasant because Flywheel is just so nice and the music was great. Next, I got keratin in my hair recently so I did not dread coming home to the hour long blowout, so I must confess that actually took the stress away. Lastly, I have been doing A LOT of pilates so I was not worried about my back because I knew my core was up to the task. I just felt good to be there. It was wonderful.

So what happens next?? Well, I will take it one class at a time. I don’t want to put too much pressure on myself. On Monday my son and I are also starting the Max Fitness Challenge, so this is a week of new beginnings for me, and I am so glad to be sharing them with someone else!

Tis’ The Season….And I’m Ready

November 7, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

Holiday Cheer Just Pours Out of Me!

While it seems like every year the tinsel and ornaments come out at the mall earlier and earlier, the moment they appear they bring a huge smile to my face! This weekend I was at out local mall, the Mall at Short Hills, with my daughter Emma and my nice Emilia and I saw THE MOST PRECIOUS sign with two dachshunds wearing Santa hats. Apparently there is a night at the mall to bring your dog to sit on Santa’s lap! But, as a long time professional voiceover actor with years of experience, I do not need the tinsel and Christmas trees to let me know that the holidays are approaching! Those holiday spots start pouring in pretty early in October and typically go through December and really keep me on my toes! I love being the voice of holiday cheer and this is my season of Joy!

The Warm Greeting

One of the most fun parts of the season is all of the holiday telephony work that I voice! From on hold messages to holiday greetings, starting with Thanksgiving, and running through Christmas and New Years most of my regular clients change their greetings. There is a practical purpose that they need to alert their clients to the changed hours. But there is also a clear tone of holiday spirit! These scripts are all written with warmth, well-wishes, and often humor. The good spirit that comes through is a true delight. I enjoy the opportunity to bring personality and pure joy to these telephony spots. For those of us who do a lot of corporate IVR, this is the most fun time of the year as a professional voiceover actor. From Whole Foods Market to Coast Business Supply, I work with all sorts of companies to spread holiday cheer to their clients when they call. This is also a great chance to let clients know of holiday promotions that they companies have going on, so these messages have an added layer of importance. I have even had the opportunity to voice the outgoing messages for the companies that hire me to do the telephony work, and I can’t think of a bigger holiday treat than that!

The Holiday Retail Spot

In my years in voiceover, most of my work has been commercial work. From TV to radio, I love the retail read, and we all know that Black Friday is they day of days for retail! Last year I was shocked and delighted to learn that Black Friday has made its way across the pond to Europe and I even had a radio spot in French for Black Friday! Now with the addition of Cyber Monday, there is yet another opportunity for retail spots. Holiday commercial voiceover opportunities are certainly abundant this time of year, and delivering the voice of holiday cheer is something that I look forward to all year! Whether it is 15 or 30 second spot or a tag, the commercial voiceover holiday read is an opportunity to add sparkle and joy during this happy season.

Toys

It would be hard to think of the holidays and not associate toys with the season in some way. As a child, I loved both the “Kiddy City” and the “Toys r Us” commercials and was so excited for them. Growing up in Philadelphia, we had many holiday traditions actually. We would take the train to Center City. There, we would go see the lights show at Lord N’ Taylor. They had a Christmas Wonderland set up and we would look at all of the toys. There as a tiny train that went around the ceiling for little kids and my sister and I loved it! Those were the days when you never went home with something and kids only got toys on holidays and birthdays, so everything seemed so special and so luxurious. I think being so enamored with the amazing set up had an impact on me that shapes my voice work every day, It feels like just yesterday I was there with Julie, walking hand in hand, and we were mesmerized. That joy never left me.

Now I have the amazing opportunity to actually voice toys when I do character work. I often work with companies that create the prototypes. Because of non disclosure agreements, I cannot disclose the toys, but I can say that I have voiced toys that are on the shelves of a Target near you! Knowing that these toys will go home and be loved and become part of someone’s childhood memories means the world to me and I am so delighted for this special voiceover work.

Holiday Traditions

We have a lot of holiday traditions in my family! Most of them involve food. Every year we make holiday cookies with my mom and sister and the kids and we decorate them. We make latkes and we light candles. We sing lots of songs. We spend a lot of time together and we eat. A lot. But being with my family around the holidays makes me so so happy, and it is that happiness that I bring to every single holiday spot that I voice.

My DevLearn Experience: So Much to Tell Ya!

October 31, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

https://youtu.be/vygFz4BVJ6U

When a Solopreneur is Part of a Team

I did it. I flew across the country to Las Vegas and arrived at Dev Learn, the biggest eLearning conference of the year that the eLearning Guild runs. Any working mom knows that packing one’s bags, getting organized, and getting out always seems like an amazing feet. I even had my hair done. As a professional voiceover actor, a good percentage of my work load is narrating elearning modules, so going to an event like this just makes good business sense for me.

The morning of the conference arrived and with my super cute wheely bag in tow I arrived at the Mirage conference center. Even though I have my own business and run my own broadcast ready recording studio, this morning I was not alone. Before even entering the conference, I met up with other experienced voiceover professionals Shelley Avellino and Jack de Golia. We met for coffee and registered. We spent some time perusing the listings of attendees and discussing who might be good to connect with. I also scanned the list to find my current clients so I’d be able to check in with them. Imagine, we were there to support one another and I walked into the packed expo knowing that there were others there who had my back.

Voiceover is a unique industry. There I was at Dev Learn with the goal of reconnecting with current clients and picking up new ones. The other voice talents there had the same goal. While in other industries we might view eachother as competition, in voiceover, with these folks, we worked together. We supported eachother. We met for lunch and compared notes and swapped contact information. It was extremely helpful. I am not sure which other industries do that. Feeling part of this team was fantastic and was part of the magic of DevLearn.

Staying Current

With eLearning industry professionals from all over the world, DevLearn provides a wonderful opportunity to stay on top of current trends in an ever-evolving industry. I spoke to professionals from as far as Australia and Russia. While many of these folks were LMS providers and do not work directly with professional narrators like me, hearing about their platforms is essential to understand what the content creators I work with are using.

I also was able to meet a lot of folks who do work in content creation. From mobile learning to gamification, there was so much to see at the amazing Demo Fest. I was also over joyed to reconnect with current clients from around the country. It is really special to see people that I work with regularly in person.

Connecting with Other Working Moms

While it is great to find people who need professionals to narrate their eLearning, in truth it is even better to find universal connections and just have great conversations. I found that I could talk endlessly with a lot of different people at the conference and only had to move on when someone else clearly needed them. I found it particularly easy at the expo to connect with other working moms. This happened over and over again. Whether we had human children or dogs, we were exchanged photos and talking about our loves at home, and the lengthy chats had evolved well beyond the world of eLearning. We talked about everything under the sun from safety to dog treats to our hours. These are the conversations that meant so much to me as I was making real connections and actually getting to know people.

In the middle of the conference a client invited me to a sushi dinner at the Mirage sponsored by Vyond, formerly known as Go Animate. At this dinner, I found myself sitting at a table of women all in instructional design, all working moms. These women were amazing. They were bright and innovative. We were all from different places: Toronto, New York, California, Tennessee, and Michigan. Despite different climates and different backgrounds, we were of similar ages and we were all working moms. We all somehow managed to get all the way to Las Vegas for DevLearn.

Our conversation moved from light banter to some pretty deep topics. We covered faith, skimmed politics, and touched on issues relevant to client relationships. Being surrounded by intelligent, sophisticated women, this table at the Vyond dinner was a microcosm of the DevLearn conference. We represented what is possible in the industry when folks come together and exchange ideas. It wasn’t all pats on the bag, we challenged and questioned each other too. It is, after all, only from this kind of honest banter that real change and genuine creativity can flourish. And I believe that we were there, in this self-created circle, where we somehow felt safe enough to be open with these other people what we were only just getting to know.

The Sum of it All

So when we think about where our training comes from, and when we think about who creates the content for major companies, I am proud to say that I have met the curators of this content and that I am part of this process. The magic of DevLearn is vast, but for sure as a creative it is a joy to be a part of this process.

Tips of a Well-Seasoned Traveler

October 24, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

When Working Mom’s Leave Home, Let’s Do it Right!

Remember, It’s Not a Vacation
As a 24 year old newly wed, I think I actually packed every single pair of shoes I owned on my honeymoon! We were going away for a week, and I knew that I wanted a different dress for every single night of our trip to Bermuda. Fast forward 15 years, and without my strong and handsome husband to carry and haul all of my stuff around, and it was A LOT of stuff, I had to figure out how to have confidence in what I was wearing, look adorable, and manage all my belongings on my own. I am quite intellectually self sufficient, but this realm of physical management was something that had to be learned I boy did I conquer it. So, as I set out for Dev Learn this week, I though I would share some of my favorite tips and tricks to help other working moms best prepare for their business trips too!

Dos and Dos (who needs Donts?):

Here are some of the highlights that get me through conference packing

DO Pack light.
DO Ship conference materials like brochures and swag in advance. I also ship my travel rig in this package.
DO Be sure to call your hotel and make sure they will hold the above package until your arrival!
DO Stick to one color palate.
DO Wear/Pack shoes you can actually function in ALL day and night! I love my chanel ballet flats. They look chic and are very supportive. I always pack black and gold for such trips. Sometimes, in summer, I also bring pink ones. https://www.chanel.com/us/fashion/search/?text=ballerinas&page=0&suggestion=false&cat=True&axis=fashion
DO Use travel size toiletries. I keep mine packed always and replenish as soon as I run out so that bag is always ready. I use this bag from Tumi that is TSA approved and you do not have to take anything out at security: https://www.tumi.com/p/split-travel-kit-022193D2/

Today as I work on this blog I am in the midst of packing for a trip myself. In addition to actual work, I have to pack a weeks worth of school lunches and snacks. I have to do all of the laundry. And sadly, my sweet dog who is always by my side is already at my mom’s house. I try to plan as much as I can in advance not just to make my departure easy, but to make my return easy.

There are a few details that always help me. I keep toiletries that I need in flight in the same cosmetic case and check that I have what I need the day before departure. For cross country and international flights, which I often have, I would hate to be without anti-nausea medicine. I always brink a cozy scarf. I love the ones from J. McGlaughlin: . I also make sure that I not only have m computer, but that I have a cosmetic cased filled with my charger and a Mophie so that I can recharge when I land or if I have a long day at the conference. I always, always travel with my Bose noise canceling headphones. I am a little bit nervous when I fly, not about the actual plane, but about all the details that I can’t control like whether or not we’ll land on time and who will be in my row, and just removing the extra noise helps a lot! So, I always make certain to have these travel essentials!

A Little Pampering Never Hurt

Everyone has different goals on their work trips. When I am going and I will be meeting potential clients or seeing current clients, I want to look and feel my best. This is not the time to cut corners! I make sure to bring what I will sleep well in and will be most like home. This is not the day to try new mascara, nor is it the day to let your hair air dry. If you are a solopreneur investing in flying across the country to connect with clients, spend what is likely between $30-50 and have your hair blown out if you cannot do a decent job on your own. People come from all over the world for these conferences. Once you have actually gotten yourself there, you might as well but your best foot forward.

You can Always Buy It There

I find that it is far better to arrive organized and shop of you need to than to overpack and overwhelm yourself. Unless you are going somewhere very remote, if you forget something it is just a great reason to shop!

In the end, you can figure out what works for you! With lots of business travel under my belt, I have quite an efficient system. If you have tricks that work for you I’d love to hear about them! Wishing you safe travels and an enjoyable trip! Now, don’t forget souvenirs for your kids! 🙂

A Voiceover BBQ? Yeah, You Heard Right!

October 17, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

It’s At Uncle Roys and It’s Fabulous

For a group of people who work at home, alone, in padded foam booths, it’s pretty exciting when we get to leave our studios and mingle with other professional voiceover actors, producers, and agents. It’s even more exciting when it happens to be a glorious fall day in New Jersey. And better yet, add a smokin’ live band and some pot luck food into the mix? Well our beloved Uncle Roy of Antland Productions sure knows how to roll out the red carpet and make everyone feel welcome. Even our voiceover website people fly in for this! It is no wonder why voiceover folks come from as far as Europe and the West coast to attend Uncle Roy’s over 12 hour BBQ extravaganza. And let’s not forget the bagel brunch the next day…

But anyone in voiceover really knows that it is not the burgers and beer that draw the crowd. Uncle Roy is creating the quintessential schmooze fest for all of us to unwind and relax. There is no coaching. No one is trying to sell anything or book any demos. Aside from the occasional mention of an upcoming conference or a mutual client, most actors stop talking shop and just spend time getting to know each other face to face. This opportunity to leave our booth and connect is something that we clearly all crave and need in order to thrive in the voiceover industry.

The Camaraderie

Unlike many other creative industries, there is a true sense of camaraderie in voiceover. I felt it from the beginning of my time in professional VO, people really want to help each other and lift each other up. There is a sense that there is enough work out there for everyone and o good days and bad professional voiceover talents are really helpful to one another.

I think I was perhaps most excited about Uncle Roy’s barbecue because other women that I chat with all the time in my accountability group were going to be there. Seeing these women in person, being able to talk face to face in the same actual space, meant so much to me.

It is also exciting that after being in voiceover for a few years, I am really starting to build connections and get to know people. It is so nice to walk in and recognize so many faces and feel so at home. I remember as a newbie how overwhelmed I was and wondering if I would ever fit in. Having these professional relationships that feel like such a deep connection is something that I value greatly.

The Aftermath

Another reason Uncle Roy’s bbq means so much as that I have the joy of having some friends actually stay at my home and get to know my family a little more. I have blogged at length about how my children are the motivation for everything that I do. Having the people that I work with get to know my husband and my kids is also quite gratifying.

It also works the other way. It was a joy to me to come how from the train station, having picked up two dear friends who were in town for the bbq, and see my son Jack making waffles for our friends. Jack made quite a mess and our friends were trying to help. It was so nice to see the kids forming their own bods with these people that I have come to cherish and value. My hope is that it will help my twins to understand this part of my life more thoroughly.

It is so amazing to me that so many people make this great effort to come to Uncle Roy’s bbq. It means to them what it means to me, and we all want to be there and value the connections that we are building and maintaining.

From One BBQ to the Next

So how do we make it from one year to the next? Well unfortunately we don’t get to see everyone all the time. We don’t even get to see the other voiceover actors who live close by often because well, life gets in the way. But, we all try to get to the big events and the conferences. And Skype and FaceTime sure do make life easier.

When I was young I was in a sorority called AXO. I never intended to join a sorority but boy did I love it. I realize that I am a people person and that building relationships is very important to me. So, when I think about why an event like Uncle Roy’s BBQ matters, I think it is because at this point it gives all of us another opportunity to foster these relationships that are critical to our professional and personal success.

Packing My Bags and Conference Bound

September 19, 2018 by Laura Schreiber

Time to Pack the Roll-y Bag

After three days in Atlanta I was on the airport shuttle back to the airport. In truth I had never gone very far. I spent the entire time at an airport hotel, for VO Atlanta, one of the biggest voiceover conferences of the year. First, it should be noted that I get terribly car sick and was dreading this shuttle ride. On the shuttle I immediately noticed a gal that looked really familiar but I had not actually gotten to spend time with at the conference. It was the one and only Shelley Avellino. We spent the entire time on the shuttle chatting away. They after clearing security we had lunch before I flew back to NYC and Shelley was off to Vegas. You see, that’s how voiceover is, we treat each other like family. Shelley and I now have weekly chats and I don’t know what I ‘d do without her. That is the magic of these conferences.

One of the biggest reasons that I was confident enough to pursue voiceover years ago was that I did not want to leave my children, Emma and Jack, and commute to New York. I wanted to work from home. So, it seems quite ironic that last year I went away six times to various conferences. Six. S-I-X. I packed my black Tumi bag, and off I went. In truth I feel terrible when my car picks me up for the airport, as if I am leaving my right arm behind. So why do I do it, and so often? Sometimes it’s necessary to leave the foam booth both to meet clients and for professional development opportunities.

ELearning Conferences

As a professional eLearning narrator, I have made some wonderful connections and ultimately gotten great clients from attending conferences including ATD and eLearning Guild conferences. I have had an opportunity to narrate training modules for some of the best known brands, including Ace Hardware, PSE&G, and Walmart to name a few, all based on connections made at conferences. I have met independent instructional designers and large content providers, but I think leaving the comfort of my padded foam booth and making a face to face connection makes all the difference. Whether I am in Orlando or San Diego, the location is irrelevant. I show up at these conferences to listen to what potential clients’ needs are, so that I can better understand what they are looking for in a professional narrator. I also come so that I can introduce myself in person and let them know why I am different than my peers and how my broadcast ready studio sets me apart. The next conference I will attend is Dev Learn in Las Vegas in October, 2018. If you’ll be there let me know!

Radio Summits

Radio Imaging is another big piece of my professional voiceover business. I have a passion for it and am the female voice of multiple Top 40/AC, Classic Hits/CHR, and Christian Top 40 (REL) stations. From sweepers to station promos, this is a genre that I love from format to format. When my mentor Randy Thomas suggested that I fly out to Los Angles last May for the World Wide Radio Summit at the W Hotel in Hollywood, I was one of about 50 voiceover actors who was there. Not only did I meet top radio industry professionals and talent agents, I learned so much about the inner workings of radio both from attending the sessions and from talking to other attendees. I was actually amazed by both how many people I met and how much I learned in just a few days. As a professional voiceover actor who does a lot of radio imaging, this conference was well worth the cross country flight.

Professional Voiceover Conferences

I have had the opportunity to attend multiple voiceover conferences. Not only have I learned so much that has helped me stay current in my industry, but I have had the opportunity to connect with folks from around the world that I otherwise only know online. I am going to go point by point about what I love on this, but I could right multiple blogs about each conference below, so this is just a very brief summary:

WoVo Con: Located in Las Vegas, I attended as a professional talent, but now non pros can attend as well. I loved the seminars that were offered! I did not attend any master classes but the practical skills that I learned I use every day. I also liked the size of the sessions and felt that it was comfortable enough that I could absorb everything.
VO Revolution: In Kankakee, IL. One piece of advice- fly into Midway!! I loved the small intimate setting. I learned so much about marketing and was very inspired. It was a great setting to share ideas and ask questions. This is a great conference for folks starting out or for folks who need a business jumpstart.
VO Mastery: In Studio City, CA. This workshops stands out because of the amazing amount of master classes with top industry professionals and the level of access talents have to interact with them throughout the conference. The panels were also outstanding.
VO Atlanta: In Atlanta, GA. Last, but certainly not least, VO Atlanta is the biggest VO conference of the year. Voiceover professionals come from around the world to attend this conference. I think I enjoy this so much because it is a great opportunity to connect with other talents. So many themes in voiceover are covered that you could focus on what ever topic you are trying to improve on and attend panels and master classes in that field. From voiceover technique to business tools, everything is covered at this conference.

The Other Perks….

So, I love meeting clients in person. I also love meeting other voiceover professionals. But the truth us, I have also gotten to go to some beautiful and fun places when going to these conferences. Last year I was in San Diego for an eLearning conference. If you have never been to San Diego, it is really beautiful. I was also in Las Vegas and had a special evening out with friends from Europe and from the West Coast. We ate at a truly decadent restaurant with an incredible view atop the Mandarin Oriental Hotel.

In April I attended another conference in Orlando. I had lunch with other voiceover talents and stayed at an amazing hotel with a lazy river! While I am highly motivated to grow and maintain client relationships, and stay on the forefront of the voiceover industry, I confess the travel perks ain’t half bad either!