August 6, 2021
What’s the best and worst pieces of advice you received during your career?
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Brian Mack, WXXL: Best: Never make logical decisions from an emotional place. Worst: Just embrace your career. Josh Wolff, WAEB: Best piece, just be yourself. Worst piece, just be yourself!
Rich Davis, KDWB: When I think of one piece of advice, I always go back to Steve Rivers when I was in Philadelphia and he would always say, Just Play the Hits. Steve was great. Valentine, WBHT: It’s a tie for best advice: Let go of what you can’t control; and pick your battles. Worst advice was the one PD who told me if I don’t stick with him, I’ll never go anywhere. He’s out of the business now.
Lee Abrams mediavisions: Best advice: Stay positive. It’s a tie for the worst: Give it up, FM will never be a factor; and you can’t play albums with a format. Oil and water. Kobe, WZNE: The job security is in programming, also that the job security is in being talent. (It’s helpful to rotate every 10 years) Max Volume, KOZZ: Best: Make sure you have more headline artists than warm-up bands. When the DJ’s get tired of a song, the audience is just getting into it. Find that thing you do and do well, do it a lot and smile while you’re doing it. You never know who got a diary, treat everyone like the most important person on earth. Worst: The listeners don’t care what your opinion is, nor do they want to hear your stories about the band. |
Matt Johnson, WPLW: Best: Stop and ask yourself, what’s the best thing we can do here. Worst: What’s the worst that could happen, and just moving forward.
Bartel, WKTU: Best: Connect with listeners locally in the community. Worst: I plead the 5th. Guy Zapoleon, Zapoleon Consulting: The best piece of advice was from my Dad, who was a very successful and respected executive in his own industry. He said never ever burn a bridge by blasting someone you are angry at for screwing you over. Why?!? Because you never know when you’ll need that person to help you or not block you in the future and want him on your side and not as an enemy. Boy was he right! The worst piece of advice was from a fellow PD who said the Top 40 chart in a certain trade magazine was the best list of the hits possible, better than local research (he had his own callout), and that it was bulletproof. I always found my own local callout was the best window into our 18-34 female target, but also the program directors I respected the most had ears and good local research habits.
Bob Patrick, WXLK: Best: “Do or do not… There is no try.” – Yoda. Worst: My market manager in 2004 said take the weekend off and go see the 2004 NFC Championship game in Philly… and the Eagles lost. |
Jammer, WEZB: Best: Play the hits and make it fun. Worst: Don’t play the hits and be boring! Jonathan Shuford, WRVW: Best: You’re judged more on how you handle adversity than how you create success. Worst: Shut up and play the hits.
Randi West, WRMF I’m not sure it’s “advice” but, “Have standards and ethics and hold them in high personal regard,” that’s my mantra. I don’t know that I got a bad piece of advice in my career, but someone once did suggest I learn to golf. I went and got a pedicure instead. Dom Theodore, Radio Animal Media Strategies: Best advice: Follow your gut, it’s right 99% of the time, and those are pretty good odds. Worst: Just play along. That doesn’t work for me.
Kevin Kash, WWEG/WIYY: Best piece of advice was: Be persistent. Worst piece of advice was on Day One of broadcasting school: This is radio…you WILL get fired! (or was THAT the best piece of advice?) |
Rick Vaughn, KENZ: Best: Playing the hits is easy. Playing the right stiffs is the difference between winning and losing. Worst: Just do in Atlanta what you have done in Chicago.
Adam Rivers, WKCI: Best: Be yourself. Worst: Move everywhere they ask you to.
Jana Sutter, WXXL: Best: Say YES first, figure it out second. Worst: Drink more whiskey, smoke more cigs, and drop that voice low. (really? wow.)
Jon Zellner, iHeartMedia: Best: People don’t care what you know until they know you care. Manage with “love and trust,” not “fear and doubt.” Arrogance is a sign of insecurity, be humble. Worst: Always sit at the head of the table to show everyone you’re the boss.
Jeff Hurley, iHeartMedia: Best: “Don’t F**K it up,” Pete Kennedy five minutes before my first shift on WPXY. Worst: “…well that’s what the consultant says, so just do it,” unnamed PD who had no desire or ability to personally lead his staff and is (thankfully) out of the business.
Erik Bradley, B96: Best advice came from Keith Naftaly. The minute you think you’re somebody is when you become a nobody. Never forgot this…and I think it still applies today as it did the day I heard back in the early 90s.
Fish, WKRZ: There’s a few on the best side. Don’t burn bridges. Trust your gut and believe it, don’t second-guess yourself. The one I really live by is, Try to have as much foresight as you possibly can. If anyone’s ever given me bad advice, I probably would have forgotten it instantly.
Chris Michaels, FM100: I’ve had a lot of great advice over the years. Never stop learning, be a problem solver, network with other programmers and talent to brainstorm new ideas, build a great culture with your team, and put your name on your food in the refrigerator.Next Week’s Question Of The Week:
What leaders/trendsetters (in fields other than radio) do you admire the most these days and why?
e-Mail your responses to: jodorisio@deanemediasolutions.com or bburke@deanemediasolutions.com
